By Ron Wynn
NASHVILLE, TN — Now that they’ve finished their latest run through top ranked SEC programs, the Vanderbilt Commodores are anxious to turn their attention towards a team that they at least have a reasonable chance of beating. No one expected them to do much against number one ranked Georgia, and they didn’t. The Commodores were overwhelmed 55-0 in a game that was over at halftime. Georgia was ahead 28-0 and they nearly duplicated that in the second half, winning the final 30 minutes 27-0. The Bulldogs finished with 579 yards of total offense.
So Vanderbilt has now faced in succession Alabama, Ole Miss and Georgia. No sane person thought they would win any of those games and they didn’t come close, except for one good half against Ole Miss. But now they have games coming against Missouri and South Carolina. Their last SEC victory came in 2019 against Missouri.
At 3-4, a pair of wins would not only end an SEC losing streak that stands at 24, it would improve their record to 5-4 and put them in good shape to possibly land a bowl bid. Missouri had a bye this past week. Their best game to date came against top-ranked Georgia as they actually led 19-12 going into the fourth quarter before Georgia pulled out a 26-22 victory. They are 2-4 on the season, losing their most recent game 24-17 to Florida Oct. 8.
One thing is certain — Vanderbilt won’t be facing offenses as potent as the three they’ve recently seen. That’s a good thing, because their defense has been battered. They’ve surrendered 50 or more points three straight games, while only scoring 31 total, 28 of them against Ole Miss. They still have tough games on the back end of their schedule against Kentucky, Florida and Tennessee, so these next two loom even larger in terms of snapping the SEC losing streak and their overall record.
