Clark Lea reflects on how 2024 upset vs. Alabama helped Vanderbilt program

This isn’t the same old Vanderbilt squad that once served as the doormat of the SEC. Clark Lea’s team proved that last season, flipping the script when they pulled off a stunning 40–35 upset of Alabama.

The Commodores have ridden that wave of momentum into 2025. Now 5–0, they’ll get another crack at the Crimson Tide this weekend, aiming for a second straight victory over one of college football’s most storied programs.

For Lea, the matchup represents both an opportunity and a reflection point. He believes last season’s breakthrough win laid the groundwork for his team’s current rise, and he reminded his players of what it took to reach this point.

“Well, I think you create excitement when you play well. I mean, everybody loves a winner. Everybody gets excited about winning football,” Lea explained. “I think people are a little more skeptical of this program, just because there’s been a lack of — there’s been apathy throughout, right? And that’s not inspirational to people to show up or to pay attention.

“But we’ve been really intentional about being all in, kind of heart-forward, bleeding out into the program, establishing connection and relationship. We say relatedness is our edge: caring about one another, caring about what we’re part of. That has sent a ripple out that has both created results, but also created attention.

“My belief is it was inevitable. Those things just take time. So I don’t point to any one game a year ago. I just think we had to fight through it a year ago to really discover the rhythm and the confidence. And once we did that, we were able to find some results, which then gave way to some external energy. And that’s the way the world works.”

The circumstances this time around are different. In 2024, Vanderbilt was still viewed as an afterthought, but now they’re trying to prove they belong in the College Football Playoff conversation behind quarterback Diego Pavia. Meanwhile, Alabama was adjusting to life after Nick Saban and facing questions about whether its dominance could continue under Kalen DeBoer.

Now, the Tide look reenergized after a statement win over Georgia last week. The game will also be played in Tuscaloosa, raising the stakes and the degree of difficulty for Vanderbilt this time around.

A second straight win over Alabama would be monumental for Lea’s program, pushing the Commodores even further into the national spotlight. This time though, the Crimson Tide won’t be caught off guard. Vanderbilt has their attention — and they’ll have to earn every bit of their win if they want to announce themselves to the college football world again.