Georgia’s Jermaine Burton snags one of his three touchdown catches against Vanderbilt.
Georgia’s Zamir White dodges a tackler on a 16-yard touchdown run.
UGH-A!!!
After finally cracking national rankings,
Vanderbilt gets beat down by Georgia
BETWEEN THE HEDGES, Ga. — And, just like that, Vanderbilt’s football team came crashing back to earth.
The Commodores were beginning to feel pretty full of themselves after a 17-14 victory last week over fifth-ranked Florida gave them a 5-2 start and vaulted them into the top 25 for the first time in coach B-Dawg’s two seasons back on campus.
But Georgia was not only the real-life national champion in 2022, but the Bulldogs were highly motivated to knock the Commodores down a peg or three
after losing 31-30 to Vanderbilt last season.
It was a perfect storm of overconfidence on one team’s part and motivation on the other’s that resulted in a 51-21 Georgia beatdown of Vanderbilt.
The Commodores entered the game ranked No. 20 by The Associated Press and No. 22 by the coaches.
“We looked like total frauds out there today,” B-Dawg said. “Our guys were beginning to talk SEC titles and making a run at the natty. We’re not ready to be in those types of conversations yet, not the way we got rolled today.”
Vanderbilt needs to establish early momentum to compete with teams like Georgia, something the Commodores clearly didn’t do Saturday.
A fumble by running back Re’Mahn Davis on the first play from scrimmage set up Georgia touchdown just 48 seconds into the game.
After the Bulldogs went up 10-0 on a field goal, Davis dropped an easy third-and-four pass to kill Vanderbilt’s third possession.
“We needed to establish something, even if we came away with no points,” B-Dawg said. “We can’t be making those types of mistakes.”
Following Davis’ dropped pass and a 32-yard punt return by Dominick Blaylock, quarterback J.T. Daniels kept the ball on the option on Georgia’s first play of its third drive and scored from 26 yards out to make it 17-0 just 4:49 into the game.
The Commodores’ woes continued when a fourth-and-one run by backup running back Rocko Griffin was stuffed at the Georgia 25-yard line with 58 seconds left in the first quarte.r
“This game just felt different, like we were up against an overwhelming force,” B-Dawg said.
Vanderbilt did manage to get its act together in the second quarter, scoring two touchdowns, but the Commodores got into a game of exchanging touchdowns with Georgia because their defense couldn’t make a stop.
Vanderbilt cut the deficit to 20-14 on a 7-yard pass from Mike Wright to John Johnson with 2:01 left in the first half, but Jermaine Burton caught touchdown passes from Daniels to end the first half and begin the second half. Burton finished with 12 catches for 195 yards and three touchdowns.
Daniels went 36-for-46 for 470 yards and four touchdowns.
“I would throw the ball 46 times, too, if I was going up against a defense as inept as ours was today,” B-Dawg said.
The dropped pass by Davis early in the game was one of seven by the Commodores. Three of the drops were by Devin Boddie, who was otherwise spectacular with 13 catches for 215 yards.
| VANDERBILT COMMODORES at GEORGIA BULLDOGS |
| Oct. 15, 2022 | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| #22 Vanderbilt Commodores (5-3) | 0 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
| #8 Georgia Bulldogs (6-1) | 17 | 10 | 14 | 10 | 51 |
| Team Stats Comparison |
| VAN | UGA |
| Total Offense | 503 | 569 |
| Rushing Yards | 22-63 | 24-99 |
| Passing Yards | 440 | 470 |
| First Downs | 23 | 22 |
| Punt Return Yards | 30 | 31 |
| Kick Return Yards | 140 | 93 |
| Total Yards | 673 | 693 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 0 |
| 3rd Down Conversion | 7-15 | 4-11 |
| 4th Down Conversion | 1-4 | 0-1 |
| 2-Point Conversion | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals | 5-3-0 | 7-3-3 |
| Penalties | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Possession Time | 18:22 | 17:38 |
| Scoring Summary |
| FIRST QUARTER SCORING | VAN | UGA |
| 8:12 | (UGA) A. Gilbert 7 pass from J.T. Daniels (J. Podlesny kick) | 0 | 7 |
| 5:23 | (UGA) J. Podlesny 30 field goal | 0 | 10 |
| 4:11 | (UGA) J.T. Daniels 26 run (J. Podlesny kick) | 0 | 17 |
| SECOND QUARTER SCORING | VAN | UGA |
| 6:47 | (VAN) R. Davis 3 run (G. Mitchell kick) | 7 | 17 |
| 5:12 | (UGA) J. Podlesny 31 field goal | 7 | 20 |
| 2:01 | (VAN) J. Johnson 7 pass from M. Wright (G. Mitchell kick) | 14 | 20 |
| :44 | (UGA) J. Burton 5 pass from J.T. Daniels (J. Podlesny kick) | 14 | 27 |
| THIRD QUARTER SCORING | VAN | UGA |
| 5:06 | (UGA) J. Burton 24 pass from J.T. Daniels (J. Podlesny kick) | 14 | 34 |
| 2:29 | (VAN) R. Griffin 11 pass from M. Wright (G. Mitchell kick) | 21 | 34 |
| :54 | (UGA) J. Burton 26 pass from J.T. Daniels (J. Podlesny kick) | 21 | 41 |
| FOURTH QUARTER SCORING | VAN | UGA |
