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It was as if Vanderbilt football used the same defensive script to start the game as it did the past couple of games. The Commodores were able to get stops defensively from the jump just as they did against Arkansas and Kentucky.
Vanderbilt had seen this before and it ended in disappointment. Would it happen again?
For a moment in the final seconds of the game, it looked like it might. Mississippi State had scored a 30-yard touchdown that cut a Vanderbilt lead that was once 16 points down to 25-23. The game hung in the balance as the Bulldogs attempted a two-point conversion.
In recent weeks, the Vanderbilt defense was unable to execute in the biggest moments. But Saturday it did execute. Mississippi State (and former Vanderbilt) quarterback AJ Swann rolled to his right and threw to a receiver in the end zone. The sight likely created a little bit of anxiety for Vanderbilt, but the Commodores had everything covered as the ball floated out of the back of the end zone.
It was the biggest defensive play of the season for Vanderbilt since the miraculous finish against NC State in Week 3 of the season.
The possession before contained the second biggest play of the day. Vanderbilt’s defense had its back against the wall. Mississippi State was driving down 22-14. The Bulldogs got deep in Vanderbilt territory, but a third down stop from Vanderbilt forced Mississippi State to settle for a field goal and still need a touchdown in the final minutes to have a chance to win.
“The two moments, the forced field goal and the two-point conversion stop in the fourth quarter were the moments that kind of define the defense we want to be. We want to be resilient. I’m proud of those guys,” Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea said about the clutch plays defensively.
Vanderbilt’s defensive performance as a whole, though, had its best night since SEC play began. The Commodores had a game that looked more reminiscent of last year’s team. It was a night that had some bending in the second half. But when it mattered most, Vanderbilt’s defense rose to the occasion.
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In the second half, Vanderbilt did allow 226 yards. But it only resulted in 16 offensive points for Mississippi State, not enough to come from behind. Perhaps Lea would have wanted his defense to not allow as much offense late in the game as it did, but he will undoubtedly take the win.
Vanderbilt’s defense had more margin for error in the second half than it ever had this season because of how it performed in the first half. The Commodores pitched a shutout the first two quarters, allowing just 71 yards of offense.
Vanderbilt forced four consecutive three-and-outs in the first half. It was the first time since Week 1 against Austin Peay that the Commodores forced an opponent to go three-and-out three or more possessions in a row.
Saturday was the type of defensive performance that Lea and his coaching staff have been looking for quite a while for. Lea has felt like in recent weeks that he saw flashes of his defense getting its identity back before games slipped away.
This weekend’s win was the closest thing to Vanderbilt playing to its identity it felt like it still had deep down. Vanderbilt found ways to limit points between the critical stops, the first half stalwarts and the interception it created early in the game.
At the end of the day, Lea wants to see a defense that limits points and comes up in the big moments. That is what he wants the identity of his defense to be. Saturday not only showed a clear identity but it was the identity Lea wants.
"We are starting to tone in on an identity. And if we can get even tighter and more in focus that way, there's more for this group ahead," Lea said.
It was not perfect, but it was good enough to get a big win that seems to reinvigorate the team and keep hope alive that it can salvage the season.
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Graham Baakko is a writer for Vanderbilt Commodores On SI, primarily covering football, basketball and baseball. Graham is a recent graduate from the University of Alabama, where he wrote for The Crimson White, WVUA-FM, WVUA 23 as he covered a variety of Crimson Tide sports. He also covered South Carolina athletics as a sportswriting intern for GamecockCentral.
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