Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt is 4-5 and No. 55 of 138 in the machine's ratings, 2.4 points better than an average FBS team. Last game: won 25-23 at Mississippi State in Week 10.
Week 11: vs Alabama, Saturday, Nov 14: the matchup, unit by unit
Why Vanderbilt is No. 55
- Vanderbilt's rating is 2.4: the machine's estimate that Vanderbilt is 2.4 points better than an average FBS team on a neutral field. That is No. 55 of 138. For scale, 0 is an average FBS team: right now the closest to it is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2).
- It started the season at 9.0, ESPN's preseason Football Power Index from July. Its results since have moved it down 6.6.
- The biggest weekly moves: −3.6 after Week 6 (L 17-52 vs Ole Miss) and −2.4 after Week 2 (W 35-26 vs Delaware).
- Its record is 4-5. The 5 losses were to No. 1 Georgia, No. 8 Ole Miss, No. 33 Kentucky, No. 37 Auburn, No. 53 Arkansas, by 18.4 points on average. The 4 wins came by 8.5 points on average; the best was over No. 44 Mississippi State. The rating weighs how much a team won or lost by and against whom, not just the win-loss count.
- Its FBS opponents so far average No. 44 in the machine's ratings.
- Just above is No. 54 Virginia (2.7); just below is No. 56 UCF (2.1).
The rating, week by week
Strengths and weak spots
Head coach
Clark Lea is in his 6th season at Vanderbilt (since 2021). This season: 4-5. At Vanderbilt overall: 30-41, counting this season.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Team stats
Season totals and averages over 9 games, each with its national rank among 138 FBS teams (No. 1 = best). The game-by-game story is in the season, week by week.
Passing
| Completions-attempts | 175-280 |
|---|---|
| Passing yards | 2061 |
| Touchdowns-interceptions | 9-9 |
| Yards per attempt* | 7.4No. 75 of 138 |
| Explosive pass rate | 9.5%No. 90 of 138 |
| Sacks allowed (rate) | 5.1%No. 64 of 138 |
Rushing
| Carries-yards | 302-1010 |
|---|---|
| Yards per carry | 3.3No. 129 of 138 |
| 10-plus-yard runs (rate) | 10.4%No. 122 of 138 |
| Stuffed at or behind the line (rate) | 17.2%No. 70 of 138 |
Scoring
| Points per game | 23.0No. 103 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play | 5.35No. 107 of 138 |
| Third-down rate | 38.4%No. 88 of 138 |
| Red-zone TD rate | 60.7%No. 74 of 138 |
| Giveaways | 15No. 126 of 138 |
Defense
| Points allowed per game | 29.4No. 110 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play allowed | 5.69No. 86 of 138 |
| Yards per pass attempt allowed | 7.3No. 84 of 138 |
| Yards per carry allowed | 4.1No. 78 of 138 |
| Sack rate | 6.2%No. 58 of 138 |
| Takeaways | 8No. 123 of 138 |
| Third-down rate allowed | 42.5%No. 113 of 138 |
Totals are the official box score. * Yards per attempt and the rates come from the play-by-play, where passing yards count on completions only, so they can differ from the box score by a play or two.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Player leaders
The top 3 in each category over the same games. Passing yards count every completion (official box score).
Passing
- Jared Curtis145-224, 1657 yds, 8 TD, 8 INT
- Blaze Berlowitz28-53, 386 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing
- Sedrick Alexander85 carries, 333 yds, 6 TD
- Makhilyn Young70 carries, 277 yds, 2 TD
- Jared Curtis76 carries, 172 yds, 2 TD
Receiving
- Junior Sherrill56 catches, 747 yds, 4 TD
- Ja'Cory Thomas16 catches, 232 yds, 2 TD
- Tristen Brown17 catches, 228 yds, 0 TD
Tackles
- C.J. Heard65
- Bryan Longwell60
- Nicholas Rinaldi58
Sacks
- Yilanan Ouattara4
- C.J. Heard3
- Edwin Kolenge3
Interceptions
- Bryce Cowan1
- C.J. Heard1
- Cayden Daniels1
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Who's playing
Based on who has actually played this season, from the box scores, not the team's published depth chart. Each bar is that player's share of the team's attempts, carries (quarterbacks left out), catches or tackles. The box score lists no positions, so there is no offensive line here.
Throwing
- Jared CurtisMost passes in the last game8 games224 attempts80%
- Blaze Berlowitz4 games53 attempts19%
Carrying
- Sedrick Alexander9 games85 carries44%
- Makhilyn Young9 games70 carries36%
- Jamezell Lassiter9 games25 carries13%
- Evan Hampton3 games7 carries4%
Catching
- Junior Sherrill9 games56 catches32%
- Sedrick Alexander8 games17 catches10%
- Tristen Brown8 games17 catches10%
- Ja'Cory Thomas7 games16 catches9%
Tackling
- C.J. Heard9 games65 tackles11%
- Bryan Longwell9 games60 tackles10%
- Nicholas Rinaldi9 games58 tackles10%
- Mason Lewis9 games41 tackles7%
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
The season, week by week
- Week 1 W 28–9 vs Austin Peay. Austin Peay is an FCS team, so there is no FBS baseline to grade this one against. The defense had 5 sacks.
- Week 2 W 35–26 vs Delaware. The run game struggled: 2.6 yards a carry, 2.1 less than Delaware usually allows. The defense had 5 sacks.
- Week 3 W 35–31 vs NC State. The run defense gave ground: NC State got 4.0 yards a carry, 1.0 over what it usually gains. Its most yards a carry of the season.
- Week 4 L 15–21 at Auburn. The run game struggled: 2.7 yards a carry, 1.3 less than Auburn usually allows. Its fewest yards an attempt of the season.
- Week 5 L 14–38 at Georgia. The passing game was the strength: 8.3 yards an attempt, 2.6 more than Georgia usually allows. The most yards an attempt it has allowed all season.
- Week 6 L 17–52 vs Ole Miss. The run game struggled: 2.8 yards a carry, 1.6 less than Ole Miss usually allows. Lost the turnover battle by 3.
- Week 7 L 21–31 vs Arkansas. The run defense gave ground: Arkansas got 4.6 yards a carry, 1.6 over what it usually gains. The machine had Vanderbilt by 4.4 (62%), so this was a loss it did not see coming; Vanderbilt lost the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 8 L 17–34 at Kentucky. The run game struggled: 0.9 yards a carry, 3.4 less than Kentucky usually allows. Lost the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 10 W 25–23 at Mississippi State. The run defense was the strength: Mississippi State got 2.3 yards a carry, 2.0 under what it usually gains. The machine had Mississippi State by 7.4 (68%), so this was a win it did not see coming.