Vanderbilt Football Team Captains Announced

Vanderbilt football released who will be its team captains in a post on X (formerly Twitter) Saturday night.

Offensively, the three captains will be quarterback Diego Pavia, tight end Eli Stowers and wide receiver Richie Hoskins. All three are graduate students and in their final season of collegiate football. 

With plenty of college games under their belts, the three offensive captains enter the 2025 season with plenty of experience to the team and have immersed themselves as the leaders of Vanderbilt’s offensive operation. 

The trifecta of veterans are looking to take the offense to the next level this season. With Pavia at the helm and coming off his first year at Vanderbilt with 2,293 yards and 20 touchdowns and just four interceptions, he has plenty of confidence in both himself and his team that they can improve on last season.

“I feel like when I touch the ball, anything can happen,” Pavia said in an interview with SEC Network at the Commodores SEC Media Day.

Stowers led Vanderbilt in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns last season with 49 catches for 638 yards and five touchdowns. He decided to come back for one last season to leave his mark on the football program. Additionally, Stowers is hoping that if he can put up better numbers than last year that his draft stock will improve.

Hoskins played in just seven games last season where he caught 11 passes for 131 yards and two touchdowns. This is Hoskins’ second team captain selection. The former walk-on has quickly worked his way up to his captain role and hopes to make bigger contributions this season.

Defensively, Vanderbilt named five captains: safety Randon Fontenette, linebacker Langston Patterson, safety Marlen Sewell, defensive linemen Khordae Sydnor and Yilanan Ouattara.

Fontenette finished third on the team in tackles with 73 and recorded a team-high eight pass break-ups. He also played a meaningful role in Vanderbilt’s upset victory of No. 1 Alabama with an interception returned for a touchdown. 

Patterson earned his second team captain selection as the Nashville native has come into his own and become a defensive leader. In last season’s Birmingham Bowl victory, Patterson came up with 1.5 sacks and four tackles en route to a 35-27 win over Georgia Tech. 

Sewell is also a captain for the second time. In 2024, he played in all 13 games and made 20 tackles on the year.

Both Ouattara and Sydnor are team captains for the first time. The two linemen made 10 and 11 starts, respectively Ouattara came up with two sacks and 31 tackles last season while Sydney finished with 14 tackles and four sacks as a senior. The two defensive veterans are hoping to help put pressure on opposing offenses in a season where Vanderbilt comes in with a deep defensive line.

Vanderbilt returns to the field a week from tonight as the Commodores take on Charleston Southern in their home opener at 6 p.m. CT Aug. 30.

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