The Commonalities Between Vanderbilt and Kentucky are Striking

Nobody wants to be compared to the Vanderbilt football program. That might be a little different after last week’s win over Alabama, but it’s still Vanderbilt. Before they travel to Kroger Field, we’d be foolish to ignore what the Commodores share in common with the Kentucky Wildcats.

It’s not by accident. When Clark Lea was hired in December of 2020, he modeled the Vanderbilt rebuild after Kentucky.

“Clark has been doing a tremendous job for three years,” Mark Stoops said earlier this week. “He and I talk, not often, but early on and he expressed to me that he was trying to build things the way I did it here many years ago. You could see that happening.”

Similar Rebuilds

Following Mark Stoops’s second season, Kentucky appeared to have some momentum. They had a quarterback in place to build around following a five-win season. They were on the verge of a breakthrough when the Wildcats failed to cover a wide receiver on a trick play at Vanderbilt and it kept the Cats from advancing to the postseason, putting plenty of pressure on the program entering the 2016 campaign. The pressure led to changes at offensive coordinator and the Wildcats found a winning identity in the run game, led by Benny Snell, Boom Williams, and Eddie Gran.

Clark Lea made similar sweeping moves in year two, shocking Kentucky and Florida to end the season. They were invested in AJ Swann and an arsenal of talented wide receivers. All of that momentum was lost in year three. Unlike Stoops, Lea lost those weapons in the transfer portal, complicating things. The defensive-minded head coach was able to get all of that momentum back, and then some, by finding an offensive identity with New Mexico State imports — QB Diego Pavia, TE Eli Stowers, offensive coordinator Tim Beck, and analyst Jerry Kill.

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Similar Messaging

Following Vanderbilt’s win over Alabama, Lea reflected on his team’s ability to bounce back after the embarrassing loss to Georgia State where the ‘Dores “didn’t seem focused.”

“We learned a lesson as a team that week, which is if we’re not intentional and purposeful and detailed in our process, we won’t be intentional, purposeful, and detailed in our performance,” Lea said.

Sound familiar? It’s almost the exact same message that Mark Stoops shared after his team’s disappointing effort against South Carolina.

“You gotta make sure you have the attitude to look at it critically and figure out how to correct the mistakes,” Stoops said the day before the Georgia game. “That’s the big thing. For us this week, it was knowing the game plan early. Like, when we’re out there on Tuesday, we’re concentrating on first and second down. Know it. Wednesday we get into third down and red zone and critical moments. Know what we have to do and then continue to hone that. Be precise.”

“You gotta really know the game plan. You gotta really zero in and hone in on what you have to do. Be so precise.”

Kentucky and Vandy Share a “Blue Collar” Operation

The similarities I’m sharing aren’t lost on the Kentucky coaching staff. It’s exactly what they are telling their team ahead of Saturday night’s matchup.

“It’s a blue-collar operation in a lot of ways,” said offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan. “The message in our building is they’re probably a lot like us. They play with a chip on their shoulder. It’s gonna be a physical outfit, certainly.”

Each team shares the same formula for success when punching above its weight class. Limit possessions, take care of the football, and capitalize on opportunities. Vanderbilt got a couple of breaks against Alabama, turning two turnovers into 14 points. Kentucky never caught those breaks against Georgia.

The two similar styles will collide at Kroger Field. Kentucky has more talent and experience winning SEC football games in a rock fight and it should pay dividends against the Commodores.