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Vanderbilt football got its first SEC win of the season and snapped its five-game losing streak, beating Mississippi State 25-23.
Vanderbilt gradually built a significant lead throughout the first half. After a defensive stop on fourth down that set the offense up at midfield, Vanderbilt went on a 35-yard scoring drive that ended in a Brock Taylor field goal.
The next offensive possession, Vanderbilt put on another scoring drive that was a Clark Lea classic. The Commodores went on a 18-play, 87-yard drive that lasted over 10 minutes and ended in a touchdown run for running back Sedrick Alexander.
Vanderbilt closed the second quarter with two more field goals that extended the lead to 16-0 going into halftime.
The story of the first half was Vanderbilt’s defense. The Commodores forced four consecutive three-and-outs against the Mississippi State offense. In recent weeks, Vanderbilt has struggled after the first quarter defensively. Saturday, that changed. Mississippi State only had 71 total yards in the first half.
It was not easy the full game for Vanderbilt, though. Mississippi State scored on its first possession out of the locker thanks to a 65-yard touchdown pass from Swann to Sanfrisco Magee off a busted coverage from Vanderbilt’s defense.
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The ensuing Vanderbilt possession, Mississippi State forced a fumble while sacking quarterback Jared Curtis and returned it to the end zone for a touchdown to make the score 16-14.
Though more offensive drives did not result in touchdowns for Vanderbilt, it was still able to move the ball throughout the half and give Taylor two more field goal opportunities he converted on.
Mississippi State did threaten after Vanderbilt took a 22-14 lead. The Bulldogs got deep into Vanderbilt territory and threatened to tie the game with a touchdown and two-point conversion. But, Vanderbilt’s defense continued to put the pieces together and made a huge stop that played a huge role in the win.
In the final minute of the game, Mississippi State scored a touchdown to get within two points. It had a chance to tie the game, but the Swann threw an incomplete pass on the two-point conversion attempt. On the onside kick, Cole Spence recovered the ball and sealed the victory.
Vanderbilt will return home next week looking to pull off what would be a major upset against a top five Alabama team. It will be the first time Vanderbilt hosts Alabama since it upset the Crimson Tide in 2024.
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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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