Vanderbilt has undergone an unbelievable amount of change in the 276 days since its last game of the 2023 season. It replaced both coordinators, lost nearly half of its starting offensive production and brought in almost 20 new players via the transfer portal. Not to mention that its stadium has undergone near-complete reconstruction over the past year. On Tuesday, Aug. 27, Lea took the podium to talk about Vanderbilt’s hectic offseason. Through all of this uncertainty, though, head coach Clark Lea has stayed calm at the helm of the program.
“I believe in the changes we’ve made,” Lea said. “I’ve seen and felt the progress internally, and I know that in time, that’s going to deliver us the results we want.”
That said, he knows that in year four of his tenure with the Commodores, there needs to be more progress. When asked about what he can do better in 2024, Lea took accountability.
“I don’t want to talk a lot about last year, but I think if I were to share the disappointment that I had — outside of the pain of the results — [it] was that I didn’t do enough to get our program to evolve. It felt like I could never get the team to the performance that we were proud of, and we suffered.”
This isn’t a new message for Lea, who has never been one to mince words when it comes to his shortcomings. While he hopes for a strong start on Saturday, he also knows that Virginia Tech is a tough opponent.
“I certainly would love to get off to a great start,” he said. “Though this is a 12-game season, we’re trying to unlock 13 and 14. We’ll learn a lot about our team on Saturday, and we’ll chart a course forward. I’m really interested in seeing this team evolve.”
Shifting to less culture-oriented questions and to team-specifics, Lea lauded the work of strength and conditioning coach Robert Stiner, who has worked diligently to get Vanderbilt into better shape this summer. He offered some insights into Vanderbit’s defensive line, which has improved depth and experience this season.
“What this league demands of you on defense — and there are going to be times that these fronts are imposing — [require] a combination of our fundamental-technical proficiency, the physical power that we’ve gained and our athleticism in the front,” Lea said. “In our league, there are going to be times when you line up, and everyone is going to be 350 lbs up front. If you’re not countering that with 350 lbs across the board, you have to be fundamentally and technically proficient. I’ve been excited to see that group grow, and we’re bigger up front.”
While Lea was willing to share all of his thoughts on the program and his culture, he remained mum on the topic of starting quarterbacks. All indications are that Pavia will start on Saturday, but the depth chart released yesterday listed “OR” between him and Johnson. Lea acknowledged that Vanderbilt has yet to have a full-season starter in any of his three years as head coach, and he imagines it will be the same in 2024.
“We’re going to have a starter, and we’re going to lean on that starter,” Lea said. “We’re going to have a guy ready to take snaps, but I have no doubt in my mind that we’ll go to two or three.”
Johnson is far too athletic to be kept off the field, and Lea knows that. It remains to be seen exactly how he’ll be used, but fans can expect him to see plenty of action this weekend.
The Commodores will take the field for the first time in 2024, facing Virginia Tech at 11 a.m. CDT on Aug. 31 at FirstBank Stadium.
