UGASports.com's Anthony Dasher asks Chris Lee five key questions about Vanderbilt heading into its game with Georgia on Saturday.
What's the overall feeling with the way the season has gone coming into Saturday's game?
The preseason Vegas over-under on Vanderbilt wins was 2 1/2 and so the 3-3 Commodores have already exceeded expectations in that regard.
There's no doubt that Vandy has improved in a lot of regards; the 'Dores average 33.2 points per game after averaging 15.8, 14.8 and 16.5 points the previous three seasons. FEI ranks Vanderbilt's special teams 15th in the country thanks to kicker Joseph Bulovas (who hasn't missed a kick) and punter Matt Hayball, who has a bazooka for a left leg and ranks fifth in the country in average.
The defense has given back a lot of the gains, and I'll get to that later, but winning three games by double-digit margins has been encouraging.
What's going on with the pass defense?
It boils down to three things: The Commodores don't have much of a pass rush, don't have elite athletes on the back end and seem to be blowing assignments frequently. Last week, Ole Miss exposed one-on-one coverage down the middle of the field for big plays, a blueprint we've seen before.
The bottom line is that Vandy's not talented enough, however, it's worth asking if the Commodores' scheme under new defensive coordinator Nick Howell isn't helping. Last year's coordinator Jesse Minter (now at Michigan) didn't have much talent but had his defensive backs challenging rotes. Howell seems content to run a soft zone designed to keep plays in front of defenders, but the 'Dores have given up a ton of explosive pass plays and also have the league's worst completion percentage against (64.5%). Vandy at least got some stops through 13 interceptions a year ago, but has just three (all from De'Rickey Wright) this season.
Talk about AJ Swann and the difference he's making with the offense.
Swann, a true freshman, has been terrific, throwing eight touchdowns against no interceptions, and that was without playing much (and in the latter case, at all) in Vandy's two easiest games against Hawaii and Elon. Swann has a rocket arm, a sense of the pass rush and fairly good decision-making skills for a guy who was in high school two years ago.
He's an elite talent and between his right arm and the presence of receivers Will Sheppard and Jayden McGowan, the Commodores have a respectable passing game like they're not had in years.
What's the biggest difference in this year's than last?
Most of that got answered in the first question; the Commodores were awful on offense and special teams last year and now they're not. Discipline and morale seem better than they were a year ago, too. The defense has somehow gotten worse, and that will probably take a couple years of recruiting to fix.
How do you see Saturday's game going?
As much as Vandy's legitimately gotten better, the defense has unwound most of it, allowing 45, 52 and 55 points to Wake Forest, Ole Miss and Alabama. Teams have attacked Vanderbilt's pass defense relentlessly and like last year, the Commodores are still chasing too many receivers from behind. Georgia's combination of quarterback in Stetson Bennett and a litany of speedy receivers are a nightmarish matchup and even as good as the offense has been, the Commodores didn't faire well against a similarly-talented defense in Alabama. Vandy might compete for a half--it led Ole Miss a week ago at the break--but then talent took over, and the script is probably the same this week.
