NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Going into Saturday’s game against South Carolina, Vanderbilt knew it had a golden opportunity to break multiple long losing streaks. But that opportunity slipped through its fingers—and now opportunities as a whole are dwindling for a team still clutching to slim postseason hopes.
The Commodores need to win out over its final three games of the 2022 season, starting with an 11 a.m. CT matchup Saturday at rival Kentucky, to avoid finishing the regular season with a losing record.
“It’s just about coming out here and trying to reset and refocus to try to go out there and get the ‘W’ that we’ve been wanting. We’ve been close in a lot of games,” Vandy senior running back Ray Davis said. “We kind of just hurt ourselves with a little bit of turnovers, miscues defensively and offensively. It’s just about fixing those little things and those nuances to go out there and get a ‘W.’
“We’ve only hurt ourselves. When we’ve been playing games it’s been Vanderbilt vs. Vanderbilt rather than Vanderbilt vs. the opponent because it’s always just been one thing that’s been the trickle effect to affect the rest of the games. Once we get down to fixing those and playing a clean, perfect game, we’ll be able to come out with the ‘W’ we’ve been wanting for a while.”
Vandy, which has not led an opponent since leading 20-17 early in the third quarter over Ole Miss on Oct. 8, finds itself losers of five games in a row. It fell behind South Carolina on Saturday at FirstBank Stadium less than four minutes into the game and was never able to wrestle the lead back in a 38-27 defeat.
The Commodores (3-6, 0-5 SEC) had four turnovers, missed a field goal, failed on a fourth-down conversion and allowed 7.8 yards per play. That all led to a sixth league loss under second-year head coach Clark Lea that was by 17 points or less, losses that have been by an average of 9.2 points.
“I thought we had a spirited Tuesday practice today as we set our course toward Kentucky,” Lea said about his team’s resolve. “I’m excited about taking this team up to Lexington and having them compete.
Kentucky (6-3, 3-3 SEC) started the season 4-0 and rose to No. 7 in The Associated Press Top 25. The Wildcats then lost a 22-19 game at Ole Miss and a 24-14 contest to South Carolina before knocking off a ranked Mississippi State squad at home.
Head coach Mark Stoops’ team took a 44-6 defeat at Tennessee on Oct. 29 and has been off since.
Kentucky has defeated Vanderbilt six times in a row since a 21-17 Vandy victory in 2015. The Commodores last won in Lexington in 2012.
“This is a good team. They have modeled the building of a program with a very similar start to what we have experienced,” Lea said. “Coach Stoops has done a great job through consistency and, really, just going through a process of building a program that has become one of the best in the league. They win consistently, they compete, they’re good in all three phrases and certainly we’re going to have a tough task ahead, but excited for the opportunity to compete with them.”
Saturday’s matchup is the final road game of the season for the Commodores. The team then ends the campaign against Florida and Tennessee, respectively, at home.
All those games represents a final trio of opportunities that Vanderbilt can’t let slip through its fingers.
“We have to play football better. That includes offensively not turning the ball over and capitalizing on opportunities. Defensively, leverage and tackling on the perimeter—we got to do that better,” Lea said. “That said, I think that the team in general has shown an incredible fight and resilience and as a coaching staff we are focused on helping them play the game better and capitalize on the opportunities.
“This is just a part of where we are and the building of this program. I feel really good about the heartbeat and spirit of this group and I’m excited for the stretch run.”
— Chad Bishop covers Vanderbilt for VUCommodores.com.
Follow him @MrChadBishop.
