Vanderbilt Football officially signed 13 players from the high school Class of 2025 on Dec. 4th. The Commodores’ class ranks 70th in the country according to 247Sports, largely due to its smaller size — their 13 commits are the fewest in the SEC.
The Class of 2025 also features the fewest recruits that head coach Clark Lea has reeled in since he took over Vanderbilt’s program. Lea wasn’t concerned about the number of signees, noting that it was an intentional decision.
“It’s a small high school class for us [and] that’s intentional because we have a full roster currently, and we’re going to need to make some room,” Lea said at his press conference on Dec. 4. “But also [because] we’re going to have a lot of work over the next few weeks as the transfer portal opens.”
He outlined that his staff has been focused more on the portal than on high school recruits this season.
“[This season], we’re going to be a little more portal-heavy than we were high school recruiting-heavy, coming off a successful season,” Lea said. “A lot of that has to do with what the needs are on our roster and [asking ourselves], ‘Where is the best place from which we can address those [needs]?’”
This approach isn’t abnormal in today’s college landscape, and it continues a trend of transfer focus that Lea’s staff — which brought in 20 transfers last season — hasn’t shied away from.
“When you look at where we need to add and where we need to bolster, there are reasons to emphasize the portal for us this time around,” Lea said. “Next year could be different, and we’ve just got to keep examining [what our] needs are.”
Lea is focused on building on the success of the 2024 season, which saw the Commodores qualify for a bowl game for the first time since 2018. His priority is to bring in veteran impact players with college experience.
The bowl game doesn’t just mean one more game for fans to watch as they bid the 2024 season goodbye — it means more practice and more time to develop players.
The Black and Gold will also welcome in four early enrollees — Cayden Daniels, George Okorie, Carson Lawrence and Vanzale Hinton — who will get to practice with the team throughout December as it prepares for postseason play. Lea spoke on the benefits that December practices will offer these four.
“I feel really good about the fact that, with bowl prep, we’ll have early enrollees that will be able to join in with us and have some practices,” Lea said.
As Vanderbilt waits to hear the location and opponent for its bowl game on Dec. 8, it’s focused on transforming its roster and making it even stronger come the 2025 season. Let’s learn a little more about the newest members of Vanderbilt Football.
Carson Lawrence | Safety | Chattanooga, Tennessee
Lawrence is the highest-rated player in the Commodores’ recruiting class, according to 247Sports. The 4-star safety has been committed to Vanderbilt since June of 2023 and has stayed devoted to the Black and Gold despite receiving several Power Four offers from schools like Florida, Indiana, Miami, Tennessee and Ole Miss. Lawrence represents a massive recruiting win for Lea and Co., who have struggled to recruit in-state compared to the Volunteers.
“He’s had plenty of suitors, and we’ve always been consistent in the vision we have for his success here,” Lea said. “We’ve always been consistent with relationships.”
Lawrence will enroll early and begin practicing with the team this month.
Davin Chandler | Safety | Berlin, Maryland
Chandler represents another recruiting win for Vanderbilt but for different reasons than his soon-to-be secondary-mate Lawrence. The Commodores flipped Chandler from Virginia a few weeks ago. The Maryland native is a versatile athlete who played both safety and wide receiver in high school, tallying four interceptions and nine receiving touchdowns during his final year at Stephen Decatur. Chandler, like Lawrence, fits well into Lea’s future vision for Vanderbilt’s defense.
“In the world we play in now, you can’t have enough [of the] long, athletic, hybrid safeties,” Lea said.
Josiah Broxton | Linebacker | Tallahassee, Florida
Broxton is the Commodores’ third-highest-rated recruit, per 247 Sports, and the highest-rated non-safety in their 2025 recruiting class. The 5’10,” 210-pound linebacker is undersized compared to others at his position but possesses unique speed — see his three kick-return touchdowns in 2024. He’s the 76th-ranked prospect in Florida and will likely slot into Vanderbilt’s hybrid “STAR” position, where players take snaps at outside linebacker and safety.
Vanzale Hinton | Cornerback | Paducah, Kentucky
Hinton continues the defensive theme of Vanderbilt’s class, as its top four recruits are all defenders. Hinton had offers from Michigan State, Purdue and Memphis but ultimately decided the Black and Gold was for him in April of 2024. Hinton was the seventh-ranked recruit in Kentucky and should provide some depth to a Commodore cornerback room that was ravaged by injuries in 2024.
He’ll stand a good chance to contribute as a first-year in the 2025 season, as he is one of Vanderbilt’s four early enrollees and will practice with the team as it prepares to go bowling.
Cameran Dickson | Wide Receiver | Corpus Christi, Texas
Dickson is the highest-rated offensive player in this class for the Commodores and will look to provide immediate relief to a wide receiver group that ranked dead last in the SEC in production this season. The Texas native has blazing speed and was ranked inside the top 100 recruits in his home state.
Austin Howard | Linebacker | Bartlett, Tennessee
Howard has gone on a journey with Vanderbilt since April of 2024, when he first committed to play for Lea. Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel made an offer to Howard just days after his commitment to Vanderbilt, and Ole Miss and Mississippi State followed suit in June. He de-committed from Vanderbilt and committed to the Bulldogs over the summer before de-committing after their rough start to 2024. In the end, he chose Vanderbilt over Tennessee, Ole Miss and more, committing on Nov. 16 — the same day as Chandler.
