Everything Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea said after the Commodores lost 48-24 to No. 25 Tennessee at Neyland Stadium on Saturday to end the 2023 season:

Opening Statement 

“(It was) a tough night for us. Credit to Tennessee. I felt like they were able to expose some areas where they had advantages and put distance between us and them on the scoreboard. It made it for tough sledding in the second half. I was proud of the way our team fought; I will say that. I thought the guys to the very end were fighting with the kind of pride and level of competition we expect. It is also frustrating because we are here to win and to come up short and to feel like we weren’t able to put together a competitive game is frustrating. So, this is a painful finish to a tough season, and we are going to let it sink here, but also look forward to turning the page and advance forward. With that I am happy to open it up for questions.”

How hard it is to deal with Tennessee’s offense, especially when Joe Milton III gets in a rhythm

“They have explosive capability, and I thought a year ago our issues came defending the run. I actually thought we were more consistent, not perfect, but more consistent that way this year in this game. We didn’t do enough on the perimeter to make it hard on him (Joe Milton) I don’t think. Whether that was not playing with eye discipline and the ball getting behind us or the ball running past us, we have to take responsibility for how we allowed for that rhythm. I think he is really hard when he extends plays and there were times where I felt we had the opportunity for pressure and a sack, and he was able to evade and extend the play. Certainly, a ton of respect for him and a ton of respect for the system. Sometimes you are going to absorb yards in these games, and you are building to the stop. We were able to do that a couple times, but it’s the explosive touchdowns that you don’t get back. When the ball goes up in the air and it scores, there is nothing you can do about that. We have to look at both design and just how we advance our personnel to give us a better chance on the perimeter and that is what we will do.”

The next step for this Vanderbilt program

“There is a lot in that question. Ultimately it is my responsibility. So, I need to be deliberate and take my time to figure out what exactly what are the things we need to adjust and adapt to close the gap. I think we are going to reflect back on this year, and we are going to see some things that we want to build on. It is not going to be all bad, but the results are obviously not where we want them to be. So, it will be about setting a course and adjusting our process to aim towards those results. That includes evaluating all our systems and developing the roster we have and looking to supplement the roster we have with people who can help us be in a position to compete and win. So, none of it is going to happen overnight. None of it is going to be a flip of the switch and things change. I think this is about being deliberate and making good decisions to set a course that gets us back on track. Obviously, I am frustrated but also recognize that it’s ultimately my responsibility to get it better.”

What he was upset about when Tennessee and Vanderbilt players had to be separated in the second quarter

“I was upset. From where I was sitting, there were two consecutive snaps where after the whistle our quarterback ended up on the ground. To me, part of my job is to fight for our players, certainly for their safety. This is also a guy that we lost out there in the second half. All those hits add up and I was upset about that, and I was upset about the delay of game call. There is nothing I can do about that once that flag is thrown, but we will have conversations about it. We’ll send it in and try to get explanations for what happened there. In the moment I was fighting for AJ (Swann) and fighting for my team and doing everything I can to help shift what I was seeing happening on the field. I believe I don’t all the ins-and-outs of the play that the bench cleared. Obviously, that’s not a part of our game and it’s not something we teach or preach. Anyone who’s watched us practice knows that’s not who we are. I also think our players were fighting for one another. I think they were standing up for each other in that moment too. Our first covenant is true brotherhood. I respect the fact they were standing up for one another. We never want to cross those lines. We never want it to become something that takes away from the game. I thought our guys reset well at halftime and came back out and played a disciplined second half. Ultimately again we’ll speak to the powers that be about the plays that I was frustrated about. None of that is going to get fixed after the fact.”

How close he thought the game was to getting out of control during the second quarter 

“I don’t think that it was close to being out of control. I think on both sides the coaches and staff were in position to help keep things tamped down. I think it was just an emotional moment in an emotional game and at the end of an emotional season. I trust our team and I have a lot of respect for our guys. They know the lines not to cross I thought on the whole for the moment both sides did a good job getting things leveled out. Like I said, I was proud of the way we came back out in the second half and didn’t really have any of those issues show back up on our side.”

