Vanderbilt walked out of Mississippi State with a 25-23 win that checked a lot of boxes at once. The Commodores ended a five-game skid, picked up their first SEC victory, and kept themselves in the bowl picture. Even more than the result, though, Saturday felt like the kind of game where Vanderbilt started to show who it wants to be on both sides of the ball.
The defense set the tone late, and it did it the hard way. Mississippi State had two chances in the final five minutes to swing the game, and Vanderbilt answered both times.
First came a third-down stop that forced the Bulldogs into a field goal and preserved a 22-17 lead. Then, with 30 seconds left, Vanderbilt shut down a two-point conversion try that would have tied it.
That closing stretch fit the bigger picture of the night. Vanderbilt also forced four three-and-outs in the first half, giving the Commodores the kind of steady defensive backbone they have been searching for. It was not flawless, but it was timely, and that was enough.
Brock Taylor was the star of the show. After saying during the week that he wished he had more field goal chances this season, he got plenty against Mississippi State and cashed in on every one of them.
Taylor went 6-for-6 on field goals and knocked through multiple kicks from beyond 50 yards. Each one looked clean, with room to spare as it sailed through the uprights.
For Vanderbilt, that kind of performance from a kicker chasing NFL aspirations is about as good as it gets. Taylor was the most valuable player in the game, and his night was as impressive as any kicking performance you will see.
The ground game also gave Vanderbilt something real to work with. Coming in, the numbers pointed toward a tough matchup: Vanderbilt ranked No. 128 in rushing offense, while Mississippi State sat No. 32 against the run.
None of that mattered once the game started. The Commodores ran for 160 yards, with Sedrick Alexander and MK Young combining for 36 carries.
It was not a giant explosion on the stat sheet, but it was efficient enough to keep Vanderbilt on schedule. The offense avoided the kind of negative plays that can wreck a drive, and the line deserves plenty of credit for that. Against a tough defensive front, Vanderbilt was able to create some push and do something it has not done consistently this season.
That gives the Commodores something to build on over the next three weeks.
Freshman safety Mason Lewis was right in the middle of it defensively. He led Vanderbilt with 10 total tackles, including three solo stops, and added one-and-a-half tackles for loss. Lewis has already carved out a starting role at STAR and continued to look like a player the staff can lean on now and into the future.
Not every piece of the offense was as active. Tight end Jayvontay Conner had his quietest outing of the season, finishing with one catch for two yards.
He opened the year with 10 receptions for 117 yards in his first two games as a Commodore, but since then he has totaled six catches for 51 yards and a touchdown. Part of that dip has come with tougher opponents, and part of it has come with Cole Spence returning from injury against Auburn on Sept.
Brian Allen Jr. also had a quiet day after coming back from the ankle injury that kept him out against Kentucky. The EDGE rusher finished with one tackle. Whatever the reason for the limited production, Vanderbilt would benefit from getting more out of him going forward.
In Other News...
Mississippi State Showed Fight Vs. Vanderbilt But One Stretch Changed Everything
Mississippi State had enough fight to make the afternoon feel more competitive than the scoreboard first suggested, but the damage was done early. Vanderbilt built a 16-0 halftime lead, then had to weather a much better second-half effort from the Bulldogs, who found some life on both sides of the ball after the break. AJ Swann finished 23 of 36 for 254 yards and two touchdowns, and the defense even supplied a spark with a forced fumble returned for a score.
Still, the game turned on a stretch Mississippi State could never fully erase, and the issues that surfaced in the first half were hard to ignore. The run defense had trouble holding up, and an interception helped put Vanderbilt in control before the Bulldogs settled in. Jeff Lebby came away acknowledging the need for better coaching, a reminder that for Mississippi State, the frustration was not just about one bad quarter but about getting more consistent results from a team that keeps showing flashes without enough payoff. [Read more 🡒]
Vanderbilt Is Giving Fans A Reason To Believe Early
Two wins to open the season have given Vanderbilt mens basketball an early lift, and the first week has looked the part of a team trying to back up its preseason buzz. The Commodores handled Bellarmine and Wake Forest to start 2-0, and the early results have already shown the kind of defense and depth that can travel well once the schedule tightens.
Freshman guard Ant Brown Jr. and transfer Berke Buyuktuncel have both given the lineup a useful spark, which matters for a team trying to build something sturdier than a hot start. The bigger question now is whether Vanderbilt can keep stacking those kinds of performances while carrying the expectations that come with being one of the SECs highest-regarded teams. [Read more 🡒]
Vanderbilt Just Delivered The SEC Road Breakthrough Fans Needed
Vanderbilt walked out of Starkville with a 25-23 win over Mississippi State, a result that carried a little extra weight because it ended a long drought in that building. For a program looking for a road breakthrough in the SEC, getting one in a tight, low-margin game made the trip feel like more than just another Saturday result.
Brock Taylor was central to it all, repeatedly delivering points when the Commodores needed them most and giving the offense a steadier path through a game that stayed tight into the final minutes. Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby also pointed to the late two-point conversion try that came up short, a sequence that left the Bulldogs chasing the finish and Vanderbilt celebrating a road win it had not found there in years. [Read more 🡒]