Derek Mason after the South Carolina loss updates status of Riley Neal and Kalija Lipscomb
By the second quarter of the loss at South Carolina, Vanderbilt was down two quarterbacks. Mo Hassan was in the concussion protocol and didn’t play in the game, and Riley Neal left after the first quarter.
Coach Derek Mason said he doesn’t have confirmation, but Neal may have a concussion, Chad Bishop of Vanderbilt Athletics reported.
Leading receiver Kalija Lipscomb, who was in uniform, but did not play was, “just working through some things, personal,” Mason said.
That loss of Neal took a toll on the Vanderbilt offense, and Mason admitted they “lost momentum” after he went out. Vanderbilt had just 189 total yards and just 76 passing. South Carolina, meanwhile, had 440 yards and converted nine third down plays.
“This defense played hard,” he said. “They played hard all night. They played a lot of snaps. Just not good enough of a team performance for us. We have to figure out what we can do offensively. … It just didn’t look like we had a lot of (offensive) chemistry out there.”