Vanderbilt Football: Best and worst case scenario for 2018

Vanderbilt football is still rebuilding after James Franklin‘s departure. What are the best and worst case scenarios for the Commodores in 2018?

Vanderbilt capped off their 2017 season with an impactful victory over the Tennessee Volunteers. The win was the Commodores fifth of the season, but it wasn’t enough to get them a bowl berth.

It’s only fair to admit the program has taken a step back from the heights they reached under former head coach James Franklin. Now at Penn State, the Commodores had three-straight postseason trips under Franklin in his three seasons.

Derek Mason has been to one bowl game in his four seasons with the Commodores. Will he reach that mark again in 2018?

Best case scenario

• Sep 1 – vs Middle Tennessee State – W
• Sep 8 – vs Nevada – W
• Sep 15 – @ Notre Dame – L
• Sep 22 – vs South Carolina – L
• Sep 29 – vs Tennessee State – W
• Oct 6 – @ Georgia – L
• Oct 13 – vs Florida – L
• Oct 20 – @ Kentucky – W
• Oct 27 – @ Arkansas – L
• Nov 10 – @ Missouri – L
• Nov 17 – vs Ole Miss – W
• Nov 24 – vs Tennessee – W

Result: 6-6

There is definitely a path to six wins for Vanderbilt this season. The ‘Dores started 2017 with three straight wins and should have another three wins in the bag this year (Middle Tennessee State, Nevada, Tennessee State). Three more wins against lower-tiered SEC East squads.

Worst case scenario

• Sep 1 – vs Middle Tennessee State – W
• Sep 8 – vs Nevada – W
• Sep 15 – @ Notre Dame – L
• Sep 22 – vs South Carolina – L
• Sep 29 – vs Tennessee State – W
• Oct 6 – @ Georgia – L
• Oct 13 – vs Florida – L
• Oct 20 – @ Kentucky – L
• Oct 27 – @ Arkansas – L
• Nov 10 – @ Missouri – L
• Nov 17 – vs Ole Miss – L
• Nov 24 – vs Tennessee – L

Result: 3-9

On the other hand, this is Vanderbilt. The floor for this team will continue to stay low until Mason proves his team has made a step change in their overall level of talent. Barring rougher-than-expected starts by new head coaches at Ole Miss and Tennessee both programs will be favored to beat Vandy this season.

Vanderbilt finds itself in one of the nation’s toughest conferences. When the blue-bloods like Tennessee, Georgia and Florida are operating at full strength there isn’t much the Dores will be able to do on a consistent basis. They need to pick their spots. If they don’t make it to a bowl this year they could be waiting for a while.