Exclusive: How Khordae Sydnor Got His Love For Football Back at Vanderbilt

TAMPA—-Khordae Sydnor wasn’t quite broken when he stepped onto Vanderbilt’s campus a few seasons ago, but he wasn’t all that far off.

Sydnor had just wrapped a season at Purdue in which he saw his role decrease significantly under the Boilermakers’ new regime. He went from 22 tackles to just six and clearly wasn't in Purdue’s future plans. He needed a new start. He needed a coaching staff that trusted him.

As Sydnor sat in the back room of Raymond James Stadium after Vanderbilt’s ReliaQuest Bowl loss to Iowa, he can confidently say he found what he was looking for.

“I was telling coach [Clark] Lea this week that I kind of lost a little bit of my love for the game during my redshirt sophomore year,” Sydnor told Vandy on SI. “He gave me another shot to really show what I can do and show the world what I can do. I'm forever indebted to Coach Lea, Coach [Larry] Black and Coach [Jovan] Haye.”

Vanderbilt defensive lineman Khordae Sydnor (96) celebrates after making a defensive stop against Tennessee during the first quarter at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025. | Mark Zaleski / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Sydnor’s notoriously consistent smile and upbeat attitude were striking upon his arrival on Vanderbilt’s campus, even if he was still working back into form mentally and physically. The Vanderbilt defensive end worked through injury throughout the 2024 season, but remained a fixture of Vanderbilt’s pass rush.

The Purdue transfer is among the most unique people to come through Vanderbilt’s program throughout the Lea tenure. His New York toughness was noticeable, but the side of him that was evidenced by his faith-related bracelets and signature family handshake was just as impactful to Vanderbilt’s program. Perhaps Sydnor’s glitz and glamor–which was evidenced by a shiny pair of sunglasses he strutted around in prior to Vanderbilt’s bowl game against Iowa–is a piece of him, but in a way it’s misleading. The Vanderbilt pass rusher is as approachable a player as it has on its team. In that way–and in his on-field contributions–he was particularly meaningful to Lea’s Vanderbilt build.

Perhaps Sydnor’s 3.5 sacks in 2025–which ranks third on the team–aren’t all that memorable in themselves, but the Vanderbilt pass rusher is a piece that Lea says he couldn’t have built a 10-game winner without. He’s forever a part of the core group of transfers that flipped Lea’s program from a basement dweller to a College Football Playoff contender.

“I just put my head down to work, man,” Sydnor said when asked how he’d like to be remembered as a member of Vanderbilt’s football program. "The standard is the standard.  Whatever the coaches ask for me, I felt like I did it at 110%, man. I tried to help the guys beside me, and just to be a guy who's confident and loves football, man, and loves his teammates.”

Sydnor’s ride as a Vanderbilt football player ended on Wednesday in Tampa as the Commodores fell 34-27 to Iowa in the ReliaQuest Bowl. His final moments in a Vanderbilt uniform included him working to wrap his mind around the heartbreak that he and his teammates experienced in a game that he only recorded one tackle in. As he sat in the basement of Raymond James Stadium, he admitted that he "wishes" he had another year of eligibility, but the reality that it's all over appears to have set in. That was it for Sydnor. That game is how he'll go out.

The Vanderbilt pass rusher will remember more than that as the emotion wears off and he works at making his NFL dreams a reality, though.

“It stings, man,” Sydnor said. “Stings to leave on an L, but I found more joy in the love of the team, man. I think the love radiates over anything and the brotherhood that we have is for life, and soon, these feelings will fade on this game, but I'm just so blessed to be around these guys and meet these guys. This is probably one of the best teams I've ever been a part of, man.”