Tag: vandy football

College football fans stunned after No. 1 Alabama’s upset loss to Vanderbilt

Vanderbilt gets their first win against No. 1 Alabama in over two decades years.

Well, well, well. A week after defeating the Georgia Bulldogs and claiming the top spot in the AP poll, the Alabama Crimson Tide were looking for an easy victory over the non-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores. Instead, the Commodores caught fire, stunningly beating Alabama 40-35.

The Vanderbilt offense was ultra-efficient in this one, gaining 418 yards and 26 first downs with no turnovers. Diego Pavia threw for 252 passing yards and two touchdowns on just 20 attempts.

Overall, though, it was the running game that piloted the offense, with 166 yards on a whopping 54 attempts. While that amounts to just 3.1 yards per attempt, it was absolutely crucial in Vanderbilt winning the time of possession battle. Overall, the Commodores earned 42 minutes of possession in this one.

Alabama tried to keep pace with them offensively, with Jalen Milroe throwing for 312 yards on 25 attempts, but a pick-six in the first quarter and a fumble late in the 4th sealed the loss.

This is the first time Vanderbilt has beaten a top five team, and the first time they’ve beaten Alabama in 23 years.

Here are some of the best college football fan reactions to the upset loss:

 

 

 

 

Georgia football drops hype video for Vanderbilt game

Georgiahas dropped a hype video before UGA football’s Week 7 home game against Vanderbilt.

The Georgia Bulldogs have dropped a hype video ahead of Georgia football’s Week 7 game against the Vanderbilt Commodores. No. 2 Georgia enters the game 6-0.

Vanderbilt is 3-3. The Commodores have already won more games than they did during the 2021 and 2020 seasons combined. Vanderbilt is looking for its first SEC win since 2019.

The Commodores have improved significantly under head coach Clark Lea, but still have a long way to go. Vanderbilt quarterback AJ Swann has impressed in limited action this season and is expected to start against Georgia.

Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Stetson Bennett will get his first career start against Vanderbilt. Can Bennett and the Georgia passing offense get back on track? Georgia started the season on fire offensively. However, the Georgia passing offense has struggled in the red zone. The Bulldogs have not thrown a touchdown pass since the third quarter of the South Carolina game.

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Chris Conley narrates a nostalgic video to get Georgia fans fired up ahead of the Oct. 15 game against Vanderbilt:

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Dawgs on top: Georgia-Vanderbilt series history

Kirby Smart and Georgia football enter the 2022 Vanderbilt as big favorites over the Commodores.

The Georgia Bulldogs and Vanderbilt Commodores have battled on the football field dating back to 1893. Georgia has dominated the series in recent memory, however, Vanderbilt began the series as the top team.

Georgia has won the last four games in the SEC East series. The Bulldogs and Commodores have played 81 total games in their history. Among SEC East foes, the Bulldogs have only played the Florida Gators more.

Kirby Smart and Georgia football enter the 2022 Vanderbilt as heavy favorites over the Commodores. Let’s take a look back at the series history between the two schools:

Key Vanderbilt RB leaves program ahead of Georgia game

Running back Rocko Griffin, who has left the Vanderbilt football program, ran for 517 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in 2021.

Vanderbilt Commodores running back Rocko Griffin has left Vanderbilt’s football program. Griffin ran for 517 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns last season.

The junior running back has received just nine carries in 2022. The Commodores will miss Griffin for their game at Georgia in Week 7.

Georgia dominated Vanderbilt, 62-0, last year. The Commodores will be motivated to play better this time around, but they will have to do it without Griffin.

Vanderbilt (3-3) is off to a much better start to the 2022 college football season. The Commodores have accumulated 1,005 rushing yards this season, which is part of the reason they are performing better in 2022.

Griffin has the fourth-most carries of any player on Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt starting running back Ray Davis is coming off a 100-yard performance in last week’s loss to Ole Miss.

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TV, commentators set for UGA vs. Vanderbilt game

The Georgia-Vanderbilt game will be televised on SEC Network. Kickoff is the same time as the hyped up Alabama-Tennessee game.

