Three Vanderbilt football players, including Langston Patterson, announce plans to return

A trio of Vanderbilt football players intend to return to the Commodores in 2024, they announced on social media Thursday night.

Left tackle Gunnar Hansen, defensive tackle Christian James and linebacker Langston Patterson all indicated their intentions to return. Patterson posted on X, formerly Twitter, "Here to stay #anchordown." The other two posted graphics that said "I'm back."

Patterson, a rising junior, was Vanderbilt's leading tackler in 2023 with 74 total tackles, and he also led the team with eight tackles for loss despite not starting a game. He had one sack, one forced fumble and an interception. In addition to being the Commodores' top returning linebacker, he is a special teams ace. His return is vital for a team that is losing two of its top linebackers in Kane Patterson (out of eligibility) and Ethan Barr (transfer).

Hansen has been a two-year starter at left tackle. James, who will be in his sixth and final year of eligibility in 2024, appeared in seven games in 2023 after suffering an injury at the beginning of the season, recording 12 tackles. In 2022, he started all 12 games and had 31 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.

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

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Langston Patterson, two others announce return to Vanderbilt football