Vanderbilt Football head coach Clark Lea addressed Vanderbilt Football’s recent College Football playoff ranking and Diego Pavia’s Heisman hopes on Dec. 3. The Commodores stayed at No. 14 in the CFP poll and dropped to No. 13 in the AP poll after beating then-No. 19 Tennessee on the road 45-24.
The latest rankings essentially eliminated Vanderbilt from playoff contention, which added fuel to the fire for Lea.
“If [the CFP Committee is] going to keep us out of the playoffs this year, then we have to kick the damn door down next year,” Lea said.
Ultimately, Vanderbilt’s losses to Alabama and Texas were important factors in the Committee’s ranking, but Lea acknowledged the neck-and-neck nature of both matchups.
“We were a couple plays away in the Alabama game from making it really interesting,” Lea said. “We were probably six inches away from recovering a kick [against Texas] to put us in position for a tying field goal or a game-winning touchdown, and we came up short.
Lea addressed Pavia’s request to the oval office for an executive order to expand the CFP on X.
“Let’s go. We’ll go anywhere, everywhere. This is about a belief in the team,” Lea said.
Lea advocated for reform, suggesting the playoff field potentially be expanded.
“You know, 12 or 16 [teams], the more the merrier,” Lea said. “Think how exciting it is if you have a 16-team playoff, that there’s opportunity for 16 programs to compete for the ultimate prize.”
He also mentioned a desire for coaches to collaborate on reforms.
“We as coaches will have a say in this moving forward as we’re getting together in our AFCA conference, and as we’re meeting as SEC members,” Lea said. “I think it’s important that we exercise our voice and we collaborate on the solution, because it’s not okay right now”
The narrative around Vanderbilt’s brand may have contributed to its latest ranking, according to Lea.
“I think with every year that we show that we’re serious about this, we’re here to stay and we’re not backing down and we’re not sitting in the corner, and we’re not staying quiet, the less we’re going to deal with kind of bias against the Vanderbilt’s past,” Lea said.
He even expressed a willingness to play a 13th regular season game if the opportunity presented itself to make a final push for this year’s playoffs.
“I told [the team] to have their bags packed [so] that if a team calls up and wants us to take a flight to go play them on Saturday, we’re going to go play them on Saturday,” Lea said. “If I have two days to prepare a team, we’ll get a plane, we’ll get there Friday Night, we’ll play on Saturday. I’m happy to do it. The team is happy to do it as well.”
In light of Pavia’s Heisman hopes, Lea reflected on recruiting the quarterback to Vanderbilt.
“I don’t know if you’ve met Diego, but he doesn’t need anyone to tell him what he’s capable of, which is a beautiful part of who he is,” Lea said. “His belief and his confidence in himself [manifested] into performance on the field.
Lea recognized the effect Pavia had on the program and beyond.
“Diego’s arguably one of the most popular athletes in our city, and one of the most popular football players in the sport of college football,” Lea said. “The mark he leaves anywhere he goes. He has a certain stature about him that I think can certainly be impactful.”
The Commodores will find out their bowl game future on Dec. 7, and Pavia will find out if he’s a Heisman finalist on Dec. 8.