| 8:06 | (UGA) J. Podlesny 35 field goal | 21 | 44 |
| 2:34 | (UGA) Z. White 16 run (J. Podlesny kick) | 21 | 51 |
| VANDERBILT COMMODORES | | PASSING | C/A | YDS | TD | INT | | Mike Wright | 30/46 | 346 | 2 | 1 | | Jeremy Moussa | 2/5 | 51 | 0 | 0 | | Ken Seals | 3/6 | 43 | 0 | 1 | | RUSHING | ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | | Re'Mahn Davis | 12 | 71 | 5.9 | 1 | | Mike Wright | 6 | 5 | 0.8 | 0 | | Rocko Griffin | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | | Jeremy Moussa | 1 | -5 | -5.0 | 0 | | Ken Seals | 1 | -8 | -8.0 | 0 | | RECEIVING | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | | Devin Boddie | 13 | 215 | 16.5 | 0 | | Logan Kyle | 7 | 95 | 13.5 | 0 | | Quincy Skinner | 4 | 50 | 12.5 | 0 | | Re'Mahn Davis | 4 | 12 | 3.0 | 0 | | Will Sheppard | 3 | 41 | 13.7 | 0 | | Rocko Griffin | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 1 | | Justin Ball | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 0 | | John Johnson | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 1 | | Brayden Bapst | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | | BLOCKING | PANCAKE | SACK | | Junior Uzebu | 0 | 3 | | DEFENSE | TACK | TFL | SACK | INT | | Ethan Barr | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | | Anfernee Orji | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Chase Lloyd | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Max Worship | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Gabe Jeudy'Lally | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Daevion Davis | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Justin Harris | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | | Jaylen Mahoney | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Jack Barton | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Jeremy Walton | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Julian Hernandez | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Terion Sugick | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | B.J. Anderson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Marlen Sewell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Tyson Russell | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | | KICKING | FG | XP | PTS | LONG | | Greg Mitchell | 0/0 | 3/3 | 3 | 0 | | PUNTING | NO | YDS | AVG | IN20 | | Robert Hayden | 4 | 128 | 32.0 | 0 | | KICK RETURN | RET | YDS | AVG | LG | | James Ziglor | 5 | 140 | 28.0 | 44 | | PUNT RETURN | RET | YDS | AVG | LG | | James Ziglor | 3 | 30 | 10.0 | 13 |
| | GEORGIA BULLDOGS | | PASSING | C/A | YDS | TD | INT | | J.T. Daniels | 36/46 | 470 | 4 | 0 | | RUSHING | ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | | Zamir White | 12 | 86 | 7.1 | 1 | | J.T. Daniels | 10 | 14 | 1.4 | 1 | | Adam Brant | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | | Kearis Jackson | 1 | -2 | -2.0 | 0 | | RECEIVING | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | | Jermaine Burton | 12 | 195 | 16.3 | 3 | | Kearis Jackson | 6 | 96 | 16.0 | 0 | | George Pickens | 5 | 75 | 15.0 | 0 | | Arik Gilbert | 5 | 54 | 10.8 | 1 | | Zamir White | 5 | 46 | 9.2 | 0 | | Darnell Washington | 2 | 6 | 3.0 | 0 | | Kenny McIntosh | 1 | -2 | -2.0 | 0 | | BLOCKING | PANCAKE | SACK | | Zamir White | 0 | 1 | | DEFENSE | TACK | TFL | SACK | INT | | Lewis Cine | 9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | | Jalen Kimber | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Tykee Smith | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Smael Mondon | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | | Kamari Lassiter | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | | Travon Walker | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | | M.J. Sherman | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | | Nolan Smith | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Nyland Green | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Rian Davis | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Dominick Blaylock | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | David Daniel | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Tramel Walthour | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Jordan Davis | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | Xavian Sorey | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | KICKING | FG | XP | PTS | LONG | | Jack Podlesny | 3/4 | 6/6 | 15 | 35 | | PUNTING | NO | YDS | AVG | IN20 | | Pierre Ivey | 3 | 118 | 39.3 | 0 | | KICK RETURN | RET | YDS | AVG | LG | | Dominick Blaylock | 3 | 74 | 24.7 | 26 | | Arik Gilbert | 1 | 19 | 19.0 | 19 | | PUNT RETURN | RET | YDS | AVG | LG | | Dominick Blaylock | 1 | 31 | 31.0 | 31 |
|
Vanderbilt lands speedy wide receiver
Speed is something that’s sorely lacking at Vanderbilt, a situation the Commodores may have helped rectify with the commitment of five-star wide receiver Michael Johnson.
