Everything Vanderbilt Head Coach Clark Lea Said After Vanderbilt’s Win Over Georgia State

Vanderbilt got the revenge it was looking for. Here is everything Clark Lea said postgame.

Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea works with his team against Georgia State during the second quarter at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025. | Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

NASHVILLE - Vanderbilt won its fourth consecutive game to start the 2025 season with a dominating 70-21 win over Georgia State

Vanderbilt was able to avenge last season’s loss to the Panthers in a big way. It was all Commodores all night long as they scored on every drive in the first half on quick drives.

Vanderbilt’s win may end up pushing itself up the AP Top 25 rankings on Sunday, but time will tell. Either way, it took care of business and showed no signs of struggle against a group of five team that has been known to give SEC teams fits in past years. Here is everything Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea said after Saturday’s win.

Opening Statement

“Proud of our team, proud of the effort, played the game the right way, and the game honors toughness. And obviously I've got a ton of respect for Georgia State. We did not forget that game from a year ago and how painful that was. But tonight was our night, and the kids came out. They started fast. They maintained the energy throughout. A lot of guys got a chance to contribute. Just proud of the way we ran the ball. I was proud of the way we stopped the run, and just excited for them to have a chance to celebrate another win, and looking forward to doing that tonight, and then turning the page tomorrow and getting back to work. This becomes when you when you win games, you just give way to another big game, and we'll have a big one this coming week, and one that we'll be excited to play, but we'll have a team coming in here that'll be ready for us, and we can talk about that on Tuesday. I'm happy now to talk about the game.”

Offensively, is there any room for improvement? I mean, how do you break down a performance like that, where there's just not much to pick at, honestly? 

“Yeah it was a well-called game, well executed game. Obviously, I think a couple penalties that were sloppy I felt like, and then the fourth down at the start of the second half that I want back. That's a commitment I made to our team. We get the fourth and one, we go for it. We just were off the mark there. I think there were eight rushing touchdowns. Love to see AJ Newberry get going tonight with a couple. MK had the long one, obviously the quarterbacks contributing the guys down the roster too, that have been waiting their turn like Blaze and Drew by getting in. There is a lot to like and I think, a lot to build upon.”

You've had plenty of non conference games here where crowds maybe weren't that great, or other conference games or other teams fans. How much does it mean to you and the guys when you see a crowd like that, where it's almost full for a non conference game against, I guess, a non-power four program?

“We focus internally. We know that the program can only be validated internally. And so it's like all of our energy goes on, our investment, our commitment, the product we're putting on the field, in hopes that we inspire a community to rally around it. And obviously this has been a journey to like, reach for what we feel like is the potential of the program. But it is really exciting to see the energy that now is rippling out into our Vanderbilt community, and have a fan base show up tonight, a fan base that showed up for Charleston Southern. We need the fan base to show up against Utah State. I mean that can provide a real advantage in the way our stadium sets up now, it gets loud in there. And we had the weather delay there early. That was unfortunate. But people stuck with us. And I think we kicked off right around a half hour late, which was a credit to the operations team for getting it for getting it going, but my hope is that we can continue to play in a way that inspires people to show up. And we know we compete with a lot here in Nashville, but it's always been the vision that Saturday nights can start here on the West End and wherever those Saturday nights end up. I'm grateful for our students, I'm grateful for our fans. I'm grateful for the community that's out there that's still deciding whether or not they're going to become fans. I'm grateful for them to show up, and I look forward to more of those and seeing what kind of environment we can create. And I know that there's more for us out there, and I also know that this team can do things that become really fun and exciting. So I thank everyone who contributed tonight by showing up.”

You mentioned you have kind of internalized how painful last year's result was. It seemed like the players throughout the week that we talked to really were bothered by that heading into this week. How much did that come up within them throughout the preparation? 

“Well this was one of our eight games won or lost within one score from a year ago. The four losses were a 4.25 point margin. So this is one of our 4.25 games. And they've, they're tired of hearing me talk about it. I mean, this is January that we're focusing on these things and in our off times where, maybe in the spring or the summer, where I feel like the work rate is slipping, like the slide goes back up, and it's a reminder of, again how close the margins are in these games that we play. And so my challenge to them is we can win them close, but it doesn't have to be. Doesn't have to be close. And they prepared the right way. If you remember, a year ago, my comments were about the discipline of our team and the lack of discipline in the week. They agreed, like 24 kinds of program infractions a year ago where guys were late or missed and looked at how you are doing things, how you do everything better. People make a better team. That's what's always been the foundation of who we are. These guys were pros this week. I mean, starting on Sunday, the lifts, the meetings. Keep in mind too, we've had back to back weeks where we've gotten home, you know, whatever, four in the morning. I just felt like the team was locked in. And when we prepare that way, we can have fun when we play.”

