Friday, November 14, 2008

Vanderbilt Needs win in the Commonwealth



The 81st meeting between the two traditional bottom dwellers in the SEC has a lot to play for Saturday, when the Vanderbilt Commodores come into the Commonwealth to take on the Wildcats of Kentucky.

33 of the 80 total meeting have been decided by 7 points or less, and with both teams playing for bowl positioning, this game will likely be no different. Couple the desperate nature of the game for both teams with predicted retched weather conditions (snow flurries, rain and wind are forcasted), and the game has all the makings of an instant classic.

Vanderbilt comes into the Commonwealth in search of their 6th win which would make them bowl eligible for the first time since 1982. The Commodore season began with 5 straight wins and a national ranking as high as #13. However, offensive woes and quarterback uncertainties have lead to this team dropping their last four and out of the national landscape of top tier teams.

A key to the losses is Vanderbilt’s inability to put teams away. For the season, they are giving up nearly as many points as they score. With such close games that can go either way, the Dores have been ill equipped to pull out wins against superior athletically talented teams.

Even the wins which bench marked their 5-0 start look less and less impressive. The win against South Carolina was too early in the season to gage and the Auburn win at home also looks unimpressive as the Tigers have fallen completely off the national map and are in danger of not even reaching a bowl themselves.

The luck of the Commodores seemingly ran out when they went to Starkville to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Coach Bobby Johnson was hoping to jump start the offense and yanked quarterback starter Chris Nickson for MacKenzie Adams. Adams had played well for the injured Nickson the week prior against Auburn and was felt at the time, Adams would give Vandy a different look. However, whenever such a move is made ruptures in team. The uncertainty at who will be the starter each week has lead to the Vandy downfall.

Both Nickson and Adams are essentially the same quarterback. They both are pocket passers with limited mobility. In nearly equal amount of reps, they have a near equivalent completion percentage, touchdowns thrown, and quarterback ratings. For the game Saturday, the once again the quarterback situation is up in the air, as Bobby Johnson has been quoted in saying that both will share the reps evenly.

As the Commodores prepare to enter the Commonwealth, they are hoping to save their season which had such high hopes coming off the 5-0 mark.

Junior receiver stated the rivalry best when he explained the rivalry between his Commodores and the Kentucky school.

“It’s been a good one since I’ve been here. Before I came here that it always comes down to the wire, because we’re pretty even teams. Recently they’ve come out on the upper end, which is not good. So, we’re trying to change that.”

And to change the momentum and the series struggles against the Cats, Vanderbilt must go back to the way they played at the beginning of the season and not how they have played recently.

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