American college football season
The 2020 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season . The Commodores played their home games at Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee , and competed in the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by interim head coach Todd Fitch , who replaced Derek Mason after his firing on November 29, 2020. On December 14, 2020, Clark Lea was hired as head coach.
On November 28, in game against Missouri , Vanderbilt's Sarah Fuller became the first woman to play in a Power Five conference game by delivering the opening kickoff for the second half. Fuller, the Commodores' goalkeeper on the school's SEC championship women's soccer team , was added to the football roster after the team's regular kicking specialists had to be quarantined due to COVID-19 protocols.[ 1] [ 2] The following game, against Tennessee in the season finale, Fuller would become the first women to score in a Power Five game, going a perfect 2/2 on extra point attempts.[ 3] [ 4]
Listed in the order that they were released
In the preseason media poll, Vanderbilt was predicted to finish in last place in the East Division.[ 5]
Media poll (East Division) Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place) 1 Florida 624 (53) 2 Georgia 613 (43) 3 Tennessee 434 4 Kentucky 405 5 South Carolina 287 6 Missouri 224 7 Vanderbilt 101
Vanderbilt had games scheduled against Colorado State , Kansas State , Louisiana Tech and Mercer , which were all canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic .[ 6] [ 7] [ 8]
Date Time Opponent Site TV Result Attendance September 26 6:30 p.m. at No. 10 Texas A&M SECN Alt. L 12–1724,073 October 3 6:30 p.m. No. 20 LSU SECN L 7–412,000 October 10 11:00 a.m. South Carolina Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN SECN L 7–411,288 October 31 3:00 p.m. Ole Miss Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN (rivalry ) SECN L 21–54840 November 7 2:30 p.m. at Mississippi State SECN L 17–2412,888 November 14 11:00 a.m. at Kentucky SECN L 35–3812,000 November 21 11:00 a.m. No. 6 Florida Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN ABC L 17–381,147 November 28 [a] 11:00 a.m. at Missouri SECN L 0–4111,053 December 12 3:00 p.m. Tennessee Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN (rivalry ) SECN L 17–42849
^[a] The game between Vanderbilt and Missouri was originally scheduled to take place on October 17. However, due to COVID-19 management requirements in response to positive tests and subsequent quarantine of individuals within the Vanderbilt program, the game was rescheduled for December 12.[ 9] [ 10] The SEC postponed Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt to facilitate the rescheduling of the Vanderbilt–Missouri game. The shuffling allows for the opportunity for all 14 SEC teams to play 10 regular-season games.[ 11] [ 12] 2020 Vanderbilt Commodores football team roster Players Coaches Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 2 Amir Abdur-Rahman Jr RB 3 Ja'Veon Marlow Jr WR 4 James Bostic III Sr QB 5 Mike Wright Fr QB 6 Jeremy Moussa Jr WR 7 Camron Johnson Jr QB 8 Ken Seals Fr RB 9 Rocko Griffin Fr TE 10 Gavin Schoenwald Jr WR 11 Tyrell Alexander GS WR 13 Jackson Winrow GS WR 14 Devin Boddie Jr. So QB 15 Danny Clark Jr WR 16 Mac Hereford GS WR 17 Keithan Starling Jr. Sr WR 18 Logan Kyle Fr WR 19 Chris Pierce Jr. Sr
Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 1 Donovan Kaufman Fr CB 4 Randall Haynie Sr CB 6 Gabe Jeudy-Lally So DL 8 Alex Williams So DL 9 Daevion Davis So DL 10 Dayo Odeyingbo Sr S 11 Justin Harris So LB 12 Brayden DeVault-Smith Sr S 13 Brendon Harris Jr S 14 Maxwell Worship Jr CB 15 Elijah Hamilton GS CB 16 B. J. Anderson Sr LB 17 Feleti Afemui Sr
Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 32 Sarah Fuller Sr P 36 Jared Wheatley So K , P 37 Pierson Cooke Jr K 38 Oren Milstein GS K 39 Javan Rice Jr K 47 Wes Farley Jr LS 49 Zach Drevno Jr LS 58 Wesley Schelling Fr LS 59 Scott Meyer GS P 95 Harrison Smith Jr
Head coach Coordinators/assistant coaches Ted Roof Defensive coordinator Devin FitzsimmonsSpecial teams coordinator/Tight ends Tony BallWide receivers Aaron Henry Cornerbacks Tim Horton Running backs Marc MattioliDefensive backs Jovan Haye Defensive ends Kenechi Udeze Linebackers Bret Ingalls Senior offensive analyst Jeff ImamuraDefensive analyst Caden ThomsonDefensive analyst Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: November 30, 2023
At No. 10 Texas A&M[ edit ] 1 2 3 4 Total Commodores 3 2 7 0 12 No. 10 Aggies 7 0 7 3 17
Statistics
Statistics VAN TAMU First downs 17 17 Total yards 255 372 Rushing yards 105 183 Passing yards 150 189 Turnovers 2 3 Time of possession 33:59 26:01
Team Category Player Statistics Vanderbilt Passing Ken Seals 20/29, 150 yards, TD, 2 INT Rushing Ja'Veon Marlow 16 rushes, 65 yards Receiving Amir Abdur-Rahman 5 receptions, 72 yards, TD Texas A&M Passing Kellen Mond 17/28, 189 yards, TD Rushing Isaiah Spiller 8 rushes, 117 yards Receiving Caleb Chapman 4 receptions, 40 yards, TD
1 2 3 4 Total No. 20 Tigers 7 14 13 7 41 Commodores 0 7 0 0 7
Statistics
Statistics LSU VAN First downs 28 17 Total yards 498 266 Rushing yards 161 153 Passing yards 337 113 Turnovers 1 2 Time of possession 29:13 30:47
Team Category Player Statistics LSU Passing Myles Brennan 23/37, 337 yards, 4 TD, INT Rushing John Emery Jr. 12 rushes, 103 yards, T Receiving Terrace Marshall Jr. 2 receptions, 67 yards, 2 TD Vanderbilt Passing Ken Seals 11/25, 113 yards, TD, 2 INT Rushing Ja'Veon Marlow 17 rushes, 83 yards Receiving Camron Johnson 3 receptions, 63 yards
1 2 3 4 Total Gamecocks 3 7 17 14 41 Commodores 0 0 7 0 7
Statistics
Statistics SC VAN First downs 18 15 Total yards 485 249 Rushing yards 289 76 Passing yards 196 173 Turnovers 1 2 Time of possession 31:27 28:33
Team Category Player Statistics South Carolina Passing Collin Hill 16/24, 196 yards Rushing Kevin Harris 21 rushes, 171 yards, 2 TD Receiving Nick Muse 5 receptions, 85 yards Vanderbilt Passing Ken Seals 17/24, 148 yards, TD Rushing Keyon Henry-Brooks 13 rushes, 72 yards Receiving Amir Abdur-Rahman 2 receptions, 46 yards
1 2 3 4 Total Rebels 21 12 21 0 54 Commodores 0 14 0 7 21
Statistics
Statistics MISS VAN First downs 35 24 Total yards 641 421 Rushing yards 192 102 Passing yards 449 319 Turnovers 1 3 Time of possession 29:52 30:08
Team Category Player Statistics Ole Miss Passing Matt Corral 31/34, 412 yards, 6 TD Rushing Jerrion Ealy 15 rushes, 95 yards Receiving Elijah Moore 14 receptions, 238 yards, 3 TD Vanderbilt Passing Ken Seals 31/40, 319 yards, 2 TD, INT Rushing Keyon Henry-Brooks 23 rushes, 66 yards, TD Receiving Camron Johnson 14 receptions, 97 yards
At Mississippi State [ edit ] 1 2 3 4 Total Commodores 0 0 7 10 17 Bulldogs 14 3 0 7 24
Statistics
Statistics VAN MSST First downs 30 14 Total yards 478 204 Rushing yards 142 -22 Passing yards 336 226 Turnovers 5 0 Time of possession 32:10 27:50
Team Category Player Statistics Vanderbilt Passing Ken Seals 31/46, 336 yards, TD, 3 INT Rushing Keyon Henry-Brooks 20 rushes, 115 yards, TD Receiving Camron Johnson 10 receptions, 114 yards Mississippi State Passing Will Rogers 35/46, 226 yards, TD Rushing Jo'Quavious Marks 6 rushes, 10 yards, TD Receiving Malik Heath 9 receptions, 79 yards
1 2 3 4 Total Commodores 0 14 7 14 35 Wildcats 14 10 7 7 38
Statistics
Statistics VAN UK First downs 29 23 Total yards 407 458 Rushing yards 180 308 Passing yards 227 150 Turnovers 0 0 Time of possession 32:26 27:34