What he learned this season and what it will take to get Vanderbilt to the next level

“This year has been painful and frustrating. We just never got synched up. You go back to Hawai’i, you go back to Alabama A&M, and you see a team that played well enough to win those games but as the competition increased the things that we got away with in those games continued to show up. The middle part of the season was about just trying to eliminate the turnovers that were crushing our chances to have success. Then, we dealt with some injury at the quarterback position. We were never able to get things pointed in the direction that allowed us to close the gap here late. This will be a year of learning for me. I’m hurt, I’m upset, obviously, I believe in what we’re doing, and I believe in Vanderbilt football. I know that we’re going to reflect back on this moment from success. I know we are. I think in so many ways it’s these moments of adversity that shifts your thinking, or bring your attention to the things that you need to be paying attention to. That’s how you evolve, and you transform something. It’s been a hard year, and I’m excited to turn the page on it. I’m also excited to spend time learning the lessons that I’m meant to be paying attention to so I can help move this program forward. Again, I think there are going to be elements that we say, ‘hey, in these ways we’re not as far off as we think so let’s keep and enhance those, let’s find ways to interject change where there needs to be chance and let’s build the program we know we can build’. If we look back on this, and we say 2-10, 5-7, 2-10, that unlocked success moving forward. Then, we’ll understand that this year was purposeful and meaningful to the growth and development of our program. That’s all about taking control over the things that we take control of now, making decisions and choices to move us forward. That’s it and that’s what I’m excited to do. What we won’t do is sit here and lick our wounds and feel sorry for ourselves and try to blame something other than taking ownership and accountability for the things that we control.”

What he saw from Vanderbilt quarterback AJ Swann in the game

“I was very proud of AJ. Look, it’s not been an easy year for him. He wants to play well, he wants to be a great quarterback. It’s been a year of challenge and adversity for him, but he’s battled through injury. I thought he showed up today in the right mindset, I thought he made some plays early, created and got the ball out under pressure. It was great to see him back there playing confidence. It’s really cool. To say also, how proud I am of Ken Seals. He’s a guy that’s called into action late, ends up throwing for a touchdown and rushing for another. What can you say about that guy other than man I’ve really enjoyed being his coach and I have a ton of respect for him? Both of those guys showed up to play today. It’s not shocking to me, because they had two really good weeks of work. Again, I think there’s more to come.”

What went into Vanderbilt’s decision to start AJ Swann at quarterback and the injury he suffered in the loss

“He’s going to be okay. I believe it’s more muscular, back injury. I don’t think there’s anything severe but wasn’t enough. He was trying, he was talking it, he was loosening back up. I think just our training staff felt like it was in his best interest that he not return. I believe he’ll be fine, but that was the injury. As far as starting him, we’ve been frustrated offensively the last three times out. We haven’t been able to score enough points. I think when that happens, AJ hasn’t been available and I think his first full week of practice was headed into the South Carolina game. With the bye week and the ability to reset, we saw enough from him in the work in the week to get him back out there as our QB1. He’s a good player and we weren’t able to find consistency at that position this year. Obviously, I think that’s going to be one of the lessons we take away. Again, I was proud of the way he battled today.”

If Vanderbilt’s results this season will hurt its recruiting efforts 

“Anyone that’s afraid of what it takes to build something and doesn’t have the courage to believe in the people and see the path forward. Ultimately, the guys that are committed to this program and that are in this program to return are galvanized by the fact that they came here to win. They believe in themselves, so they have a level of self confidence and they believe in the process. Part of my job is to make sure that I’m pointing out those areas where we have control, and we have to exercise that control to play better football. I’m not concerned about the results damaging any part of the build, because ultimately this is about finding the people that have the toughness and the resilience to step into something and to move forward. There are plenty of examples of programs turning it in a year. We don’t need to wait on the results, but obviously we have to find the formula and that’s where my time and energy is going to be spent here as we turn the page is what is the formula that we need to get back on the rails of progress. We’ll do that with the people that see the vision and that are committed to it and we’ll be excited to go to battle with those guys.”