Vanderbilt’s Late Down Offense on Display in Dominating Win Over No. 11 South Carolina

COLUMBIA, S.C. – In a game where Vanderbilt needed its offense to show up, it put on a performance that not many people expected.

The Commodores walked into Williams-Brice Stadium wanting to defeat a goliath that had been eating away at them for the past 16 seasons, 17 if you include the last time Vanderbilt won in South Carolina.

Vanderbilt controlled the game offensively and defensively. It had the ball for nearly 36 minutes compared to 24 for South Carolina. A major reason for the noticeable difference was Vanderbilt’s ability to extend drives by converting on the downs that mattered most. The Commodores went a combined 7-for-13 on third and fourth downs throughout the game.

It all started on the first drive of the game, too. Vanderbilt had it 3rd-and-6 on its own 45-yard line and running back Sedrick Alexander ran it eight yards to pick up the first down and extend the drive. The drive ended up resulting in the Commodores first score of the game and grab the first points of the game.

Then again shortly before halftime, Vanderbilt drove down the field for a 76-yard touchdown drive where it converted on all three third downs it faced. The drive not only ended up being the game-winning touchdown drive due to the fact that Vanderbilt’s defense posted a second half shutout.

How was Vanderbilt able to consistently convert on the plays where it needed to convert? It is a mix of playcalling, but head coach Clark Lea made sure to shout out his offensive coordinator.

“Those conversion downs are about focus and execution. I mean, I think that the play designs were good. Tim Beck delivered again. I got to give him credit. And obviously, then the players have to take the call and execute on the field. But I thought we had a really good design that had players step up,” Lea said.

It was a combination of playcalling, execution and the offensive line once again wearing down the opposing defensive line throughout the game, mirroring what they did up front a week ago at Virginia Tech.

While Vanderbilt did convert just one third down in the second half, it did succeed on its lone fourth down attempt. But after going 5-for-7 on third down in the first half, the Commodores almost did not need to succeed at the same rate after halftime because they were getting a better push on the offensive line and not facing as many third downs anyway. On 21 rush attempts in the second half, Vanderbilt averaged 4.8 yards per carry.

“When you have the o-line playing the way we were playing, guys like Diego and Eli and Jamezell Lassiter they delivered,” Lea said. “I think the way we play on offense sets us up for manageable third downs and some of the bigger stories where the chunk gains we got on third downs to extend drives that ended up in the end zone.”

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