For the third consecutive season, a Derek Mason-coached Vanderbilt team has unexpectedly dropped the opening game of the season. This one may have been the most painful, as the Commodores blew a 10-point halftime lead and fell 13-10 to SEC East rival South Carolina.
This game was the only league game ESPN’s Football Power Index projected Vanderbilt to win this season.
Following this loss, Mason’s overall record falls to 7-18 and his conference record falls to 2-15. The coach’s comments following the game were about as exciting as his team’s offense:
Vandy HC Derek Mason: "Give credit to South Carolina. They played hard. They are a scrappy football team." #Gamecocks
— Spurs & Feathers (@SpursFeathers) September 2, 2016
Mason: This is a game we'll learn from. This is game one. We let a winnable game go, but we'll get better. #Vandy
— Steve Layman (@SteveLayman) September 2, 2016
One questionable move that is curtain to have Vanderbilt fans second-guessing their coach was Mason’s decision to rotate quarterbacks early in the game – even after Kyle Shurmur was playing well and helped lead the Commodores to a 10-point advantage.
Derek Mason says the first-half QB swap had nothing to do with the outcome tonight."You guys are talking about something that's nonexistent"
— Joe Rexrode (@joerexrode) September 2, 2016
This loss will be hard to swallow for Commodore fans and may ultimately cost Mason his job in Nashville.
A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Michael Wayne Bratton oversees the news coverage for Saturday Down South. Michael previously worked for FOX Sports and NFL.com
