Vanderbilt Football Looking to Celebrate in Tampa, Not Prove People Wrong

The Commodores got left out of the College Football Playoff, but do not see their final game as a way to prove people wrong.

Nov 29, 2025; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores running back Makhilyn Young (22) runs against the Tennessee Volunteers during the first half against at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-Imagn Images | Randy Sartin-Imagn Images

NASHVILLE – In Tuesday’s College Football Playoff rankings, Vanderbilt’s fate was essentially sealed when the graphic showed the Commodores at the No. 14 spot despite a 45-24 over a ranked Tennessee team just three days before. Though Vanderbilt campaigned hard to be in the playoffs this past week, it ultimately did not change anything when the final top 25 rankings Sunday revealed that Vanderbilt finished in the same place it has been for the past few weeks.

Now, Vanderbilt shifts its focus to the season finale in Tampa, Florida for the ReliaQuest Bowl against Iowa on Dec. 31. It is a game that Lea and his team are grateful to be in even though they did not reach its ultimate goals it had when the offseason began Jan. 7 this year.

After all, a program that has had such a historic season as Vanderbilt has had deserves to end the right way: one more chance for the players to play with one another.

“What an opportunity and what a blessing and how grateful we are to have this chance to represent our conference against the Big Ten to have one final climb as a team,” Lea said. “We're going to be together and have fun. We're to make sure we keep our mission focused. And we want to go down and play our best game of the year on New Year's Eve.”

A game like this in the situation Vanderbilt found itself in, however, could indicate a feeling of vengeance toward the 12-member committee that selects the playoff teams. Vanderbilt feels that it has been disrespected by the committee ever since Vanderbilt started its three-game winning streak to end the regular season.

But Lea and his team do not feel the need for his team to go to Tampa and make a statement of saying, “we told you so" to the committee in order to prove it wrong. Rather, Vanderbilt is looking forward to the opportunity that lies ahead of it at the end of the month.

“It’s an opportunity to go play well. But I want to stop short of trying to prove people wrong. I think I see the game as a celebration. I want it to be about the group of guys that have come together and made for a historic and special season,” Lea said.

Vanderbilt has done a good job of clearing its mind when things do not go its way and focusing on the next thing. From bouncing back after losses to doing what it can in the rankings, Vanderbilt has been grounded and focused since the season began. Perhaps the rankings revealed on Tuesday gave Vanderbilt time to clear its mind, accept it would not go to the playoffs and start to turn its focus to the final game of the season.

Regardless, it is clear that Vanderbilt has moved on from its standing in the playoff conversation and has moved toward focusing on the opportunity to get an 11th win.

“Bowl games are fun, but they're more fun when you win. So we're going to enjoy ourselves, but we need to keep our mission focused here. We talked about that today as a team, and I trust this group to do that,” Lea said.

Vanderbilt looks to finish the season off with a fourth consecutive win and make a historic season even more historic when it kicks off against Iowa on Dec. 31 at 11 a.m. CT.