Nov. 4, 2017
By Zac Ellis
VUCommodores.com
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Derek Mason leaned into the microphone in the media room of Vanderbilt Stadium on Saturday afternoon and let out a sigh of relief.
“It’s good to get back on the winning track,” Mason said. “We needed that.”
What did the Commodores need? A welcome escape from a stretch of the season that had been defined by disappointment. Mason’s Vanderbilt program returned home on Saturday after nearly a month, riding a five-game losing streak. It yearned for a return to success following a fruitless start to SEC play. In a visit from Conference USA foe Western Kentucky, the Commodores knew they had a prime opportunity on Saturday.
The final score: 31-17 Vanderbilt.
A double-digit win over the Hilltoppers won’t improve Vanderbilt’s SEC record. But as this team prepares to close the season against three straight conference opponents, head coach Derek Mason said his team shook the monkey off its back against the Hilltoppers.
“We had a chip [on our shoulders] early in the season, lost that along the way and have had to fight and grind and scratch to get it back,” Mason said. “Today shows our group is moving towards that. We’re moving the needle a little bit.”
To move that needle, Vanderbilt found itself clawing its way through a tight matchup early. The two teams fought to a 14-14 tie midway through the second quarter before the Commodores found the end zone with 31 seconds until half. A deflected Kyle Shurmur pass bounced off the foot of a WKU defender and into the outstretched arms of wide receiver Trey Ellis, who streaked into the end zone for his first-career touchdown pass. That sent Vanderbilt into half leading 21-14.
THE POINT AFTER: How Vanderbilt topped Western Kentucky
The Commodores’ defense then ruled the second half. Western Kentucky managed just three points in the final two quarters while Vanderbilt finished with six sacks and 12 tackles for loss. Though the Hilltoppers rang up 355 passing yards behind veteran quarterback Mike White, they recorded just -6 yards on the ground.
Mason said the Dores’ execution wasn’t perfect against Western Kentucky. But their effort got it done, he said.
“Our guys played hard,” Mason said. “We’ve got things to clean up this week. We’ll look that film and clean them up.”
The win was Vanderbilt’s first since it knocked off then-No. 18 Kansas State on Sept. 16. Since then, five consecutive losses had largely deflated the momentum garnered by a 3-0 start. Last week, the Commodores came up short at South Carolina, 34-27, in just the latest close call for Mason’s program. Throughout that skid, Mason’s mantra had remained the same: we’re getting closer to a turnaround, he would say, adding a promise to fix the Dores’ ills.
But Saturday represented tangible evidence of a momentum shift. Vanderbilt’s defense, in particular, needed a boost after having its bell rung through most of the SEC slate. At moments against Western Kentucky, the Commodores looked as stingy as they had during their 3-0 start, when they allowed just 13 points. Linebacker Charles Wright and company spent plenty of time in the Tops’ backfield.
Now Mason expects that same tenacity in Vanderbilt’s final three games. Next week, it welcomes Kentucky to West End (3 p.m. SEC Network) in search of its first SEC victory. The Dores then take on Missouri at home before closing the year at Tennessee. With two more wins, Vanderbilt will be bowling once again, an expectation for this program going forward.
But for now, Vanderbilt can relish in getting what it needed in its return to Vanderbilt Stadium.
“For us, we’ve got to play with that chip on our shoulder,” Mason said.
Zac Ellis is the Writer and Digital Media Editor for Vanderbilt Athletics.