Chris Lee answers five key questions about Vanderbilt, as asked by Jackets' Online's Kelly Quinlan, entering the Birmingham Bowl.
1. How has Vanderbilt survived the portal thus far? I know a lot of teams are losing guys in the two-deep and even starters so how much of an impact will any departures will have on the game?
Vanderbilt has survived the portal remarkably well. Starting tackle Gunnar Hansen (Vanderbilt plays a system in which tackles and guard often flip sides) has committed to Florida State; he was third on the team with 722 snaps according to PFF.com, but the same site also graded his season at a very mediocre 56.2.
Hansen will be missed somewhat—none of Vanderbilt’s offensive linemen really stood out for any length of time—and the upshot is that graduate Steven Hubbard (633 snaps, 58.9 grade) will move to tackle while graduate Kevo Wesley (309, 53,7) is listed as a starter at guard.
Backup quarterback Nate Johnson is gone, but he was just 1-of-3 passing for 12 yards and rank four times for 55 yards and a score. That leaves untested Drew Dickey as the backup .
Otherwise, the losses are minimal They include defensive end Darren Agu (22 snaps), corner Alan Wright (17 snaps), safeties Steven Sannienola and Jeffrey Ugochukwu (17 and 35 snaps, respectively) and edge defender BJ Diakate (65)
2. When you look at Vandy's offense on paper it is not anything special, but they have been very consistent in scoring points this year. What makes this offense go and who are the key playmakers on that side of the ball?
You’re right, it’s not been spectacular for much of the year, but it’s been effective at possessing the ball and cashing in on scoring chances when Vanderbilt is winning. Key to that has been just seven total turnovers for the season; the NCAA’s official stat site is currently screwed up but if memory serves, that ranked in the top two or three of the country.
The two guys to watch, far and away, are quarterback Diego Pavia (716 rushing yards, 2,133 passing) and tight end Eli Stowers (45 catches, 583 yards, four TDs, all of which led the team). When it’s going well, Pavia has an almost magician-like ability to make plays (and avoid sacks and turnovers) and Stowers is a terrific athlete who can be a headache to cover.
I’m not sure either were completely health in the last month or more of the season so seeing them both rested could be interesting.
3. Defensively Clark Lea and Tyler Santucci are both Mike Elko guys, what is the identity of this defense, what do they do well and where do they struggle? Who are some key playmakers on that side of the ball?
It’s basically a 4-2-5; I’m no expert on schemes but it played out as an often-vanilla, bend-but-don’t-break approach.
The strength of the defense is the back end. The safeties—Randon Fontenette, De’Rickey Wright and CJ Taylor—are all quality, and I was a little surprised Fontenette didn’t get a bit more All-SEC consideration.
Linebackers Bryan Longwell and Langston Patterson are also quality players; Longwell had the better year as Patterson missed some games and probably played hurt in others. Corner Martel Hight is a good one, too.
The problems are that Vanderbilt’s not particularly strong in the trenches and not an elite team overall in terms of speed and athleticism. But for the most part it stayed in position and played smart and Lea got a lot out of what he had.
4. Vandy has one of the top special teams units in CFB this year, why has that unit stood out and how much of a factor have they been in the field position game this season?
Just about all of it stood out as Vanderbilt ended the regular season No. 1 in SP+’s special teams rankings.
Hight has game-breaking ability as a punt returner. Kickoff returner Junior Sherrill returned one for a score vs. Tennessee. Kicker Brock Taylor hasn’t missed a kick of any sort since October 5 and has nailed five field goals of at least 50 yards. Punter Jesse Mirco led the Southeastern Conference with 48.0 yards per punt and is reasonably good at placement, too.
5. How do you see this game playing out and a prediction would be great?
Having seen Georgia Tech play a couple of times, I think Tech’s edges on the lines of scrimmage, plus familiarity of facing a dual-threat quarterback every day in practice, negates a lot of what Vanderbilt can do. And so I’d probably take Tech along the lines of 24-21.
That said, the Commodores will be motivated and Pavia, likely healthier than he’s been in a while. That iteration of Vanderbilt could beat just about anyone at any time and so an upset from a squad that puled four of them as double-digit underdogs this season wouldn’t shock me, either.
