Vanderbilt kicks off a new year of Commodore football on Thursday and anticipation for the new season is starting to hit a fever pitch with every passing hour as expectations and optimism continues to grow.

After going 3-9 in 2014 and 4-8 last fall, many fans as well as analysts across the country have begun to present Vanderbilt as a team on the rise in the SEC as a potential bowl contender.

On Sunday, the SEC Network predicted a 7-5 season for the Commodores and on Monday, ESPN projected Vanderbilt to appear in this December's Liberty Bowl to take on West Virginia.

Recently, Vandy247 talked shop with four individuals with experience covering the Commodore program on one form another to get their take on the Commodores entering the season, including the pivotal season opening matchup against South Carolina later this week.

The current state of the Vanderbilt program

"I think the program is headed in the right direction – perhaps not as quickly as some would like, but I don’t think it’s regressing at this point," said Maurice Patton of mopattonsports.com. "I think bowl talk is realistic for this 2016 team, and I think it would be fair to be disappointed if that doesn’t take place. I think as Mason continues to get more comfortable in the head coaching role, his demeanor is going to continue to rub off on this program and I think that’s a positive."

"I'm very much in wait-and-see mode when it comes to my opinion of the Vanderbilt program," said Nick Cole of The Atlanta Journal Constitution affiliated SECCountry.com. "There were signs of improvement from Year 1 to Year 2, but can Derek Mason get over the proverbial hump in Year 3 with a roster mostly of his own design? After a couple of "Oh no, here we go again" type of seasons for fans in the post-Franklin era, some early-season wins would go a long way in developing some much-needed excitement around Mason's product. Mason's a likable guy, but he's not a personality that's going to carry a program from a branding perspective. Because of that, things could easily appear stale if the wins aren't rolling in this season. It's one thing to be a boring team predicated on strong defense and ball control if you're winning, but losing with that approach just isn't very interesting. A rough September could turn Vanderbilt Stadium into a ghost town by November."

"Vanderbilt football is in a position of relative irrelevance when looking at the program from the outside, but I believe we are primed to make a name for ourselves with a great year in 2016," said Jimmy Troderman of Vanderbilt student-run podcast JT and Zeek on West End. "We have the opportunity to further our hard-nosed and intellectual defensive identity if the unit looks similar to last year. Simply looking at the improvement we made from year 1 to year 2, it is easy to see if we are on the right trajectory. There is one caveat, though. If we do not make a bowl this year, I could easily see us getting trapped in a cycle of poor recruiting (by SEC standards) and underachievement. This year will determine the program's attention."

"I think short-term, it's moving in the right direction," said Tom Stephenson of Anchor of Gold. "The pieces are in place this year to at least make a run to a bowl game, if not more than that. Long term is a much murkier question. It's possible that this season could be the high-water mark of the Mason era if he doesn't start getting contributions from his own recruits. Is he recruiting a lot of diamonds in the rough who will turn out to be solid contributors to an SEC team, or are these guys about as good as their recruiting rankings suggest they are? We should have a better answer to that by the end of 2016. I realize this is kind of an evasive answer, but remember Woody Widenhofer nearly got to a bowl game one year before things fell apart."

Most intriguing aspect of Vanderbilt's team heading into the season

"I am most fascinated with the offensive improvement, and while that would apparently start with quarterback, line play – where you’ve lost Andrew Jelks yet again – is a focal point as well," said Patton. "There’s a proven commodity with Ralph Webb, obviously, but there has to be a passing game threat to make defenses have to play honestly so Webb can be as effective as possible. Shurmur, and the receiving corps, will have to make plays so Webb isn’t running against a loaded box on a regular basis. If someone could take the top off opposing defenses and stretch things down the field, it’d be even better."

"The passing game is what I'm really interested in seeing," said Cole. "Will Kyle Shurmur show tangible progress as a product of an off-season of work as the primary No. 1 option at quarterback? Will the Commodores take better care of the football after throwing 35 interceptions in the first two years of Mason's tenure? Will the return of CJ Duncan make a significant impact on the Commodores' ability to stretch the field? Will Trent Sherfield become a consistent producer after showing flashes of brilliance last season? Will the offensive line be able to protect well enough to let Shurmur get through progressions and pick the right target? I think we know what the Commodores have in Ralph Webb, and we can rest assured that Derek Mason has taken good care of an already strong defense. To me, Vanderbilt's key to getting to the "next step" is developing a reason for defenses to not load the box against them."

"Will Kyle Shurmur protect the ball, that is the biggest question," said Troderman. "I hope the offensive line helps out, I hope the receivers help out, and I hope the running backs help too. BUT, at the end of the day, I don't care who else is on the field offensively. I want Shurmur to be smart enough to throw the ball away every single play if our offense gives him zero help out. If he is smart enough to protect the ball, I like where we are at."

"The offensive line," said Stephenson. "You basically have four new starters on the line with Barrett Gouger moving from guard to center; we thought Jelks was going to be returning to help that unit, but now we get to see if Bailey Granier and Justin Skule can accomplish the tasks of both opening holes for Ralph Webb and keeping Kyle Shurmur upright. This was a huge problem area in 2015 but I kind of like the potential here."

