VUFB Game Week – Ole Miss – Vanderbilt Commodores

Dores host Rebels in SEC contest Saturday
Vanderbilt hosts Ole Miss on Saturday at FirstBank Stadium, marking the Commodores’ second consecutive game against an opponent ranked in the AP poll’s top 10. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN and heard on 102.5 The Game
Game 6: Vanderbilt (3-2, 0-2 SEC) vs No. 9/11 Ole Miss (3-1, 1-1 SEC)
When: Saturday, Oct. 10 • 2:30 p.m. CT
Where: FirstBank Stadium • Nashville, Tenn.
Watch: ESPN (Joe Tessitore, Jesse Palmer and Kris Budden)
Listen: 102.5 The Game (Andrew Allegretta, Norman Jordan and Kevin Ingram)
GAME PREVIEW
• Vanderbilt hosts Ole Miss on Saturday at FirstBank Stadium, marking the Commodores’ second consecutive game against an opponent ranked in the AP poll’s top 10.
• Vanderbilt has a top-10 win at home in each of the last two seasons, beating No. 1 Alabama in 2024 and No. 10 LSU in 2025.
• Saturday will be the 99th meeting between the two schools since 1894. Ole Miss leads the all-time series 56-40-2. Of Vandy’s 40 wins vs. Ole Miss, 29 have come at home.
• The Dores will be looking for their first win over the Rebels since an overtime victory in 2018.
SHERRILL STRIKES
• With a total of 474 receiving yards this fall, Junior Sherrill ranks 14th in FBS and fourth among SEC players.
• Sherrill caught seven passes for 107 yards and a touchdown at Georgia in Week 5. He moved into a tie for eighth on the school’s all-time receiving touchdowns list with 16, matching Carl Parker’s total from 1985-87.
• Sherrill also broke into the program’s top-10 career receiving yards list in Week 5, as he ranks 10th with 1,962 yards.
• The senior wide receiver has had at least three receptions and 70 receiving yards in each of his last 10 games.
• Sherrill was tied for the team lead in receiving touchdowns and ranked second in receptions and receiving yards in 2025.
HAVOC IN THE BACKFIELD
• Vanderbilt ranks 12th in FBS and fourth in the SEC in sacks, averaging 3.25 a game.
• Nick Rinaldi’s 3.5 sacks are 26th-most in FBS and eighth in the SEC. CJ Heard and Issa Outtara are tied for second on the team with two sacks each.
• Miles Capers’ five TFLs ranks 37th in FBS and eighth among SEC players. Rinaldi is second on the team with 4.5 TFLs.
• The wideout totaled a career-best 123 receiving yards on eight catches against Iowa in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
• The Nashvillian has made at least one catch in 42 straight games. That marks the longest active streak in FBS and longest by a Dore since at least 1996.
THE SEA SNAKE
• CJ Heard is picking up where he left off for the Dores. He leads Vandy in tackles with 39 and in forced fumbles with two.
• Heard’s 30 solo stops this season lead the SEC and rank sixth in FBS.
• He has led the Dores or shared team-high honors in tackles in all five contests.
• In the Delaware win, Heard totaled eight tackles and recorded his first career multi-sack game with two.
• His 82.2 PFF grade this season is best among starters on the Commodore defense.
• He finished the 2025 season tied for most tackles on the team with 71 while adding two sacks, five quarterback hurries, an interception, forced fumble and fumble recovery.
MARRIED TO THE GAME
• Sedrick Alexander recorded his 25th career rushing score in Week 5 against Georgia, moving him into sole possession of third on Vanderbilt’s all-time rushing touchdown list.
• It was his 31st overall touchdown which ranks second on Vandy’s career list.
• Alexander has recorded a rushing or receiving touchdown in six straight regular season contests, the longest streak in his career. The Texan carried the ball into the end zone 11 times in 2025, sixth-most in a season by a Commodore.
• Alexander added four receiving touchdowns last fall for 90 total points, fourth-most in a season at Vandy.
• The senior has totaled 1,724 yards on the ground for his career while adding 618 through the air.
• His 1,469 snaps entering the season were the most of any returning running back at the NCAA FBS level.
THE LINEBACKERS
• Bryan Longwell and Nick Rinaldi highlight Vanderbilt’s linebacker squad.
• Longwell registered 13 tackles twice last fall and recorded a tackle for loss in eight of 13 games.
• The senior has made a tackle in 42 straight games, the fourth-longest streak by a Commodore since 2002. He led the team in tackles last season after also pacing Vandy in 2024.
• A former walk-on, Rinaldi continued his exceptional work in 2025. After a career-best season featuring 52 tackles, six tackles for loss and five sacks in 2024, Rinaldi piled up seven tackles behind the line and 3.5 sacks in 2025.
• His seven tackles behind the line of scrimmage were fourth-most on the team.
• Rinaldi was named the 2025 SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the first Commodore to receive the honor since its inception in 2003.
• Senior Bryce Cowan has increased his tackle total each of the last two seasons, finishing last fall with a career-high 31 stops. Despite having a limited snap count playing behind Longwell and former Commodore Langston Patterson, Cowan tied a school season record last year after forcing five fumbles.
• In the NC State win, Cowan recorded his first interception since 2023.
• With the experienced trio above on the field for most defensive snaps, sophomores Josiah Broxton and Austin Howard have found other ways to contribute to the Commodores’ successful start this fall. The former returned a punt 27 yards for a touchdown in the Week 1 victory over Austin Peay, while the latter followed with a blocked punt he recovered in the end zone in Vandy’s defeat of Delaware in Week 2.

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