How is Diego Pavia Taking Command of this Offense?

how is Diego Pavia taking command of this offense you are locked on Vandy your daily podcast on the Vanderbilt commodor part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day welcome into the locked on VY podcast on the lockon podcast Network I'm your host Corey Burton thanks for making lockon VY your first listen every day are free and available wherever you get your podcast and on YouTube as a part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel make every moment more as the playoffs wind down the sport stops sporting like we want them to but this summer FanDuel is hooking up all customers with the booster a bonus daily that's right there's something for you everyone every day all summer long so visit fanduel.com to get started as Vandy embarks on practice number 10 CJ Taylor is named to the bed Eric award watch list the defensive line continues to Anchor the defense and as the offense continues to try and find Rhythm how was Diego Pavia taking command of this offense well in the in the quarterback race which has been tight for all for nine practices in a scrimmage Nate Johnson has done a tremendous job competing uh as far as with Diego Pavia and and all the things that he had all the barriers potential barriers that he had that was standing in his way of a starting job I I think when you when you take all those things into account it's been a really really good effort for what Nate Johnson has been able to put up but honestly Diego PVE is starting to pull away from this uh in this quarterback race and it comes down to the command the command that he has of the offense the command that he has in the you know obviously in the Huddle at the line of scrimmage things like that now he does have his limitations and I think why this race is still somewhat tight and they still haven't named officially named a starter and I think some of that's gamesmanship they're not going to name a starter up you know so that Virginia Tech does have something to prepare for they're going to wait so that you know if Virginia Tech wants to prepare for Pavia they can if they want to assume that he's going to be the starter um but let's just say there's a plot twist and Nate Johnson ends up winning this thing late you never know so they want to keep Virginia Tech guessing I there's a little bit of gamesmanship there so but it's it's something that we already knew okay and and this is something that didn't quite play out that way uh to start because I think a Pavia was a little bit nervous in his first live reps with uh with the team um I think Nate Johnson came out really strong uh based on all his reps from the spring the Rapport that he built in the in the spring he came out really really strong um but as Pavia gained confidence I think some of that pressure started to mount on Nate Johnson and the command that he has of the offense the checks the being able to coach guys on the Fly being able to put the ball in the proper spot all the things that you need to command an offense Diego Pavia was doing and in doing so I believe it put pressure on Nate Johnson to feel like he has to outperform that he's not going against Dio Pavia he's going against an entire system he's having to overcome somebody who is got his master's degree in this system uh essentially and Nate and Nate Johnson is just vying for his bachelor's degree which in a lot in any other case would have been perfectly fine and I think Nate Johnson would thrive in this system but we're starting to kind of see a little bit today's practice was a little bit rougher than the scrimmage for Nate Johnson I mean Nate Johnson is starting to kind of get into a bit of a slump he's starting to kind of feel the pressure a little bit and the weight of this quarterback race as they as he decide or in his own mind decides that it's an insurmountable lead now I'm a big fan of Nate Johnson I was a big fan of of him the day he committed uh the I I didn't know who he was at uh when they first played Florida when he was at Utah and I was like who is this Nate Johnson guy he just cooked the Gators which brings joy to my heart because um you know anytime seeing you see Florida lose that's always good but seeing what he was able to do explosively then then as he committed I started watching some some uh whatever film I could get my hands on of that there was uh there was the game against Baylor where he led him on that drive and he was able to uh display his range of abilities and he has those he is a I think he's going to be a really really good quarterback it's just that the unfortunate situation that he is in is that the one person that probably could have beat him out for this job is here and that's no shot at Nate Johnson I think Nate Johnson's done a tremendous job Diego Pavia just comes in already a leg up in that regard I think Nate Johnson tried to get it to where they were on equ footing as far as command as far as knowledge um but it just didn't it just didn't quite pan out that way yet and I'm I'm saying all this like Pavia has named the starter I think it's starting to get to a place to where it's just a formality at this point I think unfortunately for for Nate we're getting to this point and you have to kind of realize that you have to kind of understand that that it again it's not something against it's not a shot against Nate Johnson it's not saying that he is bad all right for one quarterback to start does not mean the other quarterback has to be bad it just means that hey he gives us a slightly better chance to win because of XYZ and XYZ right now is