Johnson, who is listed partially scouted as 78 OVR, has an A grade for his speed. That attribute hasn’t been uncovered by Vanderbilt’s scouts yet.
The Commodores’ fastest receiver has 88 SPD.
Johnson is ranked third nationally among wide receivers. The 6-foot-2, 199-pounder hails from Fairhope, Ala.
The Commodores won the recruiting battle for Johnson over Memphis and, surprisingly, Georgia. Georgia just put up 470 passing yards against Vanderbilt last Saturday.
Vanderbilt’s playing style and conference prestige were huge plusses. The Commodores’ C-minus grade for program tradition didn’t hurt them.
1. Michigan State, 6-0
2. Texas Christian, 5-0
3. North Carolina, 7-0
4. Oklahoma, 4-1
5. Alabama, 7-1
6. Ohio State, 5-1
7. Georgia, 6-1
8. LSU, 5-2
9. Oklahoma State, 4-1
10. Southern Methodist, 5-1
11. Florida, 7-1
12. Texas, 3-2
13. Oregon, 4-2
14. Penn State, 6-1
15. Tennessee, 5-2
16. Clemson, 3-3
17. Michigan, 5-1
18. Central Florida, 5-0
19. Indiana, 6-0
20. Boston College, 5-1
21. Utah, 5-3
22. USC, 5-2
23. Arizona State, 5-1
24. Pittsburgh, 3-3
25. Oregon State, 4-2
1. TAVION THOMAS, Utah, HB, Jr.
2022 stats: 160 carries, 898 yards, 9 TD; 29 catches, 332 yards, 4 TD
2. BRYCE YOUNG, Alabama, QB, Jr.
2022 stats: 132-for-202, 1,967 yards, 24 TD, 3 int.; 48 carries, 133 yards, 3 TD
3. SAM HOWELL, North Carolina, QB, Sr.
2022 stats: 111-for-180, 1,887 yards, 21 TD, 4 int.; 82 carries, 341 yards, 3 TD
4. RE’MAHN DAVIS, Vanderbilt, HB, Sr.
2022 stats: 146 carries, 681 yards, 14 TD; 36 catches, 300 yards, 1 TD
5. J.T. DANIELS, Georgia, QB, rSr.
2022 stats: 131-for-191, 1,848 yards, 23 TD, 1 int.; 49 carries, 117 yards, 2 TD
Vanderbilt’s Earl Bennett had an unreal game, catching eight passes for 375 yards
and two touchdowns.
Bennett’s 375 yards — yes, 375 —
wasted in 27-17 loss to Ole Miss
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — If Vanderbilt can’t beat Mississippi, who can the Commodores beat?
Coach B-Dawg fears that the answer might be this: Nobody.
The 89th-ranked Rebels were one of only three teams Vanderbilt last season, but were sparked by two Terrell Jackson interceptions in a 27-17 victory over the 80th-ranked Commodores on Oct. 27, 2007.
At 2-6 with a six-game losing streak, the Commodores may have to wait until next season to win another game. The rest of their schedule reads like a who’s who of Southeastern Conference football: Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Tennessee.
“I refuse to believe the common wisdom that we can’t win any of those games,” B-Dawg said. “We hung fairly close with Alabama and Florida last season before faltering down the stretch. Florida has really fallen on some hard times this season, so that may be more of an even matchup than people might think. We get Georgia at our place, so who knows what will happen there. Tennessee, well, they’re unbeaten and we have to go into their crib. I don’t want to see we have no chance in that game … but we have no chance in that game.”
Of course, Vanderbilt always has a chance as long as Earl Bennett is on the field.
Bennett had one of the most remarkable individual performances ever by a B-Dawg player, catching eight passes for 375 yards and two touchdowns. He averaged 46.9 yards per catch, scoring on passes of 79 and 64 yards from Mackenzi Adams. Bennett had half of Vanderbilt’s 16 catches for 428 yards.
