Vanderbilt is Battling the Flu ahead of the Kentucky Game

The Vanderbilt Commodores will be short-handed this Saturday in Lexington. Clark Lea shared with the media this week that there is a bug going around the locker room, adding uncertainty to Saturday’s matchup against Kentucky at Kroger Field.

On Tuesday the Vanderbilt head coach was asked if some players will see action for the first time. After Lea coughed a time or two, he responded.

“We’ll just see how the week goes. We’re dealing with some illness and obviously some guys banged up,” Clark Lea said. “On the whole I think we’ll be holding steady with the guys playing. We’ll look for opportunities to use some guys to finish out (cough).”

He added that it is in fact the flu making its way through the team. “Everyday I wake up and check my messages just to see who’s coming in and who’s potentially out. Hopefully we’ll be able to weather it a little bit better than we did a year ago.”

Yes, the Commodores also dealt with the flu for last year’s game against Kentucky, a 34-17 win for the Wildcats. Even though it’s now a reoccurring theme for the Commodores, Lea said the team is taking precautions. They’ve offered players flu shots and are wearing masks around the Vanderbilt football facility.

“We’re doing everything we can to get a healthy team Saturday,” said Lea.

Even if many players kick the flu bug by Saturday, the Commodores will have a new signal caller against the Cats. Mike Wright is back under center at quarterback after freshman AJ Swann suffered an injury last week against South Carolina. Wright started the first two games of the season before Swann took the reins. The Atlanta native entered the action last year against Kentucky and put together some scoring drives by completing two touchdowns through the air.

Hear more from Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea on this week’s SEC Teleconference.