No. 9 Ole Miss (5-0, 1-0) at Vanderbilt (3-2, 0-1)
Saturday, Oct. 8 • 3 p.m. CT
FirstBank Stadium • Nashville, Tenn. • SEC Network
• Vanderbilt returns home this weekend, welcoming No. 9 Ole Miss to FirstBank Stadium. The contest marks the first home game for the Commodores after back-to-back games on the road and an open date, marking a span of 28 days away from home.
• The matchup with the Rebels pits Vandy against its second consecutive top-10 opponent. The Commodores are facing back-to-back top-10 foes for the first time since 1995 when the Dores played No. 3 Florida and No. 5 Tennessee in the final two games of the season.
• The Commodores have scored on all 17 trips to the red zone this season, converting for touchdowns on 15 of those opportunities. Vanderbilt is one of five teams in the FBS to have come away with points in every red zone opportunity (at least 15 red zone trips.)
• Freshman quarterback AJ Swann posted a stellar outing in his first career start at Northern Illinois. Swann finished 18-of-28 for 255 passing yards with four touchdowns. He became the second SEC true freshman quarterback to throw for at least four touchdowns in their first career start since 2002.
• Swann was named SEC Freshman of the Week for his efforts against the Huskies. He became the second Vanderbilt player to earn Freshman of the Week honors from the conference this season, joining Jayden McGowan. Entering the year, Vandy had won Freshman of the Week honors just four times since the award was instituted in 2005.
• Junior wide receiver Will Sheppard recorded a strong performance at Northern Illinois. Sheppard hauled in 10 receptions for 172 yards — both career highs. The Mandeville, Louisiana, native reeled in two touchdown grabs in the contest, extending his touchdown streak to five games.
• Senior running back Ray Davis had a career day against the Huskies. He rushed for 116 yards on 23 carries, both of which are tops for
his time at Vanderbilt. Davis added three catches for 38 yards to his totals, while accounting for two touchdowns — one rushing and one receiving.
• The Commodores’ 63 points in the season opener at Hawaii marked the most for the program since Vanderbilt defeated Davidson, 63-8, in 1969. The 53-point win was the program’s largest since a 58-0 win over Presbyterian on Sept. 17, 2012.
• The Dores picked up a pair of defensive touchdowns against the Rainbow Warriors, returning two fumbles for scores. It marked the first time that Vanderbilt has had multiple defensive scores since the Commodore defense scored twice against LSU on Sept. 21, 2019.
• Vanderbilt chose eight team captains for the 2022 campaign: Ethan Barr, Ben Bresnahan, Daevion Davis, Jaylen Mahoney, Elijah McAllister, Anfernee Orji, Gavin Schoenwald and Mike Wright. The captains were chosen by a vote of players and staff. Davis and McAllister serve as captains for the second consecutive year.