You guys scored a touchdown on your first six drives of the night. Just how satisfying was it to bury a team in a revenge game like this before halftime?

“It's less about that, honestly. Obviously we know we were aware of how we played a year ago. We were aware that this team is dangerous. And we need to be prepared, and so we then channel our energy towards ‘Hey, can we start fast? Can we play a clean game? Can we win the explosives?’ Well, we started fast, and we took command of the game in the first half. And the feelings that bring within me is I'm proud of our team. Did we play a clean game? Well, we played a clean half, and we put a lot of pressure on him. Like you said, I think six possessions, six touchdowns. I mean that's pretty efficient. So there will be some things we need to kind of work to tighten down, but I'm just, I'm happy for our guys. I'm proud of our team. I'm proud of the way we play.” 

Diego went over 200 yards passing tonight, second time of the season. He only did that three times last year. Quarterbacks overall connected with 12 different receivers. What have you kind of seen out of the passing game that seemingly made strides from last year to this year?

“It's a total improvement from a standpoint of I think it starts with protection. We're protecting the passer better. We're giving him time. We're giving him a clean pocket. We have more weapons for him. So there's more people that the defense has to consider. Who do you take away? You got Junior Tre, Eli Richie. I mean we have guys out there. Martel, Cole too, they can be dangerous in the passing game. And then Diego has improved too. I mean, that's one of the stories I think that's worth paying attention to, is this guy is stepping into another level of performance, where he's seeing the game clearly. The game is really slow for him right now, and he's getting us in good plays and making good decisions with the ball. So we want to be known for a physical run game. We want to throw to score and run to win. That's what we say.

And you know that that's showing up for us in the way we play right now.”

Despite your offensive output the first several games you haven't had either a 100 yard rusher or receiver yet this season. What does that say for your ability to kind of spread the ball around and have so many different options offensively?

“Well that's kind of a cool stat. I'm proud of that stat. I mean, that's a deep team, and that's a team that has a bunch of weapons. And it's also an unselfish team, these guys have to allow for performance in their teammates. So, I think it's a great stat, with respect to the depth we'll need to sustain performance through the season. And I haven't gotten an injury update, but I feel like, on the whole, we've come out of the last couple weeks healthy. And again, I think that's a credit to our strength and conditioning staff, Robert Steiner, our athletic training staff. But when you can spread the ball around that way it's gonna go a long way in allowing you to maintain performance and sustain through what is a really challenging schedule.”

Along those lines, with what you've added on the perimeter, with what you've added on the offensive line, does Diego not have to be as much of a superhero for you guys to be able to do it because of what you added?

“Yeah we want to take hits off him. Obviously he is a critical part of our team and our performance. And we have more plays designed where he hands the ball off. We have more plays designed where he's going to be able to get the ball out in space to someone who's really talented, who can make a play. And so there's still going to be moments where he pulls the ball down and runs. He did that tonight. And I still haven't been able to coach him out of lead blocking on the reverse play, so I want him to be able to compete at that level. But when we surround him with those weapons, there's more that they can do, and he can facilitate performance in them, which will make us more effective and keep him.”

Seems like it had been a while since Jay Cutler had been at a game here. Did you get a chance to talk to him? And what are your thoughts on him? Kind of coming back and being here for a game for the first time? 

“Well, I got to see him on the way in at halftime. It's great to have Jay around. Obviously, this is a guy that I played with. Was a great teammate, great friend here, just tons of respect for him and his career. Obviously one of the Vanderbilt legends, and it was always great to see him. It's always good to have guys back. It's great to see Anfernee Orji out there and that he's making his way back. I was happy to see Jay and welcome all our former players back to be a part of this. Because no matter how their career went or how they were here, Vanderbilt still means something to them, and they have ownership stake in this. I mean, they've invested in it and hopefully everyone's having fun, seeing the success, and they want to come back, because this is something. So look forward to welcoming him back more and other former players back to be a part of what we're building.”