“I’m known to be a stat whore, but I’m not exactly overjoyed to have a guy put up numbers like those,” B-Dawg said. “I’m actually kind of embarrassed. I didn’t realize his numbers were that high until the stats flashed across the screen late in the game. He almost caught another deep ball right after that or else he would have had more than 400 yards. It’s no secret Earl’s our go-to guy and we try take advantage of his talents, but we’re also trying to be balanced in what we do. Bottom line, his numbers didn’t win us a game, so they’re pretty hollow. It was a B.S. game and our game was pretty much reduced to B.S., as well.”
Bennett’s receiving yardage ranks second in NCAA history behind Troy Edwards’ 405 yards for Louisiana Tech against Nebraska in 1998. Bennett broke the all-time B-Dawg record for receiving yards in a legit dynasty (nothing in NCAA 2003 counts). Michigan’s Alphonso McCown had 273 receiving yards at Northwestern on Nov. 17, 2007 in NCAA 2004. Now third on the list is Brian Jackson’s 267 yards for Western Michigan at Michigan on Nov. 4, 2006 in a short-lived NCAA 2006 dynasty.
Vanderbilt was playing a splendid defensive game until, like three weeks ago in a loss to Boise State, an interception taken to the house gave the opponent some life. Terrell Jackson had two interceptions, the first of which he returned 32 yards for a touchdown to put Mississippi up 7-3 with 29 seconds left in the first half.
Bennett then responded with his biggest play on his big day, catching a 79-yard touchdown pass from Adams with 11 seconds remaining in the half. The play came on an in-and-out route that B-Dawg rarely throws … but has made a mental note to start throwing in the future. The catch came with 62 yards of YACkity-YACk-YACk as Bennett eluded two defenders after the catch.
“We thought we’d recaptured game momentum at that point, but then we just went flat in the second half on defense,” B-Dawg said.
Benjarvus Green-Ellis broke off a 40-yard touchdown run with 6:42 left in the third quarter to put Mississippi ahead to stay at 14-10. His 1-yard run with 3:31 to go in the third put the Rebels up by two scores at 24-10.
A field goal with 7:57 left made it a three-score game, but the Commodores didn’t lose faith … until four seconds later when Bennett fumbled the ensuing kickoff. That led to another field goal, pretty much sealing Vanderbilt’s fate.
Despite Bennett’s enormous numbers, seven dropped passes and three interceptions didn’t make for a great day for the Commodores’ passing attack. They were forced to air it out, because Cassen Jackson-Garrison continues to struggle, getting only 44 yards on 16 carries.
PLAYAZ OF DA GAME
Terrell Jackson, Mississippi; Earl Bennett, Vanderbilt
MISSISSIPPI 27, VANDERBILT 17
First quarter
No scoring
Second quarter
VANDY: Hahnfeldt 41 field goal, 4:39
MISS: Jackson 32 interception return (Sparks kick), :29
VANDY: Bennett 79 pass from Adams (Hahnfeldt kick), :11
Third quarter
MISS: Green-Ellis 40 run (Sparks kick), 6:42
MISS: Green-Ellis 1 run (Sparks kick), 3:31
Fourth quarter
MISS: Sparks 41 field goal, 7:57
MISS: Sparks 33 field goal, 7:09
VANDY: Bennett 64 pass from Adams (Hahnfeldt kick), 2:51
WEEK 9 RESULTS
Mississippi 27,
VANDERBILT 17
Southern Mississippi 35, LSU 30
Tennessee 40, South Carolina 15
Arkansas 24, Army 21
Georgia 42, Troy 14
Auburn 49, Florida 14
Alabama 31, Mississippi State 14
PLAYAZ OF DA WEEK
Offense — Earl Bennett, Vanderbilt (8 catches, 375 yards, 2 TD)
Defense — Terrell Jackson, Mississippi (6 tackles, 1 TFL, 2 int., 1 TD)
1. Erik Ainge, Tennessee, QB, Sr.
STATS: 166-for-240, 2,034 yards, 28 TD, 8 int.
2. Xavier Lee, Florida State, QB, r-Jr.
STATS: 117-for-205, 1,430 yards, 21 TD, 6 int.; 87 carries, 520 yards, 11 TD
3. Kirby Freeman, Miami, QB, r-Jr.
STATS: 165-for-256, 2,180 yards, 24 TD, 10 int.
4. Carl Stewart, Auburn, HB, r-Sr.
STATS: 188 carries, 1,245 yards, 15 TD; 13 catches, 215 yards, 2 TD
5. Patrick White, West Virginia, QB, r-Jr.
STATS: 104-for-163, 1,448 yards, 11 TD, 6 int.; 105 carries, 807 yards, 10 TD
WHERE’S THE LOVE?
Earl Bennett, Vanderbilt, WR, Jr.
STATS: 57 catches, 1,532 yards, 12 TD