important than PDQ which Nate Johnson brings um if this offense was in a if this team this program was in a slightly different spot I I I think you might I think the tone of this in the evaluation portion of this competition might be slightly different like you might be able to go with the more athletic more explosive bigger arm guy um because if there's an identity already established you might be able to kind of fit into that right but that's what this team was lacking the most last year and you have a guy that fits perfectly with the coordinator and the head coach of the offense is what Jerry Hill's calling himself you have somebody that fits perfectly with that it's almost silly not to go with that and I I think that's where we're headed and the fact that this was that this is a legitimate competition tells you everything you need to know about Nate Johnson he's good the quarterback room is in good hands reading the practice reports would leave would lead you to believe otherwise but that's what preseason camp is for you make the mistakes now you clean them up so that you're ready to go I I think I think the closer the closer this thing gets to the Virginia Tech game I think you're going to start to see the Reps split out gradually I don't think they want to do it drastically right now um because again a little bit of gamesmanship there where they want to throw Virginia Tech off this off the scent a little bit so when when you're Distributing the Reps I I think once you establish a guy I think everything else will fall in line right cuz right now the receivers are out of rhythm because they're just not sure like when there's when there's things that up in the air things are a little tighter and when things are a little tighter that's when offenses kind of tend to fall apart because you get misalignments you're thinking too hard you're pressing all that stuff right and I think that's why Nate Johnson has kind of taken some steps backwards because I think he's pressing a little bit and he's kind of worked himself into a little slump and now his confidence is down a little bit and you can kind of tell right the receivers are a little bit off okay and part of that could be they're they're missing which I think might have been the most important piece but London humph uh will Shepard and Jade McGowen like they're missing those pieces and London humph is crushing it in Athens so that might that might be one of the biggest losses Vandy had in the portal because of the impact that he's making down in Athens he could have made that here in Nashville but knowing what he knows now maybe he goes maybe he doesn't I I don't know but he's doing well down in Athens but uh but this you know this competition it I think it disrupts a little bit and obviously you know this is not the only quarterback competition around there's other competitions around other programs even at the NFL level it disrupts things a little bit I I think you need to settle in on somebody so that you can get valuable reps with the uh with the starter and same with the receivers you have to find that Core group of guys to where now okay here's your first group here's your second group let's get in a rhythm let's get this operation down let's get things right and I think eventually that'll happen so I'm not I'm not one to panic because they're still installing stuff they's still tinkering this stuff there's a competition going they don't know who the starting receivers are yet there's a lot of things that are up in the air the the one thing that's not up in the air right now the one thing that is happening and we can tell it's happening we knew it was going to happen and this was the and this was the reason why Diego Pavia was in the driver seat as soon as he committed was his command of the Huddle his leadership qualities I I think because of his knowledge he has a lot more confidence right now because he knows and now he's trying to pass that along which it's not going probably as well as he he would want it to cuz because it's still a little bit sloppy and there's some receivers that still haven't really stepped up at all but it's uh it it it's happening and you know I think for Vandy this resolution could be a really really good thing and this thing could really kind of almost get us set now to take on Virginia Tech and I guess the sooner we realize that the sooner things can get kind of in order a little bit and and the offense can find its Rhythm because the defense is certainly doing so so um but I mean you know I'm you know how how how does the wide receivers get in tune how does how do you find a receiver that's going to step up who is going to be that guy how do how do we know who those guys are going to be well we'll tell you in just a minute hey this episode's brought to you by FanDuel check it out I love sports I love them so much I never wanted them to stop but as the playoffs wind down we get fewer games and the sports just aren't sportsing like we want them to the FanDuel lets me keep the sports going whenever I want all I have to do is open the app and dream up bets anytime I'm in the mood and this summer FanDuel is hooking up all customers with the Boost or a bonus daily that's right there's something for everyone every day all summer long so head to so head over to fanduel.com and start making the most of your summer which is rapidly coming to a close FanDuel is the official sports betting partner of major League Baseball all right welcome back thanks for making lockon Vandy your first listen of the day but for your second listen enjoy the lockon college football podcast Spencer