Vanderbilt’s roster is starting to look the part under Clark Lea, and not just in the usual football sense. Around McGugin Center, the list of players who jump off the page physically keeps getting longer, and this year’s group has plenty of names that fit the “freak” label in very different ways.
At the top of that conversation is Issa Ouattara, the 6-foot-7, 315-pound defensive lineman who has the kind of size-and-strength combination that turns heads immediately. Former Vanderbilt defensive line coach Larry Black once summed up his body as a “97 million” dollar body, if he can harness it.
Ouattara, for his part, said over the summer, “I don’t feel like I have a genetic ceiling,” Ouattara told Vandy on SI over the summer. “God has blessed me with a lot of talent, so I feel like it’s just in my hands to polish the gift he’s given me and just become the best player I can be.”
What makes Ouattara especially intriguing is that he isn’t just huge. He moves well for a man that size, and that’s why Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea said a year ago that he believed Ouattara was an NFL player. That belief appears to be shared inside the program, and Ouattara is being viewed as a player who could be one of Vanderbilt’s best in 2026.
There’s another big-bodied standout in the trenches, too, and that’s offensive lineman Keanu Azubuike. He checks in at 6-foot-8 - with some around the program saying he’s actually 6-foot-9 - and 310 pounds, yet he moves with the kind of ease that makes him look smaller than he is.
Vanderbilt offensive line coach Chris Klenakis pointed to the challenge that comes with his size, saying, “When you’re 6-foot-9, playing with pad level is a challenge,” Vanderbilt offensive line coach Chris Klenakis said. “He is really improving his pad level and that’s really been a stress point with us, with him.”
Azubuike is in the mix for a starting job in 2026.
On the other end of the spectrum, Vanderbilt has Jamezell Barnett, its smallest scholarship player at 5-foot-8 and 155 pounds. But if size gets him overlooked, speed does the opposite.
Barnett is the fastest player on the roster, and people inside the program believe he can really run. He made his point during the 2025 season when he said, “Everybody just thinks because I’m small that I’m not gonna be able to do nothing,” Barnett told Vandy on SI during the 2025 season.
“I’ve got to show them what I can do every time.” As a sophomore, he’s expected to have a bigger role, with speed still his biggest calling card.
At linebacker, Langston Cowan stands out as the most physically impressive player in Nick Lezynski’s room. He’s 6-foot-4, 235 pounds, fast, and has started to turn that power into consistent production next to Vanderbilt’s veteran linebackers. Lezynski’s one-word scouting report on him was simple: “Violent,” Lezynski said in regard to Cowan’s tone on the field.
Vanderbilt defensive coordinator Steve Gregory also singled out another defender, Carter, who has not yet been asked to carry a major role but keeps drawing attention every time he shows up to practice. At 6-foot-5 and 261 pounds, he fits right in with a room that already has some borderline freaks, and he adds fluid athleticism and a little edge to the mix.
Carter finished 2025 with three tackles and one quarterback hit, but Gregory said, “He's done a really good job of improving since he's gotten here," Vanderbilt defensive coordinator Steve Gregory said. "I think he'll be able to do some really good things for us."
Wide receiver Xavier Hill is another player whose physical traits keep him in the conversation even if his spot on the depth chart is not yet where the hype might suggest. He’s 6-foot-5 and 190 pounds, a smooth athlete with long-term appeal. Vanderbilt liked him as a three-star recruit out of high school and appears committed to developing him.
Freshman offensive lineman Mitchell Smith also fits the profile. At 6-foot-6 and 320 pounds, he has a frame that people around the program rave about, and Vanderbilt landed him as a three-star prospect despite heavy competition. His offer list included Alabama, LSU, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Auburn, Florida, Penn State, Missouri, Southern California, Florida State, Clemson, Kentucky, Arkansas, Mississippi State and Stanford.
In Other News...
Vanderbilt's Quarterback Battle Just Got More Complicated Before Saturday
Vanderbilt trimmed the workload and spent a shorter practice on live action ahead of Saturdays scrimmage, and the quarterback competition remained front and center. Jared Curtis and Blaze Berlowitz both had opportunities to make their case, with the session giving the staff another close look at how each handles game-speed work as the battle continues to sort itself out.
The bigger takeaway was that neither quarterback let the other run away with the day, while Coleman also kept pushing for a role as he works through his transition from tight end. With the scrimmage still ahead, the Commodores are left with more evaluation to do and another chance for the depth chart to shift before the week is over. [Read more 🡒]
Vanderbilts New Offensive Line Is Already Changing The Offenses Outlook
Vanderbilts offensive line has spent fall camp trying to turn a major reset into a strength, and so far the early signs have been encouraging. The Union is working with only one returning starter in Cade McConnell, while newcomers Beau Johnson, Lyndon Cooper and Micah DeBose have quickly been folded into the mix, giving the group a very different look than it had a year ago.
Offensive line coach Chris Klenakis has pointed to progress in technique, discipline and communication, all areas that mattered as the Commodores tried to stabilize the front. With the first scrimmage looming, the bigger question is how quickly that growth shows up when the unit has to function as one, but the early sense around the group is that this version of the line may be farther along than anyone expected. [Read more 🡒]
Karter Richmond Has A Huge Chance Waiting At Arkansas
Karter Richmond is heading into the kind of season that can change his trajectory in a hurry, with the Arkansas matchup looming as part of a bigger spotlight on college juniors who could start shaping the 2027 NBA Draft picture. For Vanderbilt fans, it is another reminder that the program is watching one of its players enter a stretch where every big game, every show of skill and every week of consistency can matter a lot more than it did a year ago.
Richmond is grouped with a handful of other juniors who already have scouts circling because of their physical tools, college production and long-term upside. Some of those players have already flirted with the 2026 draft before choosing to stay in school, which only raises the stakes for what comes next, and Richmond now has a clear stage to show whether he belongs in that first-round conversation or even higher by the time 2027 arrives. [Read more 🡒]