“I can talk to [head] coach [Clark] Lea. I can call anybody right now, and they’ll pick up the phone,” Howard said in an interview with The Hustler. “It was just that love, and we didn’t even have to talk about football. We could be talking about random stuff.”
Lebron Hill | Wide Receiver | Hammond, Indiana
Hill represents another receiver for offensive coordinator Tim Beck to work with, albeit a completely different mold from his future teammate Dickson. The Indiana native is 6’4” and 180 pounds and possesses an untapped physical potential that Beck will work to develop over the next few years. Hill originally committed to Louisville this summer before de-committing three weeks later, instead choosing Purdue. He de-committed from Purdue this fall and received offers from Kansas and Kansas State, but ultimately went with the first team that gave him an offer — Vanderbilt.
George Okorie | EDGE | Nigeria
Okorie is the most raw — and perhaps most exciting — player in this recruiting class. The Nigerian never actually played high school football, but he practiced with NFL linebacker Eze Obiora after college ended. Okorie flew largely under the radar because of this — only receiving four offers — but he has the size and athleticism to make every SEC team wish they offered him. He attended camps at Ohio State, Georgia, Texas A&M and Oklahoma, but none of them pulled the trigger. Vanderbilt had Okorie at its July 26 camp this summer, and he committed on July 29.
“There’s just so much potential there. When [Okorie] camped with us, it was so clear [how significant] his physical tools [were],” Lea said. “He carries a similar mentality [to Diego Pavia].”
Okorie will also enroll early and begin refining those physical tools as soon as possible.
Cayden Daniels | Cornerback | Cordele, Georgia
Daniels is the fourth and final early enrollee of this recruiting class. The Georgia native committed to Vanderbilt following an official visit in June and never wavered, only receiving one other Power Four offer from Wake Forest. The 5’10” cornerback will practice with the team this December as he prepares for the 2025 season. With the imminent returns of Mark Davis and Marlon Jones, though, Daniels could be relegated to a smaller role during his first year on West End.
Jake Stanish | EDGE | Naperville, Illinois
Stanish doesn’t quite have the raw athleticism that Okorie has, though he boasts plenty of experience from one of the biggest high school football programs in the state of Illinois. He was a top-40 recruit in-state and flipped to the Commodores in November after originally committing to Buffalo back in August. Stanish chose the Commodores over a pair of Power Four schools in Cincinnati and Boston College.
Stanish might not be the speedy edge-rusher that Okorie is, but he’s got an SEC frame. He checks in at 6’4” and 230 pounds and figures to develop into a nice run-stopper for Lea’s defense.
Gabe Fields | Running Back | Kansas City, Missouri
Fields committed to Vanderbilt in June of 2024, choosing the Commodores over Iowa State and Baylor, among others. The Missouri native tore up the gridiron during his senior season with Central Football — the 6-foot running back accumulated over 1600 yards from scrimmage and 19 total touchdowns during his final high school football season. Lea highlighted his excitement about Fields joining the program.
“I immediately felt like [Fields] was a fit when he came on to visit. It was so clear to me that this guy was screaming Vanderbilt Football,” Lea said. “We’re really excited about him, and I think we’ve got to continue to build depth in that running back room.”
With AJ Newberry’s status for next season up in the air after his late-season injury, Vanderbilt is going to need all of the depth it can get at running back. Fields will provide that.
Kayleb Barnett | Wide Receiver | Jenks, Oklahoma
Barnett was the last of Vanderbilt’s 13 to commit to the Black and Gold. He waited until Dec. 2 to announce his allegiance, having previously been committed to Central Arkansas for nearly three months. The wideout is another recruit for the Commodores that flew largely under the radar among other Power Four teams — Barnett only received two offers from the Bears and Lindenwood.
Standing at 5’8,” 150 pounds, Barnett possesses elite speed — he was an Oklahoma state champion in the 100-meter dash and long jump — and should fit well into Beck’s motion-heavy offense.
Jack Elliott | Quarterback | Mount Carmel, Illinois
Elliott is the first high school quarterback to commit to play for Beck and this new rendition of Vanderbilt’s offense. Elliott threw for 3,147 yards and 36 touchdowns in 2024 and added another 858 yards and 17 scores on the ground during his senior season. He runs with a combination of speed and toughness that is eerily reminiscent of a certain signal-caller for the Commodores. Many, including Lea, have drawn parallels between Elliott and Pavia.
“He [reminds me] a lot [of Pavia]. He’s scrappy, fast and physical,” Lea said. “He plays with a chip on his shoulder that really fits our system.”
These 13 players, whether they contribute immediately in 2025 or take a redshirt season as they prepare for 2026 and beyond, are bought into Lea’s vision. The signing of this class marked the beginning of a critical period for Vanderbilt Football, and Lea knows that.
“[There’s] a lot to like about today,” Lea said. “[This is] the start of what will be a month-long transformation of our roster.”
However, Vanderbilt won’t have any time to rest as it prepares for the NCAA transfer portal to officially open on Dec. 9.
