Earl Bennett

Ever since his arrival on campus, the Commodores felt Earl Bennett was the most dangerous weapon in the Southeastern Conference. By earning All-SEC honors in each of his three college seasons, Bennett became just the second player in school history to accomplish the feat, joining linebacker Jamie Winborn (1998-2000). Bennett is ready to test his big-play ability in the National Football League ranks. In three seasons in Nashville, Bennett shattered most of the school's single-game, season and career receiving records. His 236 receptions also established a new all-time conference record. He became the sixth player in school annals to lead the team in receptions in three-straight years, joining Bucky Curtis (1948-50), Jeff Starling (1960-62), Curt Chesley (1968-71), Martin Cox (1976-78) and Dan Stricker (2000-02). At West End High School, Bennett served as team captain, starting at wide receiver, running back and cornerback for an 8-3 squad that advanced to the Class 5A state playoffs as a senior. He was named the City of Birmingham's Most Valuable Football Player and Most Outstanding Athlete and selected first-team 5A All-State by the Alabama Sports Writers Association. Bennett also received the Birmingham City Player of the Year Award and All-Birmingham Metro recognition. He rushed for 829 yards and 12 touchdowns and caught 45 passes for 729 yards during his final year. He also intercepted 10 passes and totaled 52 tackles at cornerback. He also lettered in basketball, averaging 11.2 points per game as the squad's point guard. He excelled in the classroom, graduating with a 3.82 grade point average. Bennett made an immediate impact at Vanderbilt. Even though he did not start until the fourth game of 2005, he set the school and Southeastern Conference freshman season-record with 79 receptions, good for 876 yards. His average of 7.18 catches per game ranked ninth in the nation, and he added 76 yards on 12 punt returns while averaging 21.3 yards on 19 kickoff returns. His freshman postseason was a busy one, as Bennett garnered Freshman All-American and Freshman All-SEC honors from The Sporting News, and was the recipient of the squad's Most Valuable Receiver Award. He added first-team All-SEC (all classes) accolades from the league's coaches and received second-team mention from the Associated Press. For the second straight season, Bennett was named first team All-SEC by the league's coaches and received the team's Most Valuable Receiver Award. He was tied for eighth nationally with a career-high 82 receptions, the second-best season total in school annals. He gained 1,146 yards, ranking ninth in the nation with an average of 95.5 yards per game. He completed two pass attempts for 45 yards and a score, finishing with 1,190 all-purpose yards. As a junior, Bennett received All-SEC first-team notice for the third time. He ranked second in the conference with 75 receptions for 830 yards (11.1-yard average) and five touchdowns while playing flanker and slot receiver. He also rushed 10 times for 22 yards. Bennett declared for the 2008 NFL Draft, deciding not to return to Vanderbilt for his senior season. In 35 games at Vanderbilt, Bennett started his final 32 contests. He totaled 2,852 yards on an SEC all-time record 236 catches (12.1-yard average) with 20 touchdowns. He carried 20 times for 44 yards (2.2 avg), returned 25 punts for 181 yards (7.2 avg) and completed 2-of-4 passes for 45 yards and a score. He added six tackles (three solo) and piled up 405 yards on 19 kickoff returns (21.3 avg). He scored 120 points and amassed 3,482 all-purpose yards, an average of 99.49 yards per game.

