Vanderbilt walked away with a 35-26 win over Delaware on Saturday, but the real headline out of Nashville was the quarterback shift that took shape behind the scenes. Five-star freshman Jared Curtis played the entire second half, finished with three total touchdowns, and made the kind of case that can change a depth chart fast.
The Commodores didn’t exactly put together a clean night on either side of the ball, and there’s still plenty to sort out before the nonconference finale against NC State. But Curtis was the biggest reason Vanderbilt survived the Blue Hens’ scoring push and stayed unbeaten early in the 2026 season.
Curtis and Blaze Berlowitz split the first-half snaps, but the freshman took over after halftime and kept stacking scoring drives. Every Vanderbilt touchdown drive on offense Saturday came with Curtis starting the possession. After a rocky opening stretch, he settled in and delivered four touchdown drives in all across his appearances.
Curtis finished 14-for-22 passing for 210 yards with one passing touchdown and added two rushing scores. The separation between him and Berlowitz now looks significant, and Curtis appears to have taken control of the competition.
Berlowitz, meanwhile, was given every chance to hold his ground. He started both games for Vanderbilt and entered Saturday with an opportunity to strengthen his claim, but the numbers did not help him.
In four first-half possessions against Delaware, he led only 53 yards of offense on 14 plays and lost a fumble. He ended the day 3-for-9 for 29 yards through the air.
That leaves Berlowitz still in the fight, but clearly on the back foot after Curtis’ performance.
One of the quiet bright spots for Vanderbilt was Jayvontay Conner. The East Carolina tight end transfer has stepped in for Cole Spence over the first two weeks and kept producing. Against Delaware, Conner led the Commodores with six catches and finished second on the team with 87 receiving yards.
He’s becoming a dependable option, and more than that, he looks like a safety valve for Curtis. That matters even more with Curtis now looking like the guy who should be handed the offense in the near future. Spence’s lower body injury still leaves his return timetable uncertain, so Conner’s role figures to keep growing.
Defensively, Vanderbilt got strong contributions from several of its leaders. Nick Rinaldi was effective in blitz packages, CJ Heard paced the team in tackles and added two sacks by pressuring the quarterback from the perimeter, and Miles Capers also got home for a sack.
The opening script for the defense worked almost perfectly, even if Delaware found some rhythm later. Still, the Commodores’ top defenders were the ones making the biggest plays.
There were also some quieter nights that stood out for the wrong reasons. Ja’Cory Thomas, who had looked like a potential major piece of the receiver group in fall camp and was productive at Old Dominion a season ago, didn’t record a catch or even a target against Delaware. He was healthy going into the game, which only made the absence more noticeable.
Brycen Coleman also landed on the wrong side of the ledger for the second straight week. The No. 2 receiver on the depth chart managed just one catch for six yards, and that was his only target.
If Vanderbilt is going to keep moving forward, those passing-game questions will have to get answered quickly. Curtis is trending up, Conner is giving the offense a steady target, and the defense has playmakers. But the Commodores also know the schedule is about to get tougher, and the clean-up work is far from finished.
In Other News...
Jayvontay Conner Is Giving Vanderbilt A Passing Game Boost
Jayvontay Conner has quietly become one of the more important pieces in Vanderbilts passing game while filling in for the injured Cole Spence. The tight end led the Commodores with six catches for 87 receiving yards against Delaware, a sign that his role is growing at just the right time for an offense looking for reliable options underneath and over the middle.
Clark Lea praised Conner after the game, and its easy to see why: he has built a strong connection with both Jared Curtis and Blaze Berlowitz, giving Vanderbilt a trusted target when the quarterbacks need one. For a team still sorting out its passing rhythm, Conners emergence offers a useful lift and a reminder that production can come from places defenses may not have spent much time planning for. [Read more 🡒]
Vanderbilt Still Sees A Historic Path Despite One Early Concern
There is still a sense around Vanderbilt that this 2026 group can grow into something memorable, even if the early evidence has been mixed. Clark Lea and several players have talked with cautious optimism about the rosters potential, pointing to the recent win over Delaware as a sign that the Commodores are capable of putting good football together, even if they have not yet delivered a full performance from start to finish.
The concern, of course, is that the team is still sorting through an unsettled starting quarterback situation, which makes the next stretch feel especially important. Players have stressed patience and development rather than instant results, but the standard inside the program is not hard to find after last seasons success. Vanderbilt is still chasing a path that could put this team in historic territory, and the next few weeks should reveal whether the promise is real or still ahead of schedule. [Read more 🡒]