Just one Vanderbilt football position group gets an A+ against Alabama A&M
Vanderbilt football started about as slow as can be on Saturday against Alabama A&M. Despite leading by just nine points at halftime, though, the Commodores eventually pulled away to a 47-13 win and saw several younger players get garbage time snaps.
With a game against Wake Forest looming, it was important for Vanderbilt (2-0) to win comfortably. It rode five second-half touchdowns to the blowout win. All three backup quarterbacks — Ken Seals, Drew Dickey and Walter Taylor — got into the game.
Vanderbilt blocked two punts and put up 147 kick return yards.
Here's how we graded the win:
Offense: B-
In the first half, the offensive grade was closer to a D. Vanderbilt struggled to find a rhythm in either the run or pass game and had just 12 points — two of which came on a blocked punt safety.
But in the second half, the grade was an A. The Commodores put up 35 points and scored on five of their six drives, racking up so many points that Seals got in.
Overall, it evens out to a B-.
Defense: B-
The defense struggled to contain Alabama A&M's scripted drives as the Bulldogs had a field goal on their first drive of the game and a touchdown in the third quarter. But Vanderbilt's defense played much better outside those two drives, allowing just a late field goal that came primarily off the second-teamers.
Though the Commodores gave up 278 yards of offense, 207 of those came on the three scoring drives.
Special teams: A+
For the second straight week, Vanderbilt made big plays on special teams, none more than the two blocked punts. The first, by Bryan Longwell, resulted in a safety. The second, by Langston Patterson, gave the Commodores a short field that resulted in a touchdown.
Jacob Borcila made his only field goal attempt and all of his extra points. Overall, an elite performance from the group consistently helped out the offense.
Coaching: B-
Similar to the offense, as much as it's fair to blame the coaching staff for the first-half performance, they must be credited for the explosion in the second half.
The halftime adjustments were strong. Also on the good side of things, Vanderbilt committed just three penalties. On the not-so-good side, play calling in the first half seemed conservative, and a handful of defensive coverage busts came from experienced players.
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Overall: B+
The special teams gave the overall performance a boost, but although the game started slow, it was a solid showing with a final score that's hard to complain about.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Grading Vanderbilt football's win over Alabama A&M