The (6-0, 3-0) Georgia Bulldogs host the (3-3, 0-2) Vanderbilt Commodores  on October 15. Kickoff time for the SEC East clash is 3:30 p.m. ET.

Vanderbilt is off to a much better start this season. The Commodores have been much more competitive in 2022. Vanderbilt went 2-10 during the 2021 college football season.

The Commodores have not won an SEC game since beating Missouri in Oct. 2019.

The Vanderbilt-Georgia game will be televised on SEC Network. Taylor Zarzour will call the play-by-play, former Georgia Bulldog Matt Stinchcomb  will serve as an analyst, and Alyssa Lang will be the game’s sideline reporter.

Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea has the program playing more competitive, but can they win an SEC game in 2022? Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Vanderbilt will be motivated to after last year’s embarrassing game against Georgia. The Commodores lost 62-0 at home against the Dawgs last season.

Vanderbilt has not played in Athens since 2018. The Commodores were unable to field a healthy team against Georgia in 2020. Georgia and head coach Kirby Smart have won their last four games against Vanderbilt.

Georgia has won 23 of the last 26 games in series history.

Georgia fans may be tempted to watch the Alabama-Tennessee game that is also at 3:30 p.m. ET this Saturday. There are a lot of great college football games to watch in Week 7.

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Game time, TV announced for Georgia-Vanderbilt

When does UGA play Vanderbilt? The game will be televised on SEC Network.

The Georgia Bulldogs host the Vanderbilt Commodores in Week 7 of the 2022 college football season. The kickoff time for the Georgia-Vanderbilt game on Oct. 15 is 3:30 p.m. ET.

Vanderbilt is currently 3-2 and is off to a much better start this season. The Commodores host No. 9 Ole Miss the week before playing Georgia. The No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs are 5-0 and host Auburn before the Vanderbilt game.

The Vanderbilt-Georgia game will be televised on SEC Network.

Vanderbilt will be motivated to do better against Georgia. The Commodores lost 62-0 at home against the Dawgs last season.

Ladd McConkey and the Georgia Bulldogs dominated the Vanderbilt Commodores in 2021. Brett Carlsen/Getty Images

Vanderbilt has not played in Athens since 2018. The Commodores were unable to field a healthy team against Georgia in 2020. Georgia and head coach Kirby Smart have won their last four games against Vanderbilt.

Here’s the full SEC TV schedule for Oct. 15:

Alabama at Tennessee, LSU at Florida, Arkansas at BYU and Mississippi State at Kentucky are all interesting and important games.

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Vanderbilt fires HC Derek Mason ahead of game against Georgia football

Georgia football’s next opponent, Vanderbilt, has fired head coach Derek Mason.

In the midst of a winless 2020 season and on the heels of a 41-0 loss against Missouri, the Vanderbilt Commodores announced they have fired head coach Derek Mason.

Sitting at 0-8 on the year, Vandy is the conference’s only team without a win. The Commodores are set to face the Georgia Bulldogs this coming Saturday in Athens.

Offensive coordinator Todd Fitch has been named the interim coach.

AD Candice Storey Lee issued the following statement following the news:

“On behalf of the entire Vanderbilt community, I want to extend my deepest gratitude to Coach Mason for his many years of dedication and service leading our football program,” Lee said. “Derek cares deeply about the student-athletes under his charge. His tenure at Vanderbilt will be remembered for his steadfast commitment to our student-athletes, not only on the field, but in the classroom and as young people.”

Mason had seven years in Nashville, all of which concluded with losing records. His final record at Vandy is 27-55.

College Football News ranks SEC head coaches: Where’s Kirby Smart?

College Football News ranked the top SEC head coaches. Where is Georgia football’s Kirby Smart?

Pete Fiutak of College Football News recently released a list ranking the SEC head coaches heading into the 2020 season.

Checking in at No. 3 on the list is Georgia’s Kirby Smart, who trails only Nick Saban (1) and Ed Orgeron (2).

