Clark Lea is making his case for Vanderbilt to make the College Football Playoff.
On Monday night, the Commodores’ coach made a compelling case that his team deserves a spot in the playoff this year. Vanderbilt is 10-2 and went 6-2 in the SEC, and that forms most of the basis of Lea’s plea.
The only blemishes on the Commodores’ résumé came against No. 10 Alabama, 30-14, and a 34-31 loss to No. 16 Texas. The crux of Lea’s argument was that everyone in the SEC has such a tough schedule, that the teams with bad records are that way because they had to go through a gauntlet in conference.
Lea made his case using the following logic:
His full comments are below.
Lea is in his fifth season at Vanderbilt, and he has authored a remarkable turnaround. He was hired to coach his alma mater on December 14, 2020, and suffered through a 2-10 record in his first season. The Commodores went 5-7 in 2022, then 2-10 again in 2023. Overall in his first three seasons Vanderbilt went 9-27, and 2-22 in the SEC.
In 2024, the turnaround began. Under brash quarterback Diego Pavia, Lea’s squad went 7-6 and authored a program-defining upset victory over then-No. 1 Alabama. This season, Vanderbilt has taken the another leap.
There are only 12 available spots in the playoff. Five will go to the highest-ranked conference champions, which leaves seven at-large bids. As of now, the Commodores would be on the outside looking in.
