5 Things You Need to Know About the Vanderbilt Commodores

There are mixed reviews amongst Big Blue Nation about how the first three weeks of the season went. On one hand, the Kentucky Wildcats are 3-0. The offense has created explosive plays, the defense has created some havoc, and the special teams is vastly improved. However, on the other hand, the ‘Cats have yet to put together a clean four quarters of football. A slow start in week one led to Ball State being up 7-3 after the first quarter. In week two, Kentucky needed a punt return and late touchdown to tie Eastern Kentucky 7-7 at halftime. Then, in week three, the Wildcats fumbled in the red zone, muffed a punt, had a touchdown called back due to a holding penalty, and snapped the ball over the quarterback’s head twice.

Going into the Akron game the common goal was to take a step forward from the lackluster performance in week two. The 35-3 final score looks great in the newspaper, but the film still showcased too many sloppy mistakes as outlined above. Now, Kentucky will take their first road trip of the season and face their first SEC opponent of the season. Penalties, turnovers, and unforced miscues become more costly as the competition steps up. The Vanderbilt Commodores (2-2) aren’t Georgia, but they also aren’t the MAC or FCS opponents the Wildcats have faced so far. It is time to put together four quarters of clean football and build some confidence to begin conference play. However, “just win baby” is also more true now that the SEC schedule begins. Either way, we will learn a lot from these next 60 minutes of football.

As always, we have all of your pregame needs right here on Kentucky Sports Radio dot com. If you haven’t already, two must reads are Adam Luckett’s Scouting Report and Freddie Maggard’s goals for the game. Those are the in-depth, football-nerd previews. For those in search of a more surface level look at what to expect on Saturday at noon, you are in the right place. Let’s dive on in to five things you need to know about the Vanderbilt Commodores.

Commodores Have Flashed Explosiveness Offensively

In 2022, the Vanderbilt Commodores were much improved offensively producing a Top 60 unit nationally. Through four games this season they are once again putting up points and flashing some explosiveness with the ball. Vandy is averaging 34.8 points per game which is 44th in the country. Even last week in a disappointing loss at UNLV, the Commodores posted 37 points including 20 in the fourth quarter alone.

The ‘Dores have been most effective through the air where they have averaged 8.4 yards per pass (43rd nationally). However, the passing game has not been supplemented with much success on the ground. Vanderbilt averages just 3.63 yards per rushing attempt which ranks outside of the Top 100 nationally. As they get into SEC play it will likely become more difficult for quarterback AJ Swann to sling the ball around without a complimentary run game. Kentucky’s front seven should be able to keep the Commodores behind the chains and force Swann into obvious passing situations on third down. The bend, don’t break defense that has become a Mark Stoops/Brad White staple will look to limit Vanderbilt’s explosiveness at FirstBank Stadium.

Quarterback AJ Swann Powers the Vanderbilt Offense

We’ve already outlined that the Vanderbilt Commodores are capable of putting up some points offensively. That success through the air has come at the hands of quarterback AJ Swann. The sophomore gunslinger leads college football with 14 completions of more than 20 yards. In terms of 30 yard completions, Swann is second only to Michael Penix Jr. Efficiency hasn’t been the name of the game, but the Commodores will look to break off of big plays against the ‘Cats on Saturday afternoon.

Through four games, Swann is 77-133 for 1,101 yards and 11 touchdowns. However, he has also had 24 passes broken up and thrown four interceptions. Whether it is getting sacked, throwing it to the other team, or putting the ball on the ground, Swann will make plenty of negative plays in between hitting some explosives.

Last Saturday’s game against UNLV was a perfect example of the boom or bust nature of Vandy’s quarterback. Swann completed less than half of his passes, but his 17 completions went for 335 yards and three scores. That is good for nearly 20 yards per completion. However, he also threw a pick and was sacked twice in between all the incompletions. It’ll be all about capitalizing on the mistakes and limiting the big plays for Kentucky’s defense.

Legitimate Weapons at Receiver

It stands to reason that for AJ Swann and the Vanderbilt Commodores to post the numbers they have through the air that somebody has to be on the receiving end. Part of the passing game success is due to some real talent in the receiver room. Will Sheppard has been the leader of the group so far this season. The 6’3″ senior is a legitimate All-SEC candidate with 25 receptions, 314 yards, and six touchdowns. He is being targeted nearly 10 times per game. Another big play threat for Swann has been London Humphreys. The true freshman is a straight line burner that reeled in a 56 yard touchdown last week against UNLV. On the season, Humphreys is averaging just shy of 30 yards per reception.

Aside from Sheppard, Jayden McGowan has been Swann’s next favorite target. A speedster like Humphreys, McGowan has caught 23 balls for 295 yards. He will line up in the slot and look to move the chains while the other two stretch the field vertically. 6’6″ Justin Ball is another big target that caught a touchdown against UNLV. Overall, the Commodores have a good mixture of size and speed to help spread the ball around.

Defensive Front Has Struggled Against the Run

The Vanderbilt Commodores are allowing nearly 30 points per game as a defensive unit this season. We will touch on the pass defense in the next section, but the ‘Dores have especially struggled against the run. Vandy is allowing over four yards per attempt and really struggles to get off of the field on third down. On Saturday afternoon they will have to face a familiar face in Ray Davis who went for over 1,000 yards as a Commodore last season. The new Kentucky running back will have a chance to get loose against his former team in Nashville.

UNLV rushed for 157 yards, Wake Forest went for 302, and Alabama A&M managed 158 on the round. Hawaii gained just 68 yards on 25 carries but threw for over 350 yards. The Wildcats offense is much more explosive through the air this season, but this could be an opportunity to really establish the running game. Look for Ray Davis and company to push the 200+ yard mark against the Commodores.

Vanderbilt Struggles for Answers at Cornerback

A pair of veteran starters at cornerback have already been replaced by freshmen in Week Four. The Vanderbilt Commodores will roll out true freshman Martel Hight and redshirt freshman Trudell Berry on Saturday. This is a pass defense ranking 83rd in the country in passing success rate and 75th in yards per pass attempt allowed at 7.3. Devin Leary and company have already proven their explosiveness this season and there will certainly be opportunities against a leaky Commodores defense.

Look at the success opposing quarterbacks have had so far this season. Hawaii signal caller Brayden Schager put up over 10 yards per attempt in their Week Zero game. However, since then, his average has already fallen to just 6.5 yards per attempt. Last week, UNLV’s backup quarterback Jayden Maiava threw for 261 yards in the come-from-behind victory. Based on the numbers Devin Leary has accumulated through three weeks it is realistic to expect a 300+ yard day through the air for the Wildcats.