Team Category Player Statistics Vanderbilt Passing Ken Seals 21/32, 225 yards, 2 TD Rushing Keyon Henry-Brooks 29 rushes, 121 yards Receiving Amir Abdur-Rahman 7 receptions, 89 yards Kentucky Passing Terry Wilson 13/15, 110 yards, 2 TD Rushing Chris Rodriguez Jr. 13 rushes, 149 yards, 2 TD Receiving Keaton Upshaw 2 receptions, 41 yards, TD
1 2 3 4 Total No. 6 Gators 7 10 14 7 38 Commodores 10 0 7 0 17
Statistics
Statistics FLA VAN First downs 29 21 Total yards 586 406 Rushing yards 173 87 Passing yards 413 319 Turnovers 1 1 Time of possession 34:17 25:43
Team Category Player Statistics Florida Passing Kyle Trask 26/35, 383 yards, 3 TD Rushing Dameon Pierce 11 rushes, 55 yards, TD Receiving Kadarius Toney 6 receptions, 107 yards, TD Vanderbilt Passing Ken Seals 22/34, 319 yards, 2 TD, INT Rushing Mitchell Pryor 13 rushes, 44 yards Receiving Chris Pierce Jr. 4 receptions, 97 yards, 2 TD
1 2 3 4 Total Commodores 0 0 0 0 0 Tigers 7 14 6 14 41
Statistics
Statistics VAN MIZ First downs 13 31 Total yards 185 603 Rushing yards 82 223 Passing yards 103 380 Turnovers 1 0 Time of possession 27:10 32:50
Team Category Player Statistics Vanderbilt Passing Ken Seals 11/18, 79 yards Rushing Keyon Henry-Brooks 15 rushes, 64 yards Receiving Camron Johnson 5 receptions, 33 yards Missouri Passing Connor Bazelak 30/37, 318 yards Rushing Larry Rountree III 21 rushes, 160 yards, 3 TD Receiving Tyler Badie 7 receptions, 102 yards
1 2 3 4 Total Volunteers 7 21 7 7 42 Commodores 7 3 0 7 17
Statistics
Statistics TENN VAN First downs 24 16 Total yards 540 292 Rushing yards 212 53 Passing yards 328 239 Turnovers 2 1 Time of possession 33:37 26:23
Team Category Player Statistics Tennessee Passing Harrison Bailey 14/18, 207 yards, 2 TD Rushing Eric Gray 13 rushes, 74 yards Receiving Velus Jones Jr. 7 receptions, 125 yards, 2 TD Vanderbilt Passing Ken Seals 22/39, 239 yards, 2 TD, INT Rushing Keyon Henry-Brooks 20 rushes, 56 yards Receiving Amir Abdur-Rahman 3 receptions, 69 yards
Players drafted into the NFL [ edit ] ^ "Vanderbilt kicker Sarah Fuller makes history as first woman to play in a Power Five college football game" . CBSSports.com . Retrieved November 28, 2020 . ^ "Vanderbilt's Sarah Fuller could be first woman to play in Power 5 football game" . ABC News . Retrieved November 28, 2020 . ^ "Vanderbilt kicker Sarah Fuller makes history again as first woman to score points in Power Five game" . CBSSports.com . Retrieved December 12, 2020 . ^ Sparks, Adam (December 12, 2020). "Vanderbilt kicker Sarah Fuller becomes first woman to score in Power Five college football game" . Nashville Tennessean . Retrieved December 12, 2020 . ^ "Preseason SEC media poll, All-SEC Team announced" . SECSports.com . Southeastern Conference. September 23, 2020. ^ Talty, John (July 30, 2020). "SEC moves to conference-only 2020 schedule, pushes back start of season" . AL.com . Retrieved July 30, 2020 . ^ Dellenger, Ross (July 30, 2020). "Sources: SEC Adopts Conference-Only Schedule With Sept. 26 Start" . Sports Illustrated . Retrieved July 30, 2020 . ^ Dellenger, Ross (August 7, 2020). "SEC's New Schedule: Winners, Losers and... Mizzou" . Sports Illustrated . Retrieved August 18, 2020 . ^ "Vanderbilt at Missouri Football Game Postponed" . SEC. October 13, 2020. ^ "2020 Football Schedule Announced" (Press release). Vanderbilt University Department of Athletics. August 7, 2019. Retrieved January 4, 2020 . ^ Toppmeyer, Blake; Sparks, Adam (November 23, 2020). "Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt postponed; Commodores to play Missouri" . The Tennessean . Nashville, Tennessee . Retrieved January 11, 2022 . ^ "Vanderbilt University Football Schedule: 2020 Season" . SEC.
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