NASHVILLE, Tenn. — With the dust having settled from a 54-21 loss to Ole Miss on Saturday, Vanderbilt is intent on getting back to the type of defense it showcased during the opening week of the season.
The Commodores (0-4, 0-4 SEC) surrendered 641 yards of total offense and more than eight yards per play against the Rebels at Vanderbilt Stadium. It was by far the weakest defensive performance of the 2020 season.
“I do believe last week we got the greater part of our secondary in, some guys back, but what it looked like for us is not what we wanted,” Vanderbilt head coach Derek Mason said. “So those guys just talked to me, ‘Hey coach, what can we do?’ What do we need to do?’ And I said, ‘It just starts with your process.’
“Everything we do, especially defensively, is about being united in what we do. You can’t have nine guys doing one thing and two guys doing another.”
Vandy began the season at No. 10 Texas A&M and held the Aggies to 17 points and 372 total yards. But a mixture of injuries and COVID-19-related issues has translated to a revolving lineup for the Vanderbilt defense which has, in part, hurt the overall structure of the Dores’ defense.
So despite plenty of returning student-athletes on that side of the ball, stringing together competitive games, series and plays has been challenging without much consistent rhythm and cohesiveness.
“The experience piece is good, but when you haven’t played together enough, you’re still trying to get that trust, that timing back,” Mason said. “No excuses. We’re not going to make them. We understand that games are in front of us.
“We want the opportunity, but we have to find a way to callous ourselves a little bit, whether it’s the adversity or whether it’s us finding a way to fight through a tough down or a tough series to get back to where we need to be. That’s getting back to the middle.”
COMMITTED TO COMPETE😤 #RTI🔥 #ANCHORDOWN⚓️ pic.twitter.com/2EyucTSBiX
— Derek Mason (@CoachDerekMason) November 3, 2020
Vandy’s next opportunity comes at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Starkville, Mississippi, at Mississippi State. It’s there that the Dores will find a Bulldog team also trying to refine itself.
Mississippi State (1-4, 1-4 SEC) has dropped four in a row since a Week 1 upset of No. 6 and defending national champion LSU. Mike Leach, a former Washington State and Texas Tech coach, has seen his typically high-scoring offense take a turn for the worse in averaging just 7.5 points per game during the current losing streak.
Still, after allowing 449 passing yards last week, the Vandy defense knows it better be ready for another serious challenge at Davis Wade Stadium. Mason said he liked what he saw Monday in regards to his student-athletes being able to rise to that challenge.
“I saw a strong, spirited practice. Guys looked like they’re trying to get their feet underneath themselves a little bit,” he said. “I think what that leads to is us taking the greater part of this week and being callous about the work that we need to do in order to go to Mississippi State and play against a Mississippi State team that can be high-powered and put up points.”
Saturday’s contest marks the halfway point of a shortened, SEC-only 2020 season. It also begins a short, two-game road trip for the Commodores before they return home to host Florida and Tennessee, respectively, at the end of the month.
Vandy faces those four games knowing injuries and COVID-19 will continue to be factors. It also knows there is still time to turn the season around.
“I think our roster is challenged more so than any other roster in the SEC,” Mason said. “We’re challenged more with the loss of good players and what that looks like, but it’s always about making sure you put the most competitive group that you can on the field. These guys are going to play football.
“These guys aren’t backing away from the challenge. We haven’t made any excuses about what we do, we just need to do what we do better and that’s what we look forward to this week.”
Chad Bishop covers Vanderbilt for VUCommodores.com. Follow him @MrChadBishop.