positives

Well-proportioned with long arms, thick chest, broad shoulders and thick muscle definition in his legs and calves...Split high with a firm midsection and a tight waist...Lacks explosiveness, but runs with a long stride and has the change-of-direction agility, along with good route stem to become a deep threat...Shows the ability to be very physical with defensive backs, using his hands well to push off to create space...Builds his acceleration quickly and has the linear speed to elude after the catch...Shows good balance and body control in his running stride, keeping his head on a swivel to look the ball in over his outside shoulder...Tough competitor who has an aggressive nature when asked to cut block, taking good angles to neutralize second-level defenders...Tough receiver in a crowd, showing the loose hips and shake to make defenders miss and the frame to adjust to the ball in flight...Plays with excellent awareness and field vision, coming back for the ball with good urgency when the quarterback is pressured...Positions his body to go up and haul down the pass in traffic...Demonstrates excellent ball concentration, coming out of his cuts and executing fluid stutter-step moves in his patterns...Shows good acceleration off the line and the hand punch to beat the press to get a clean release into the second level...Can threaten the deep part of the zone and can leverage, plant and cut when running his patterns...Will sneak up on the defender when trying to get open, using his balance and low pad level to separate...Shows good short-to-intermediate area quickness in and out of his breaks and can power through the jam with strong hand swipes...Has the ability to make the acrobatic catches, as he times his leaps well and uses his long arms to reach around the defender to secure the ball at its high point...Stays low in and out of his cuts, displaying the separation quickness to consistently go deep...Has the functional burst to get behind the defender before the catch, using his stride to get to the ball in a hurry, taking advantage of his height and long arms...When he keeps his pad level down, he is effective at getting into his routes fluidly, using his quick feet to get to the ball downfield, making proper body adjustments to extend his arm and pluck the ball...Smooth in his initial burst and can make proper body adjustments to elude at the second level...Knows how to use his size to power through arm tackles and is very good at shielding the ball from defenders...Especially effective at catching screen passes, getting to the ball even with his back to the quarterback...Uses his shake to make defenders miss and gets back to top speed in a hurry...Quiet, leader-by-example type who is a hard worker in the weight room, practice field and on game day...Tough blocker who does a nice job of facing up with aggression and has a good concept for taking angles when stalking second-level defenders...Makes a good effort to position and pester bigger pass rushers and works hard to sustain blocks...Knows how to use his hands to latch on and jerk the defender's jersey without getting caught...Once he escapes the press, he has a long stride to quickly eat up the defender's cushion...Has a good feel for the boundaries and end zone, keeping his feet in bounds while going vertical to make the catch...Has the power to drive defenders off when breaking back for the ball...Strong open-field runner who will bounce off tackles to gain extra yardage (has a fluid, smooth stride with a rapid turnover).

compares to

CHRIS CHAMBERS-San Diego...Bennett might lack blazing speed, but he shows good quickness and body movement in his routes and can get off the line of scrimmage using power or finesse. His patterns are sharp and crisp with no wasted motion and he gets in and out of his breaks quickly when he keeps his pads down. He has outstanding field awareness and the ability to read coverage. He can locate the ball in a crowd and then separate. It is rare to see him misjudge a deep throw and he has also developed into a solid cut blocker. If not used as a deep threat, he will have good success moving the chains.

negatives

Needs to improve his suddenness coming off the snap, but does build to top speed nicely...Has great hands, but will double catch at times...When he fails to sink his hips, he will sometimes take false steps coming out of his breaks...Shows good body control and has the flexibility to adjust to the ball, but needs to show better consistency (sometimes seems hesitant in his plant)...Slippery route runner, but does not have that sudden burst or second gear to win the race to the end zone on pure speed alone (best when he sets up the defender with double moves and head fakes)...Needs to improve his slide in the open zone and while he has good acceleration, he needs to use it with more consistency on transition cuts...Good short-area receiver, but when he fails to drop his pads, he struggles a bit to gain separation...Has had ball-security issues fielding punts cleanly and with his lack of suddenness, it would not be recommended to use him on special teams at the next level.

2006: Missed two weeks of August camp with a deep right thigh contusion. 2007: Sat out the second half of the Tennessee game (11/17) when he fell awkwardly on his back trying to make a catch in the second quarter.

Campus: 4.51 in the 40-yard dash

250-pound bench press

500-pound squat

34-inch vertical jump

4.52 20-yard shuttle

32 1/4-inch arm length

9 5/8-inch hands.

Attended West End (Birmingham, Ala.) High School, playing football for head coach Jim Tyrus

Served as team captain, starting at wide receiver, running back and cornerback for an 8-3 squad that advanced to the Class 5A state playoffs as a senior

Named the City of Birmingham's Most Valuable Football Player and Most Outstanding Athlete and selected first-team 5A All-State by the Alabama Sports Writers Association

Named Birmingham City Player of the Year Award

Received All-Birmingham Metro recognition

Rushed for 829 yards and 12 touchdowns and caught 45 passes for 729 yards during his final year

Also intercepted 10 passes and totaled 52 tackles as cornerback that season

Lettered in basketball, averaging 11.2 points per game as the squad's point guard

Excelled in the classroom, graduating with a 3.82 grade point average.

Communications major, ranking near the top of his class academically

Volunteers with several efforts aimed at helping local children in inner-city Birmingham community

Son of Sarah D. Bennett and Earl Frison

Born Earl Bryan Bennett on 3/23/87

Resides in Birmingham, Alabama.