The perception of South Carolina heading into Thursday's contest

"I don’t think it’s a stretch to think South Carolina is in a bit of flux," said Patton. "I think things spiraled downward pretty quickly for them, Spurrier’s resignation/retirement came relatively out of nowhere, and they got somewhat jilted when they couldn’t pry Tom Herman loose from Houston. To put it mildly, I think the jury’s still out on Muschamp from a head coaching standpoint; he was hardly as successful as expected with a Florida program that was probably in a better position when he got there than the Gamecocks are now, so it should be an interesting ride in Columbia."

"This is a program that is very much in transition," said Cole. "Let's be honest-- things fell off quite a bit in the last two seasons of the Steve Spurrier era. The defense was really bad last season, and there are questions at pretty much every skill position on offense this season. Has Will Muschamp learned his lessons from a failed tenure at Florida? He's said all the right things, and appears to be recruiting really well, but we really have no idea what to expect from him in this game. There's no question all eyes will be on this game, and many narratives will be built upon the way his team performs in this opener. That adds some intrigue to what should already be an intriguing opener."

"To be honest, South Carolina this year reminds me a lot of our 2014 team, other than the part where they went 3-9 last year," said Stephenson. "I think Spurrier's recruiting over the last couple of years just really tailed off, they've had a lot of attrition, and that's the situation Muschamp inherits. I would be more surprised by them making a bowl game than I would by the bottom just completely falling out -- like, 2-10 or so. Also I don't really think much of Muschamp, but that's an issue that you're going to see in 2 or 3 years. This year isn't on him. Spurrier just stayed there a couple of years too long."

"I'd say South Carolina's program is in turmoil. They will be an easy target or cupcake game moving forward most likely. They do have long-term potential, though," said Troderman.

Panel says go with the Commodores

"At the risk of sounding like a fan, I think Vanderbilt wins Thursday," said Patton. "I think even with last year’s bumps and bruises, the Commodores have fewer question marks than South Carolina. But, Vanderbilt has to obviously minimize its mistakes and make the plays that are there to be made. Really, I think this is a game they’re supposed to win – but they can’t go out there with that mindset. They still have to win it."

"My gut says Vanderbilt is best prepared to win this game," said Cole. "A settled quarterback situation, a better defense, home-field advantage and a better established team identity are all reasons to give the Commodores the edge in this one. I'll take a stab at the final score: Vanderbilt 20, South Carolina 14."

"I think Vanderbilt wins, and see my comments on South Carolina are the reasoning," said Stephenson. "I just don't think South Carolina is very good; Vandy would have to beat themselves in order to lose this game. I'll go with a final score of 24-7."

"Vandy wins 20-10. Usually you wouldn't see Vandy has the talent advantage in an SEC mathcup, but when it comes to this one, we are more experienced, more talented, and in my opinion, better coached," said Troderman.

Season Expectations

"I guess I jumped the gun on this one. To me, Vanderbilt should be in bowl contention this season," said Patton. "Going down the schedule, it’s not hard to identify six potential wins, and possibly seven or eight – though the top end could be a stretch. Again, you think defensively they’ll be good enough, if the offense performs."

"Vanderbilt's offense improves enough that, paired with a suffocating defense, it's good enough to string together a 6-6 season," said Stephenson. "If I have to make an exact prediction, I think we get off to a hot start and get bowl-eligible with a win over Tennessee State before losing the last four as the depth catches up to us. I think we'll catch Florida napping for an upset."

"Ask me again in October. The four games in September have an opportunity to define the direction of this season from the very beginning," said Cole. "Vanderbilt could be 4-0, 0-4 or somewhere in between.. and the variance in performance that could define the record really isn't as wide of a range as you'd think. South Carolina, Middle Tennessee, Georgia Tech and Western Kentucky are games that-- on paper in the preseason -- could realistically be decided by seven points or less in either direction. How Vanderbilt fares in those match-ups likely will give us a better sense of how things might go when the Commodores face SEC opponents in seven of their final eight games. The defense likely is good enough to return to postseason play after a two-year absence, but will the offense be up to the task?"

"I expect Vanderbilt to take the next step, win the close games and execute in the red zone," added Troderman. "To play smart, situational football."

About the panel

Maurice Patton has been a fixture in the Nashville sports community for nearly 30 years. Patton worked for the Tennessean's sports department from 1990-2014, serving many roles including the Vanderbilt beat writer less than a decade ago. Patton is perhaps best known for his high school coverage during his career and the Franklin native has put a focus on high school sports once again with his own website, MoPattonSports.com.

Nick Cole also covered the Vanderbilt beat for the Tennessean a few years ago. Cole joined the publication in 2006 as a clerk and later served as a utility assistant to other writers on various beats, including Vanderbilt's. Also the publications lead writer for the Nashville Sounds at one point, Cole took over the Vanderbilt beat in 2014 before leaving the company in 2015. Cole has since joined SECCountry.com, a online site devoted to covering SEC sports. It is partnered with the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

Tom Stephenson is a Vanderbilt alum that began writing for Anchor of Gold several years ago. A lawyer by trade, Stephenson also writers for Team Speed Kills as a college basketball contributor.

Jimmy Troderman is a Vanderbilt student and co-host of the JT and Zeek on West End podcast, a podcast devoted to Commodore sports and hosted by Vanderbilt students. Troderman has recently contributed to extended practice coverage here at Vandy247.