At No. 4 is Dan Mullen and at No. 5 is Gus Malzahn.

As much as I’d love for Smart to be in that No. 2 spot, I do not disagree with Fiutak here.

Smart’s time will come, and within the next five years he may very well occupy that No. 1 spot.

For now, he’s sitting at No. 3 on Fiutak’s list, likely right on the verge of taking over that No. 2 ranking. As long as he keeps winning the SEC East, beating rivals and putting his team in striking distance for the College Football Playoff…he’ll be considered a top-five coach in America.

Orgeron or Smart at No. 2 was likely a somewhat difficult decision. Fiutak went with Coach O since he accomplished something Kirby hasn’t yet, a national championship.

I’ve heard it all – “Anyone could win with that roster.”

Sure, Smart probably would have won it with that roster LSU had last year. But, at the end of the day, he didn’t have that roster. No other way around it.

Also, how can you not love Coach O?

As for Saban, there’s no arguing that one.

Ranking SEC head coaches heading into 2020 CFB season

We ranked all the SEC head coaches, from Georgia football’s Kirby Smart, to Arkansas’ Sam Pittman, to Florida’s Dan Mullen.

The SEC is loaded with head coaching talent as we head into the 2020 college football season.

You have your usuals – Nick Saban, Kirby Smart, Gus Malzahn, Ed Orgeron, etc.

But then you have your familiar, or in some cases not-so-familiar, yet new faces: Lane Kiffin, Mike Leach, Sam Pittman, Eli Drinkwitz.

Ranking the SEC head coaches heading into the 2020 season is as hard as it’s ever been, and that’s because of all these new hirings. But it’s also because Jeremy Pruitt waited until October to start winning games in Tennessee last year. It’s because Ed Orgeron took a loaded roster and won a national title. Because Gus Malzahn and Auburn always have the talent but can’t seem to win the big ones. Or because, despite a 4-8 season, Will Muschamp was able to knock off Kirby Smart and Georgia.

Related: 2020 Georgia schedule with game-by-game score predictions

With all of this taken into consideration, here’s our SEC head coaching power rankings for the 2020 college football season:

14. Sam Pittman, Arkansas

I would have loved to get Pittman into a higher spot on this list, but what is there to go off of? His last head coaching job came in 1992 and 1993 when he led Hutchinson Community College to an 11–9–1 record over two seasons.

I am 100% rooting for Pittman to succeed in his first season as head coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks. It won’t be easy, and this is a team that will likely finish with at least five losses for the first few years, but that’s not necessarily a terrible thing as long as they play hard.

Arkansas may not field the most talented teams in the SEC, but if there’s one thing I’m certain of it’s that the former UGA O-Line coach will make sure his guys fight harder than anybody.

13. Eli Drinkwitz, Missouri

Drinkwitz gets the No. 13 spot because of what he was able to do at App State last year. In his first season as a head coach, he led the Mountaineers to a 12-1 record and a Sun Belt championship.

But that’s not the SEC. It’s going to be a rocky road ahead for Drinkwitz, as Mizzou will definitely not be one of the more talented teams in the league for a few years.

12. Derek Mason, Vanderbilt

I often find myself rooting for Vanderbilt and Mason.

He took over at Vandy when James Franklin left for Penn State, and though it’s been tough at times, you get the feeling that Commodore fans actually look forward to their seasons.

11. Will Muschamp, South Carolina

If Muschamp had not beaten Georgia last year, he maybe would not even be on this list at all.

But he won and that probably saved his job. He coaches up a good defense, but South Carolina will need to crank up its recruiting efforts if it wants to start contending in the SEC East. Another season with no bowl game may put an end to Muschamp’s head coaching career with the Gamecocks.

10. Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss

Kiffin is a good football coach, there’s no denying that. No. 10 is pretty low for an offensive genius like him. But this conference is simply loaded.

Kiffin did a great job at Florida Atlantic, but I still need to see him win consistently at a Power 5 school.

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