McGloin gets you ready for an exciting season on the grid iron with discussion on the upcoming season and the everchanging landscape of College athletics including conference realignments the transfer portal nil new college football expand and playoffs and more locked on college football is available on YouTube and wherever you get your podcast part of the lockdown podcast Network your team every day and speaking of you every dayers thank you thank you thank you thank you for all of your support we uh I I certainly do appreciate it I certainly do appreciate all the feedback that that I receive I it's it's all extremely valuable even when it comes from user 61582 36123 x- WCW 212 even when it comes from that person that's uh that's also valuable uh valuable feedback so uh the receivers like this is anytime your offense tries tries to find a rhythm right they need somebody to step up okay and I'm hearing some of the names I'm hearing this might actually turn into despite all the transfer portal guys this might actually turn into a youth movement all right one name I'm hearing as somebody that really really needs to to be elevated into the starting units is Joseph McVey he's somebody that is starting to perform a little bit he's starting to kind of get after it and he's starting to make plays him and Tristan Brown just might find themselves in the lineup two guys that I really wasn't expecting to be in this position I knew they were good I knew they were fast I knew they were explosive and good receivers but you just with all the portal guys you just don't know like where they kind of fit in like are they going to get some staps or they going to be rotational Guys these guys might end up be being starters two or three games into the season maybe even out of Camp I mean these two guys are stepping up uh junior Cheryl I think is starting to take the lead a little bit um I think he was kind of up and down and and and I think that's uh somebody also that could uh that could be in there L fi is uh is a receiver that he's trying to make some noise he's maybe there by default because he's such a big Target that you just put him out there run some hitches some curls some things just to just to deliver the ball his way and just get some yardage down the field but I I think honestly the receivers what you need to look for is you need to find somebody with a skill set that can get you yards after the catch that can run Crossing routes across the field things that and and run and do things that can be dangerous at a short to intermediate level especially given the fact that Diego Pavia seems to be the guy right now um you're not really going to push the ball vertically a whole lot with Pavia in the game um I I think that's gonna happen more rare than if Nate Johnson was in and that might be an Avenue for Nate Johnson to come in and he might be your shot guy your explosive run guy um but you know I think you have to have people that could run screens that could run jet sweeps that can do that can take a slant from five yards to 20 uh I I think you need somebody that can run digs Crossing routes mesh routes things like that that really take advantage of defenses horizontally instead of vertically I think if you can create some vertical space and just give the illusion that you're going to take a shot and maybe take a shot down the field occasionally um I I think you have to have that that horizontal threat and when you have a tight end group as good as this tight end group is which Tyler Fortenberry is starting to kind of get in the mix a little bit too um but you know you have uh you have Cole Spence and you have Eli Stowers at that position so you can do some 12 Personnel stuff you can do some Jet Sweep stuff you can do some things with your receivers without having the ball travel more than 20 yards down the field that can be considered explosive and if you if you're going to do that you've got to have guys that get yards after the catch now from a receiver standpoint okay in order to separate yourself okay here's kind of the psychology of what's going on with them a little bit I think he I think this is kind of what I think this I anticipate this is kind of what I think they're thinking from the receiver group okay now they're thinking okay they're thinking I've got to make plays all right we're in a competition too so there's pressure on me to win this rep against a a a group of cornerbacks that are performing quite nicely although they're dropping like flies I don't know the injury bug has found them so far but um it's the pressure of having to win every rep make every catch perform and score on every play in the scrimmage like I think the pressures is starting to kind of I don't think it's starting to I think it has been this way since the start a camp but they have you know with with the room is as it is with as many guys as there are with as many spots as there is up for grabs which all the spots are up for grabs uh at the receiving spots because there's nobody really that's there that they're like okay that guy's a Sure Fire Starter I think that breeds a little bit of competition there and and you know you're starting to see the separation of guys who can handle it guys who can't and I think the two freshman McVey and Tristan Brown can handle it I think Quincy Skinner can hand handle it although he probably I think he needs to be a little bit more consistent uh junior Cheryl starting to be able to handle it as well L fi is bouncing back and forth but you don't really know about him uh Jeremiah Dylan is falling apart uh Richie Hoskins is kind of a dark