Dec. 26, 2016
By Zac Ellis
VUCommodores.com
SHREVEPORT, La. – On a holiday trip to Louisiana, Vanderbilt was unable to unwrap a big postseason win. The Commodores dug themselves into an early 28-3 deficit and ultimately fell to N.C. State, 41-17, in the Camping World Independence Bowl on Monday night.
Here are three thoughts from Vanderbilt’s loss to the Wolfpack:
1. Vanderbilt’s offense stalled.
Exactly one month after scoring 45 points in a season-finale win over Tennessee, Vanderbilt’s offense floundered against N.C. State. The Commodores managed just 17 points on 3.9 yards-per-play at Independence Stadium. They didn’t reach the end zone until Ralph Webb’s touchdown run with 58 seconds left in the third quarter.
The Wolfpack defensive front – led by All-ACC defensive end Bradley Chubb – controlled the game. They notched seven tackles for loss and five sacks on the night and kept constant pressure on Vanderbilt quarterback Kyle Shurmur. The sophomore, who threw for a career-high 416 yards against Tennessee, finished 19-of-46 for just 158 yards in Monday’s loss. He also threw three interceptions that led to N.C. State touchdowns, including a pick-six as time expired.
Vanderbilt head coach Derek Mason said N.C. State’s defense gave the ‘Dores trouble up front. “I give credit to N.C. State,” Mason said. “I thought they did a great job of controlling the line of scrimmage throughout the day. Their front seven or eight did a good job tackling.”
2. The ‘Dores had little answer for Jaylen Samuels and the Wolfpack attack.
N.C. State, led by electric wide receiver Jaylen Samuels, was especially productive against Vanderbilt’s normally stingy defense. The junior Samuels hauled in three touchdown catches on passes from quarterback Ryan Finley, which set an Independence Bowl record for receiving touchdowns. Samuels took one pass 55 yards to the house and finished with six catches for 104 yards.
Samuels was aided by a big day through the air from Finley (19-30, 235 yards, three touchdowns). N.C. State helped the former Boise State quarterback find a rhythm early with short passes, and Finley gradually picked apart Vanderbilt’s defense. In the end, Samuels and Finley helped N.C. State average 5.6 yards-per-play and covert eight of its 15 third downs.
“We just didn’t look like the same Vanderbilt that came out of the regular season,” Mason said.
3. Vanderbilt still finished 2016 with its best record under Derek Mason.
Despite the loss to N.C. State, Vanderbilt still heads to the offseason with momentum following Mason’s third season. The program set highs in total wins (six) and SEC wins (three) in 2016. One of those conference wins was a 17-16 upset of Georgia in Athens, the Commodores’ first SEC road victory under Mason.
Even on Monday, Vanderbilt didn’t quit in the face of a 28-3 second-half deficit. It scored consecutive touchdowns in the second half to cut N.C. State’s lead to 28-17 in the fourth quarter. So while the bowl loss will sting, the Commodores know the program is on the rise under Mason.
“We’re not going to settle for six wins,” Shurmur said. “We know we’re a lot better than that. I’m eager to get back to work.”
“This game will hurt,” Mason said. “There’s a bunch of hurt seniors and hurt guys. But like I said, we planted to seed with this group. We understand what the expectations are. We’ll water that seed, plow the ground and make sure we have the opportunity to grow this program the way we see fit.”
