Vanderbilt explored playing exempt 13th game to boost College Football Playoff resume

Stuck at No. 14 and on the outside looking in in the most recent edition of the College Football Playoff rankings, Vanderbilt has tried to get creative. The Commodores have considered playing a 13th game this season as a way to “give one final showcase” for the selection committee.

On3’s Pete Nakos and Chris Low can confirm that Vanderbilt sought an additional game, with interest from several interested parties in making it happen. According to the two veteran reporters, coach Clark Lea even told his players in a team meeting on Monday to be ready to play a game this week.

Ultimately, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the game will not happen. There were simply too many moving pieces to make it work.

What’s clear, though, is that Vanderbilt is concerned about its positioning in the final College Football Playoff rankings. Despite having a 10-2 record against an SEC schedule, Vanderbilt is not likely to earn a CFP bid unless there’s chaos on conference championship weekend.

To that end, Lea put out a nearly five-minute statement defending Vanderbilt’s resume and making the case for the Commodores. It was quite the impassioned plea.

“We’re here because we’ve got a really good football team here,” Lea said. “This is not about narratives and stories, it’s about the facts and the data that support a really good football program. It’s my responsibility to make that case and to make sure that I’m fighting for a team that I believe deeply in and I believe with every strand of my being deserves a chance to compete for a national championship.”

It’s unclear whether an additional game could even be considered as relevant to the College Football Playoff pursuit by the selection committee. But it’s at least an interesting, outside-the-box idea from Lea and his Vanderbilt team.

It could be one more chance to prove to the world that Vanderbilt is ready for the next step as a program. Then again, Lea would tell you his team has been proving that all year long.

“I think this group of players and staff have worked really hard to put an exciting product on the field, one that’s energized our Nashville community and our Vanderbilt community, but the potential for this goes way beyond that,” Lea said. “The merits of the case are about strength of record. The ESPN Football Power Index has us ranked 11th in terms of the strength of record. It’s about strength of schedule of the teams ranked ahead of us, only four have a higher strength of schedule ranking.”

Lea had even hinted in his statement about the possibility of playing more games. Ultimately, it won’t happen, but it’s an intriguing idea for the future. And not just for Vanderbilt.

“This team deserves the brightest lights in the biggest stages,” Lea said. “They’ve earned that right. Look, I don’t care how we have to get there. They can tell me whatever they want to tell me. If they want my team to play four more games, we’ll play four more. If there are teams that we need to play against to play into it, tell me when and tell me where, we’ll put the ball down in the parking lot and play.

“This group is competitive, they’re tough. It’s a blood and guts team and they’ve poured their heart into this. They deserve to have the chance to win it all.”