Vanderbilt Football held the Black and Gold spring game on April 12. This annual affair pits the offense against the defense in a 60-minute game with a running clock.
The game followed a unique scoring system to measure each team’s success. The defense scored 6 points for touchdowns, 3 for forced turnovers or three-and-outs, 2 for third-down stops or sacks, 4 points for forced field goals in the red zone and 1 for tackles for loss. The offense scored 6 points for touchdowns, 1 for extra points, 2 for 2-point conversions, third down conversions or 20-yard gains and 3 points for field goals.
While stars like Diego Pavia and Eli Stowers did not appear, others got the opportunity to prove themselves. FAU transfer CJ Heard impressed at safety, while former four-star recruit Brycen Coleman showed promise at tight end.
Quarterbacks Drew Dickey and Blaze Berlowitz continued their battle for the backup role, with both leading impressive touchdown drives.
“I’m proud of these guys for the work they put in. I’m proud of them for the day they had,” head coach Clark Lea said after the game. “I saw both sides being very intentional, and some back and forth. It’s good to see some young players play as well.”
First half
Heard tackled Berlowitz for a loss on the opening snap, and Bryce Cowan ended the drive with a sack of his own on third down worth 2 points to make it 5-0 defense.
The defense also dominated the next drive. Jamison Curtis forced a fumble by Sedrick Alexander, which the defense recovered on the first play for 3 points. The drive ended with a sack on third down worth 5 points, bringing their total up to 13.
Brock Taylor got the offense on the board with a 48-yard field goal to make it 13-3, and Drew Dickey came in for Berlowitz to lead the next drive. After moderate progress, Heard made yet another tackle for loss to force a punt and make it 14-3 defense heading into the second quarter.
Berlowitz came back out to start the second quarter and scrambled for a first down after missing a wide-open Martel Hight down the field a few plays earlier. Hight, who was a starting cornerback and All-SEC punt returner for the Commodores last season, saw a few snaps at wide receiver throughout the scrimmage.
After a few promising first-down conversions, Berlowitz threw it right into the arms of first-year cornerback Cayden Daniels to give the Defense an 18-3 advantage. Sophomore Jeremy St-Hilaire came in for Berlowitz after the blunder, and a conversion on third-and-1 scored a point for the offense. A holding penalty set the offense back, but St-Hilaire made up for it with two straight completions to score another 1-point conversion.
Cowan nearly brought St-Hilaire down for a big loss, but he stayed up and ran into the red zone for a first down to make it 19-8. Cowan forced a fumble by St-Hilaire on the next set of downs, which resulted in another tackle-for-loss worth 1 point for the defense. The setback forced the offense to settle for a field goal, which scored 3 for the offense but 4 for the defense to make it 24-11.
Second half
Sophomore Whit Muschamp got the nod at quarterback to start the half but led an unproductive drive that saw the offense pick up 0 points to the defense’s 2. Muschamp stayed in for the next drive, and Coleman picked up two first-downs on consecutive plays for the Commodores, the first on a reverse and the second on a deep pass up the middle.
Berlowitz came in for Muschamp and ran for over 30 yards to convert the offense’s first touchdown of the scrimmage. The score, worth 8 points total, and the accompanying extra point cut the defense’s lead to 26-22.
Lassiter scored another 2 points for the offense on a third-down conversion on the next drive with Dickey back under center. The third quarter ended with a completion up the middle that landed the offense on the 25-yard line.
Dickey and Co. came out swinging after the break, as the quarterback connected with sophomore tight end Larry Benton III on a 25-yard touchdown pass that put 8 points on the board and gave the offense its first lead of the afternoon at 32-28.
The defense reclaimed a 38-32 with a stifling performance on the very next drive. Berlowitz then took over with time running out and threw a 20-yard completion to pick up 2 points for the offense, and he ran for another first down to reach the red zone. The former New Mexico State transfer won the game for the offense 40-38 with a touchdown on the run to tight end Cole Spence.
Vanderbilt will be back in FirstBank Stadium on Aug. 30, when it welcomes Charleston Southern into Nashville to start the 2025 college football season.
