Vanderbilt Hopes to Play Clean Week 1: The Anchor
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Vanderbilt football head coach Clark Lea held his first press conference of the 2025 season ahead of the Commodores first game of the season against Charleston Southern.
Lea stated he was “excited” to return to the field and says that the goal of the weekend is to avoid a sloppy start to the season.
“Just like every opener, as a coach you’re just hoping for a clean game, to avoid those self-imposed negatives, to take care of the ball and do all the little things the right way,” Lea said. “The guys are excited to get out and compete against another team. They’ve earned the right to have that opportunity.”
Vanderbilt is coming out of fall camp and is going through its first week of preparation practice for its first game. While big favorites, Lea knows that they still need to have a good week of practice and prepare the right way.
“We need to finish prep the right way with detail and execution and try to get our legs back underneath us from camp. We’re ready to play our style, our strategy and execute on Saturday. Excited to be at this point and know that we got a big couple of days ahead of us and a great way to open up our renovated stadium,” Lea said.
Vanderbilt is coming off a 7-6 season and is looking for more wins this year. It has high hopes of getting into the top of the SEC this season. The Commodores take on Charleston Southern Saturday at 6 p.m. CT. The game will be broadcasted on ESPN+/SECN+.
Today’s Commodores Schedule
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Yesterday’s Commodores Results Today
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Did You Notice?
Four-star guard in the 2026 class Kaden House announced that he will visit Vanderbilt in addition to taking a visit to Maryland and TCU. House is the No. 35 overall player in his class and the No. 7 combo guard.
A Chandler, Arizona native, House is the son of former Arizona State and NBA player Eddie House.
Additionally, Vanderbilt men’s basketball announced its final nonconference opponent for the 2025-2026 season. As Vanderbilt Commodores On SI’s Joey Dwyer reported, Vanderbilt will visit UCF for an out-of-conference test on Nov. 8, the Commodores second game of the season. Vanderbilt tips off Nov. 3 with a home game against Lipscomb. The Commodores play a 13-game nonconference schedule that ends on Dec. 29 against New Haven.
Countdown to Vanderbilt’s 2025 Football Season Opener
3 days
Commodores Quote of The Day
“Coach [Roy] Skinner was a special man. He carried a low profile; he was very humble and calm. He was interested in molding a team and was easy to play for. We ran a few basic plays but we played all over the country and he never backed away from playing anyone.”Jerry Southwood
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Graham Baakko is a writer for Vanderbilt Commodores On SI, primarily covering football, basketball and baseball. Graham is a recent graduate from the University of Alabama, where he wrote for The Crimson White, WVUA-FM, WVUA 23 as he covered a variety of Crimson Tide sports. He also covered South Carolina athletics as a sportswriting intern for GamecockCentral.