Dec. 31, 2011
Recap | Final Stats | Quotes | Russell’s Photos 
| Howell’s Photos | AP Photos
Vanderbilt – Cincinnati Post-game Notes
December 31, 2011 Liberty Bowl – Memphis, Tenn.
Pregame Notes
– Vanderbilt is in its 122nd year of organized football.
– The 53rd annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl marked the fifth bowl appearance in Vanderbilt history.
– The Commodores wore black pants, black jerseys and gold helmets.
– Vanderbilt won the toss and deferred to the second half with Cincinnati electing to receive in the first half.
– The attendance was 57,103.
– With the temperature at 66 degrees at kickoff, the temperature was the third warmest in the 53-year history of the Liberty Bowl.
Bowl Game Notes
– Nine seniors became the first players in Vanderbilt history to play in two bowl games with Brandon Barden, Tim Fugger, Casey Hayward, Sean Richardson, Udom Umoh, Kyle Fischer, T.J. Greenstone, Chris Marve and Larry Smith earning the honor.
– The Dores led 7-0 after the first quarter and have never trailed after the first quarter of any of the school’s bowl games.
– Richard Kent’s 61-yard punt in the third quarter set a new Vanderbilt bowl record.
– Larry Smith’s 68-yard touchdown pass to Chris Boyd is the longest pass completion in Vanderbilt bowl history.
– Vanderbilt’s 17 second half points are the most by a Commodore team in a bowl game.
– With two interceptions Casey Hayward became the first Commodore to pick off two passes in a bowl game.
Team Notes
– For the sixth time this season VU trailed at halftime, the Commodores lost all six games.
– The Commodores are now 2-2-1 in bowl games.
Individual Notes
– Chase Garnham’s second sack of the year with a first quarter knockdown of Cincinnati QB Zach Collaros on third down.
– Casey Hayward’s first quarter interception was his team-best sixth of the season and his 14th of his career. The pick moved him into sole possession of second place all-time at Vanderbilt and one shy of the school record.
– Zac Stacy’s seven-yard touchdown run in the first was his 14th of the season and 20th of his career. With 20 career touchdowns Stacy tied for second all-time at VU.
– Stacy eclipsed the 2000-yard mark for his career with a run in the first quarter making him the eighth Commodore to rush for 2000-plus yards in his career.
– With his sack in the third quarter Chris Marve notched a season-best with 1.5 sacks.
– Jerron Seymour’s five-yard touchdown in the third quarter tied the game and was the freshman’s fifth TD of the season and his first since the Army game.
– Chris Boyd’s 68-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter was his longest of his career and set a new career-long for QB Larry Smith.
– Casey Hayward’s second interception of the night gave him 15 for his career and matched the school record for career interceptions. The two-interception game is Hayward’s second this season.
– Larry Smith entered the game in the third quarter and passed for over a season-high 142s yards in the game marking his first 100-yard passing game since the Ole Miss game.
– Archibald Barnes set a career-best with 10 tackles in the game.
– Larry Smith was named the Commodores’ Outstanding Offensive Player and Casey Hayward was the Dores’ Outstanding Defensive Player.
Defense
– Casey Hayward’s interceptions were the 18th and 19th of the season for VU.
– With holding the Bearcats scoreless in the first quarter it marked the eight opponent this season that VU held scoreless in the opening quarter this season.
– The defense held Cincinnati to no third down conversions until late in the third quarter with the Bearcats going 0-for-8.
– With Hayward’s two interceptions it gives VU five games this season with multiple interceptions.
– Cincinnati running back Isaiah Pead became just he fifth running back to gain over 100 yards against the Commodores this season.
Offense
– With a 7-0 lead after the first quarter, the Commodores outscored opponents 64-30 in the opening quarter for the season.
Special Teams
– Richard Kent placed two punts inside the 20-yard line in the first quarter giving him at least one punt inside the 20 in 24 of his 25 career games.
– Kent’s 17-yard scamper on 4th and 15 after a bad snap in the second quarter picked up a first down for the Dores near midfield.
– For the third straight game Richard Kent produced a 60-yard punt with a 61-yard boot in the third quarter. The kick set a new Vanderbilt bowl record.
– Cincinnati’s 90-yard kickoff return in the fourth quarter was the first kickoff returned for a TD against he Dores since 2008 when Ole Miss’ Mike Wallace returned a kick 98 yards.
– Archibald Barnes’ blocked field goal late in the fourth quarter marked the first blocked field goal since last season’s Walker May block against South Carolina.
– Ryan Fowler’s 35-yard field goal was his fourth made field goal of the year and his longest this season.
