Why Jared Curtis can participate in Vanderbilt football bowl practices

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TAMPA ― Jared Curtis already has been impressing in Vanderbilt football practices ahead of the ReliaQuest Bowl.

Curtis, the 5-star quarterback signee and top recruit in the country for the class of 2026, enrolled at Vanderbilt for the spring semester. He has been able to participate in bowl practices. NCAA rules allow it as long as the early enrollees do not take the team above the roster limit of 105 players, though those players cannot play in the game itself.

According to Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea, Curtis and six other early enrollees have been practicing on the scout team and will be with the team for the bowl game itself, albeit not dressed out.

No. 12 Vanderbilt (10-2) will face Iowa (8-4) in the game at Raymond James Stadium on Dec. 31 (11 a.m. CT, ESPN).

“Jared has been able to be with the offense in preparation, take reps over the course of the last couple weeks,” Lea said. “It’s been very valuable, and it’s a small sample size, but obviously there’s a lot of learning. But I think it sets the course for a faster start in January.”

Curtis, who played his high school ball at Nashville Christian and won back-to-back state titles, has already been impressing his new teammates.

“The talent you can see just kind of oozes out of him,” tight end Cole Spence said. “You watch him throw and it just kind of jumps out of his arm. He’s a very talented guy and I see his work ethic and we’re really excited to watch him develop.”

Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Clark Lea talks Jared Curtis in Vanderbilt bowl practices

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