Sheppard made the biggest catch of his career last week at Kentucky, hauling in an 8-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Mike Wright with 32 seconds remaining. Sheppard’s score with 32 seconds left gave Vanderbilt a 24-21 win, snapping a 26-game Southeastern Conference losing streak for the Commodores.
In Napier’s second season at Louisiana in 2019, Sheppard was one of the state’s top recruits at Mandeville High on the shore of Lake Pontchartrain. At 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, Sheppard is a talented blend of size, speed and hands.
“He was definitely a guy that we evaluated,” Napier said Wednesday. “We had a bunch of early commits that year at receiver and he was a guy that had a heck of a senior year. Got some height and length to him, basketball athlete.”
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Sheppard had 62 receptions — 24 for touchdowns — and 1,276 yards his senior year of high school. He has continued to shine at the collegiate level despite playing for a program that is 6-25 in his three seasons. However, as Vanderbilt (4-6, 1-6) prepares to host Florida (6-4, 3-4) on Saturday, the Commodores and Coach Clark Lea are hopeful of better days ahead following their comeback win at Kentucky. It was Vanderbilt’s first conference win since defeating Missouri in 2019.
Meanwhile, Sheppard is a big reason for the optimism. He is second in the SEC and eighth in the FBS with nine receiving touchdowns. Sheppard leads the Commodores in catches (52), yards (708) and average yards per game (70.8).
His father, Willie Sheppard, played football at Louisiana Tech, and Sheppard’s mother, Rebekah Boyd, played volleyball at the school.
In two career games against Florida, Sheppard has five catches for 69 yards, including four for 45 a season ago at The Swamp.
Napier sees a much-improved player than he saw back in Louisiana.
“Really developed later,” Napier said. “I’m proud of the guy. He’s really made the most of his opportunity at Vanderbilt and he’s a matchup player. He’s got height, length and speed. One of those unique Louisiana athletes that gets overlooked, and we made a living off of them and he’s another good example of that.”
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