VandySports.com publisher Chris Lee answers give key questions as asked by Jerit Roser at LSU's Rivals site, TigerDetails.com.

1. Before we even dive into actual football, what do you expect this weekend to look like from an atmosphere standpoint? LSU fans famously drank bars and Vanderbilt Stadium out of liquor last year for an 11 a.m. kickoff. But, as folks in Baton Rouge learned last week, the environment leading up to and during games looks much different this season. How are the current circumstances in Nashville? And what are your expectations for the Commodores' first home game all things considered?

As most know, there wasn't much in the way of atmosphere around Vanderbilt football as we left 2019, excepting what visiting fans brought to Vanderbilt Stadium.

At last year's Senior Day against East Tennessee State, it appeared there were about 6-8,000 fans when the stadium was most full. I'm sure some LSU readers were in Nashville and saw last year's stadium takeover early last season, and the same thing happened with Georgia. There's just not a lot of excitement around the program and that's not going to change until coach Derek Mason has a winning season--he's been there since 2014, and still hasn't experienced one---or something happens under Vanderbilt's control to change that.

Vanderbilt announced weeks ago that it was not allowing anyone in the stadium--not even the parents of the players--until November at the earliest. That decision didn't go over well and the school relented a little this week by allowing students to come. But students haven't really shown up much for Vanderbilt football ever, except maybe in the James Franklin era. Expect a few hundred students, maybe, and that'll be it.

2. What were some of your first impressions of these two teams coming off openers in which Vanderbilt was hanging tight with No. 10 Texas A&M in a low-scoring affair, while reigning national champion LSU was getting gashed up and down the field by unranked Mississippi State? The Tigers nearly doubled up the 'Dores in 2019. How much did last week's outcomes boost of confidence in Nashville that their visitors could be vulnerable for another upset?

Well, it didn't hurt.

Vanderbilt was a 30.5-point underdog and the SP+ preseason ratings had the Commodores at least a 13-point underdog in all 10 games this year. And that was before two starting offensive linemen opted out, and probably three if you include Bryce Bailey, who probably would have started at guard; that left VU in such a bind that fifth-year senior defensive tackle Drew Birchmaier started and played the whole way at right guard last week. (Birchmaier made that switch in fall camp.)

But credit the Commodores and the coaching staff last week. While it was obvious that A&M was more talented, VU showed up prepared and looking hungry for a win. VU literally had a chance to win going into the final 1-2 minutes, played hard and played smart.

Vanderbilt fans are realistic; they've seen the Commodores do the near-miss act dozens of times in games they shouldn't have been in. And more often that not, Vanderbilt doesn't take that next step to turn the corner. But all we have to go on is the opener; that team looked good defensively and at least for a week, it's worth considering that VU can be competitive in a lot of games this year.

3. How would you rate freshman quarterback Ken Seals' first outing? Can the Vanderbilt offense take advantage of some of the same issues in pass defense with which LSU struggled vs. Mississippi State to put some points on the board and some pressure on the Tigers?

I'd give him a B-minus. Some people will probably take issue with that, because Seals was a true freshman taking his first snaps on the road playing behind a makeshift offensive line, without much in the way of a running game and without a slew of downfield playmakers in his receiving corps. I'm just not sure any quarterback is going to have a great year with this offense.

But the fact I don't grade Seals better is because I've seen enough of him to know what he can be. I made an off-the-cuff comparison of Seals to Danny Wuerffel this week and while Wuerffel obviously won the Heisman (and so in a literal sense, that comparison is ridiculously premature), it gives you some idea of his attributes. Wuerffel didn't have an elite arm but what he had was confidence and command of the offense and was deadly accurate with the ball. I see a lot of those traits in Seals, though I think he's a little faster and obviously has to do it over a longer period. And what he showed last week is consistent with the skill set he showed in practice.

Seals made two critical mistakes last week on interceptions, and that accounts for the grade being lowered a bit. One looked like a miscommunication with a receiver and the other one, it looked like he just saw something that wasn't there as he threw the ball up into the midst of nothing but the A&M secondary.

I think Ken Seals has a chance to be special. He's more polished that any VU quarterback I've seen at this stage of his career .As for this week, all bets are off because I'm sure LSU will come in angry, and getting Derek Stingley Jr. back won't hurt.

4. LSU coach Ed Orgeron and his players were praising this week of Vanderbilt's defensive front, headlined by Dayo Odeyinbgo. What stands out about that group? How would they compare to any of the Commodores' best groups in years past?

They were outstanding this week. Odeyingbo and Andre Mintze (Vandy's edge guy on the other side) set the tone, and Daevion Davis and Rashaan Wilkins Jr. inside helped. The first three combined for seven pressures and one sack according to Pro Football Focus (Mintze had four pressures and that sack) and three forced fumbles.

PFF rated that the best performance by a defensive line in America last week, and it's certainly the best VU has played there at least since Franklin. It's one week, but it's also not totally out of the blue as Odeyingbo was a preseason second-team All-Southeastern Conference pick and Mintze made the third team.

5. As you forecast this weekend's game, what are some key aspects or players where you see advantages for Vanderbilt or that you think could be X-factors in a potential upset?

If Vandy pulls an upset, it'll have to have an edge in turnovers. So with that, I look back to last week, where the defense line was elite in creating the conditions to make that happen on VU's end, and where it needed to be perfect (and wasn't) on the offensive side.

I really think it's that simple. VU"s going to have to find some short fields and play a near-perfect game to get an upset. It'll also need to take some offensive risks that it didn't take a week ago when it punted inside midfield in manageable fourth-down situations.

Also watch for inside linebacker Dimitri Moore. He didn't play last week and was VU's leading tackler last season. His return would make a difference.