horse in this whole thing and he might see some time where he where he looks at the roster and goes yeah all these guys that they brought in yeah that that screws me over but um you know he might just find himself in there and so there there's something to be said about this these these reps and how they're distributed and the opportunities that they're getting I think you're starting to see kind of where the identity of this receiving core is going to shake out you need quick fast explosive guys in short distances because that's what you're going to need in order to move this ball down the field uh any semblance of vertical uh you've got to have guys that are quick at the line of scrimmage and can uh can get off press coverage because you know defenses are going to compress down and say hey I dare you to go over the top because we know you can't right they're going to see that they're going to challenge that and if you have guys that can't really win short then you're not really gonna have anything and so these guys know it and they're pressing themselves on it and now they can't they can't make the plays that they need to they're dropping the ball they're misaligning they're they're running routes at inconsistent depths I mean there's just all kinds of like mental busts and things that are happening because I I think they're trying to figure out exactly what is needed from them exactly where they need to fit in I think some of them are starting to to look into the numbers a little bit as far as the depth chart goes and they're saying okay my reps are shrinking um what you know what's going on here or like hey this you know they see Tristan Brown make a play and they're like oh crap the Freshman is going to jump all of us and there's just a whole lot of things swirling around in their minds I think that they can't seem to kind of function and I honestly I think it would help if at least one of those three guys would have stayed and I I think the guy that was kind of the glue guy which Shephard and McGowan Shepard was kind of like your big play guy like your big explosive guy McGowan was kind of like your allaround guy and then London humph was just the glue man uh and and I think if London Humphrey stays around you know I think if you have a glue guy like that maybe maybe this group performs a little better like I just don't think there's a veteran guy in that group that can sit there and kind of Coach these guys up and say all right well I'm gonna take this spot all of you guys compete for this spot I'm G help you do it so that we can win you don't really have that and you need that and this group needs that and so this group when they finally figure it out they're going to be pretty good because they got guys of all different skill types um and all then they can hurt you all a lot of different ways but I think once they kind of figure out once they kind of officially settle in on Pavia which honestly it's gonna happen they can they can start to plan their attack a little bit better they can start working those short intermediate routes they can start working off press coverage because they're going to have to um and and they can start doing the things that they need to uh to in order to win against defenses they're going to play them a certain way stop the run force them to to to push the ball vertically challenge them to P push the ball vertically and that's how vandy's going to have to win they're going to have to manufacture uh they're going to have to manufacture explosive plays they're going to have to force some shot plays hopefully not to the detriment of a turnover but they're going to have to push some of this stuff down the field if they're going to have a chance but all else fails if the other team doesn't score none of this matters and the defensive line is going to make sure that happens um and CJ Taylor's on the bener award watch list we'll talk about all things defense next eBay Motors passion drive and patience the formula for winning 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rolling slowly because when this thing goes full steam ahead you'll you'll wish you were on the train and I'll still welcome you it's okay um don't you worry about that so I told you to make locked on Van I told you to make locked on Vandy always your first listen of course but make locked on college football your second listen and then after that locked on SEC Chris Gordy um let's uh let's get that going let's get that cooking so um we are closing in on this thing uh this we are getting closer and closer to the Virginia Tech game and and honestly some more answers on the defensive side of the ball are starting to emerge like the defensive line is going to start to become a key focal point of this defense um when you when you kind of look at how this defense was constructed at first because there was a lot of mystery I don't want to say unproven guys or like a lot of question marks because question marks implies that it was bad which I don't think it ever was bad I just think we just didn't know much about exactly how this defensive line would shake out both scheme and Personnel wise so I've always kind of maintained that this defense was built from the secondary for forward but what we're learning now the secondary is still equally as good okay don't get it twisted especially the safeties and our and the bed Eric award watch list finalist CJ Taylor but the defensive line is going to be a key focal point of this defense okay and they're the group that's going to kind of make this thing go a little bit and it's becoming a thing it's going to be a