Cole Spence Paid His Dues Over His Career. He Earned His Moment Against No. 10 LSU

Vanderbilt tight end Cole Spence came up huge in its win over No. 10 LSU.

Oct 18, 2025; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores tight end Cole Spence (16) runs with the ball after a made catch against the Louisiana State Tigers during the first half at FirstBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images | Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

NASHVILLE – Vanderbilt tight end Cole Spence walked to the podium in Vanderbilt postgame press conference room at FirstBank Stadium with a smile on his face. It was the first time Spence had taken questions from the media following a game during the 2025 season.

But his moment to participate in Saturday’s postgame press conference was well-earned and well-deserved. Spence had just finished playing a monumental role in Vanderbilt’s first win in football over LSU since 1990 as the No. 17 Commodores took down the No. 10 Tigers 31-24. It was also just the seventh time in Vanderbilt football history that it had beaten an AP top 10 team.

Spence’s typical role at his position leans more so as a blocking tight end compared to a prominent pass-catching threat to opposing defenses. Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea may push back on that, and that is fair for him to do, but Spence will tell you that his role more times than not is blocking.

“In a lot of the games my role is more blocking, and I’m happy to do it and I really enjoy it. Today, I got the opportunity to make a couple more plays,” Spence said.

Making plays is exactly what he did. The senior put up a season-high 56 receiving yards on a season-high five catches while scoring a touchdown. His receptions and yards led all Vanderbilt pass-catchers in both categories.

But it was the way he was making his plays that stood out perhaps the most. Spence was not lined up out wide as a receiver, he was set up a lot of times in his blocking position. Only this time around, he was not aiming to block. He was aiming to make the LSU defense pay.

It felt like nearly every time Spence caught a pass from quarterback Diego Pavia, he was all alone whether it be over the middle of the field or out in the flat. How could a defense as highly-touted as LSU’s consistently leave the same pass-catcher wide open every time?

It all comes down to scheming.

“It’s all a credit to Tim Beck [Vanderbilt’s offensive coordinator]. He does an amazing job,” Spence said. “Honestly, when you’re a blocking tight end, they are like ‘Oh, that dude isn’t running a route.’ And when you do go they are like ‘Oh crap, I forgot to cover him.’”

Being primarily a blocking tight end certainly has its advantages, as Spence proved in Saturday’s win. When a tight end is blocking more than catching passes on tape, it is easy for opposing teams to overlook those players. Spence was perhaps one of those players that LSU seemingly overlooked and he made the Tigers regret it.

“Coach Beck does a great job of dressing it up. We dress it up exactly the same as some other run plays we do, so it’s very easy to confuse defenses that way,” Spence said.

Spence’s journey to get to this point has certainly not been an easy one. He started his collegiate career in the 2022-2023 season, where he played in just four games and his role was limited to special teams. He would then miss the entire next season due to an ACL tear, the same season where Vanderbilt finished 2-10.

But during the 2024-2025 season, Spence returned to playing football and found himself starting in 11 of the 12 games that he played in. He racked up 10 catches for 101 yards and two touchdowns last season, but he has only improved through the course of his career.

Now in his senior season, Spence has already passed his receiving yards total from a year ago with 127 yards, and is three receptions away from passing his catch total from last season.

If his performance against a top 10 LSU team says anything about his collegiate career, it is that he deserves to have his moment in a high-leverage game like this one. Going from special teams to missing a full year due to injury all the way up to now, where he was arguably the player of the game, Spence has paid his dues and he has earned what he was able to accomplish.

“It feels great. I came here in ‘22 and I believed in coach Lea and believed in that woman over there,” Spence said as he pointed to Vanderbilt Vice Chancellor and Athletic Director Candice Storey Lee. “It feels good to be a part of this team. All the guys want to keep pushing and keep winning.”