Nov. 21, 2017
By Zac Ellis
VUCommodores.com
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt closes the 2017 regular season with a road meeting against rival Tennessee. The SEC East foes clash this Saturday at 3 p.m. CT at Neyland Stadium, to be broadcast on SEC Network.
On Tuesday, Derek Mason joined senior linebacker Oren Burks and senior receiver Trent Sherfield in previewing the Volunteers.
Here’s what the Commodores had to say:
– Mason said the Tennessee game always means more for Vanderbilt. “Rivalry Week always brings out the best in what college football can be.”
– Mason recapped last week’s loss to Missouri, in which the Tigers took advantage with a 28-point second quarter. “A turnover for a touchdown, special teams for a touchdown — all those things in a ballgame, if you look at it collectively, 60 minutes of football, you can’t win that way.”
– Despite down seasons, Tennessee and Vanderbilt both have something to play for this week, Mason said. “You’ve got two programs that aren’t where they want to be, but know where they’re trying to get to… This game goes a long way towards what your want your offseason to look like.”
– Mason on Kyle Shurmur‘s seven interceptions in his last two games: “Kyle Shurmur is an extremely good quarterback. Like any quarterback, you go through ebbs and flows, highs and lows. But as a quarterback in this conference, you have to fight it.”
– Mason on impact of UT rivalry: “This state is black and gold a lot of the time. It’s orange a lot of the time. Houses are divided because of this game.”
– Mason said Tennessee’s disappointing season has little bearing on this week’s agme. “Anytime you’ve got your back against the wall, you’re going to come out fighting. I expect a full fight from Tennessee.”
– Mason said Tennessee running back John Kelly “is as good a running back as there is in this conference.”
– Sherfield said his fellow seniors take this in-state rivalry seriously. “You see a lot of orange in this city, and I think it would truly mean a lot to these seniors to go out with a win by beating Tennessee.”
– Burks on the importance of the Tennessee game: “We didn’t have the season that we wanted. But this game is a huge rivalry. Bottom line, we need to get this win by any means.”
Zac Ellis is the Writer and Digital Media Editor for Vanderbilt Athletics.