thing that when you watch this defense play you're going to be really excited about watching this defensive line go because they're going to get pressure they're going to wreak havoc they're going to move they're going to crash gaps they're going to disrupt things and they're going to be uh they're going to be something that is hell to to work against and they did all of that in practice in the 10th practice in in yesterday's practice they did all of that they were brilliant man they Bradley man uh he's he's becoming disruptive uh cord sidor is becoming somebody that is just emerging as a leader a vocal leader a guy that has a lot of Versatility Zen wood also the two the two defensive line transfers can play kind of all across the board there uh those guys are starting to become valuable pieces to this puzzle uh an D Cosmo Daren auu um they're getting healthier so they're they're going to they're going to improve and they're going to get in um on the action so this is this is something that I think Clark Lee I don't know if he anticipated it but I think he's certainly welcoming this and I I think this is somewhat of a surprise because they just there was injured guys guys that were just okay last season probably for a lot of reasons that aren't their fault um they've been in a they've been involved in a better strength and conditioning program since January uh they've had they're in a better scheme since last season uh they've grown and developed just generally speaking uh and they've just kind of found their groove Javon Haye is a great great defensive line coach as well and he's doing a great job down there uh you know coaching those guys and getting those guys ready for play and I think the fact that there's so many names and the fact they're going to have to rotate a little bit tells you about kind of where the depth was and kind of where it is now and that speaks to the development of this defensive line and this defensive front I think there's a lot of belief there that this group can really be the Havoc causing defense they can be the ones that push the pocket they can be the ones that Force quarterbacks into bad throws you saw that in the scrimmage and you've seen that in various 11on 11 periods uh in Red Zone periods and team team focused team oriented periods especially live ones that this defensive line is really really tough to deal with and they're tough to deal with because they're athletic they can move they're a lot stronger than they were this time last year and they're a lot more savvy than they were this time last year the defense actually has an identity so they kind of know what what the objective is I I think there's a lot to be said physically mentally emotionally um whatever whatever the case is this defense line is good and a good defensive line breeds good linebackers because a good defensive line just kind of takes everything up front and draws and commands attention from those guys and these linebackers are left to roam free when your defensive line is getting killed guess who else is getting killed your linebackers are getting massacred that's not happening right now at least not in practice I I don't I don't know like against I don't know against the texases and the bambas of the world we'll see how it translates I I I'm optimistic about it I think I think he'll translate quite nicely and guys like CJ Taylor will benefit because he's going to be all over the place there's going to be pressure there's going to be tip passes at the line of scrimmage there's going to be bad throws that are forced because it because Zen wood or cord sidor is bearing down on the quarterback and he doesn't want to take another one he do want to take another helmet to the chin um there's going to be all kind of things that happen because this defensive line has is creating more of a sense of urgency for the opposing quarterbacks which is something that they lacked all last year the pass just terrible so um let's talk about CJ Taylor for a second he made the bedner award watch list which is a huge huge deal to have a Vandy player on that watch list to begin with is a huge deal now there's a lot of great players out there there's a lot of great defensive backs out there and a lot of great Defenders um so it's going to be some stiff competition but the fact that he's in the mix tells you what you need to know the the voters the award voters know that c that uh CJ Taylor's in a great scheme that will benefit him tremendously they must know something about this defense that a lot of people don't and he's going to have some opportunities to put up some numbers and this is going to be fun fun to watch because he's going to play back deep he's going to play up close to line of scrimmage he's G to move around a lot I think I think there's I think there's gonna be some creativity that Clark Lee's being koi about that CJ Taylor's being koi about when they interview him uh that this team is just kind of being Hush Hush about a little bit that you're going to see kind of Unleashed on the hes and the defense is going to be fun to watch they're going to be explo they're going to be Havoc they're going to be fun to watch they're going to be good and they're going to have to be because the offense is GNA need some time to kind of get kind of get their feet up under which is normal when you got a new scheme so but that's going to do it for us here on uh on the lockon Vandy podcast on the lock on podcast networks thank you for listening make sure you behave yourself uh we'll check you out check us out tomorrow we'll see you back here tomorrow peace out anchor now