Clinton (Tenn.) offensive tackle Barrett Maddox already had nearly 30 offers heading into his senior season, but saw his recruiting stock rise throughout the fall as power five programs like Kansas, UCLA, and Vanderbilt entered the race.

Last week, Maddox took a mid-week, day trip to Vanderbilt on November 17th where he got a thorough tour of the campus and facilities while also spending quality time with the coaching staff. He left Nashville that day with an offer from the Commodores, one he's been wanting for quite a while.

Maddox made a quick return trip to Nashville over the weekend to watch the Commodores 31-24 win over Florida.

While he was in attendance, he gave his verbal pledge to offensive line coach AJ Blazek and became the Commodores 16th overall commitment in the 2023 class.

ON HIS COMMITMENT: "I went to camp my junior year there and I just fell in love with Vanderbilt. I love what Coach (Clark) Lea and Coach (AJ) Blazek is doing down there, so I couldn't miss out on being a part of the family. I told Coach Blaz on Saturday and he just started getting hype and started hugging me. He was just happy and you could see that he really wanted me to be there."

ON WHAT HE LIKES ABOUT AJ BLAZEK: "He's really real with you. He doesn't just throw out offers. He takes his time with it which I really respect that. He thinks I have a big future ahead of me. He says I'm his type of lineman and he loves the way I play. I had an injury late in the season and he loved the way I played through adversity and came back and played the last two games of my senior year."

ON WHAT BLAZEK LIKES ABOUT HIS SKILLSET: "He likes the way I move. I'm long, quick, and I got a motor. He loves my pass-pro and the way I move off the ball."

ON WATCHING VANDY'S OFFENSIVE LINE THIS PAST WEEKEND: "I loved the way Coach Blazek was coaching. He was coaching non-stop. There wasn't a time he was not coaching. He's telling his guys what they are doing right and what they are doing wrong."