Linebacker Ventrell Miller and the Gators return to Vanderbilt on Saturday. (Photo: Tim Casey/UAA Communications)
Charting The Gators: Vandy No Longer Streaking
Tuesday, November 15, 2022 | Football, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — There was no way for Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea to escape the question.
Lea did his best four months ago in Atlanta at SEC Media Days.
"We don't talk about that,'' he said repeatedly.
That was the 21-game SEC losing streak the Commodores carried on their backs heading into Lea's second season. The conference losing streak bloomed to 26 games — Lea's first 13 SEC games as Vanderbilt's coach, and Derek Mason's final 13 — entering last week's trip to Kroger Field to face Kentucky.
How 'bout them Dores!
Yes, Lea and his team finally tasted victory, and who knows, perhaps a sip of Kentucky bourbon when they got back to Nashville on Saturday night. Vanderbilt snapped its 26-game SEC losing streak with a 24-21 win over the Wildcats.
They host the Gators on Saturday seeking to put together a winning streak. The Gators don't want any part of that as they shoot for a third consecutive win in their final SEC regular-season game of the year.
Vanderbilt escaped with a win when quarterback Mike Wright tossed an 8-yard scoring pass to Will Sheppard with 32 seconds left. Commodores linebacker CJ Taylor intercepted a Will Levis pass on the ensuing drive, and the streak was over.
How long had Vanderbilt gone without a conference victory? Before the COVID-19 global pandemic was even a thing: against Missouri on Oct. 19, 2019.
An emotional Lea praised the Commodores afterward.
"They just kept fighting, and when you stay in the fight and you believe, good things happen," he said. "They were able to make it happen at the end."
Meanwhile, poor old Harry "Hec" Clark maintains his unwanted place in the history of the SEC. Clark was head coach at Sewanee (Tenn.) University – aka University of the South – when the SEC formed in 1933. Clark took over the Tigers during the Depression and led the program, once a powerhouse in the early days of college football, throughout the majority of the 1930s.
By the time Sewanee joined the SEC, the game had passed the Tigers by at the highest level. Clark announced his resignation at the end of the 1939 season, and at the end of the 1940 season, Sewanee departed the SEC.
"I think I'm stepping into something better,'' Clark told the United Press at the time of his departure.
He took a position as manager of the University Supply Store.
No losing streaks to talk about there.
STREAKING WRONG WAY
A look at the five longest conference losing streaks in the history of the Southeastern Conference:
Lea did his best four months ago in Atlanta at SEC Media Days.
"We don't talk about that,'' he said repeatedly.
That was the 21-game SEC losing streak the Commodores carried on their backs heading into Lea's second season. The conference losing streak bloomed to 26 games — Lea's first 13 SEC games as Vanderbilt's coach, and Derek Mason's final 13 — entering last week's trip to Kroger Field to face Kentucky.
How 'bout them Dores!
Yes, Lea and his team finally tasted victory, and who knows, perhaps a sip of Kentucky bourbon when they got back to Nashville on Saturday night. Vanderbilt snapped its 26-game SEC losing streak with a 24-21 win over the Wildcats.
An emotional win for @Coach_Lea and @VandyFootball over No. 24 Kentucky Wildcats 👏 pic.twitter.com/Ttpx9FBB08
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) November 12, 2022
They host the Gators on Saturday seeking to put together a winning streak. The Gators don't want any part of that as they shoot for a third consecutive win in their final SEC regular-season game of the year.
Vanderbilt escaped with a win when quarterback Mike Wright tossed an 8-yard scoring pass to Will Sheppard with 32 seconds left. Commodores linebacker CJ Taylor intercepted a Will Levis pass on the ensuing drive, and the streak was over.
How long had Vanderbilt gone without a conference victory? Before the COVID-19 global pandemic was even a thing: against Missouri on Oct. 19, 2019.
An emotional Lea praised the Commodores afterward.
"They just kept fighting, and when you stay in the fight and you believe, good things happen," he said. "They were able to make it happen at the end."
Meanwhile, poor old Harry "Hec" Clark maintains his unwanted place in the history of the SEC. Clark was head coach at Sewanee (Tenn.) University – aka University of the South – when the SEC formed in 1933. Clark took over the Tigers during the Depression and led the program, once a powerhouse in the early days of college football, throughout the majority of the 1930s.
By the time Sewanee joined the SEC, the game had passed the Tigers by at the highest level. Clark announced his resignation at the end of the 1939 season, and at the end of the 1940 season, Sewanee departed the SEC.
"I think I'm stepping into something better,'' Clark told the United Press at the time of his departure.
He took a position as manager of the University Supply Store.
No losing streaks to talk about there.
A look at the five longest conference losing streaks in the history of the Southeastern Conference:
| SCHOOL | SEASONS | STEAK | THE END |
| Sewanee | 1933-40 | 37 | Tigers went 0-37 in SEC before exiting; lost 10-6 in close call at UF in '38 |
| Vanderbilt | 1976-81 | 33 | Van Heflin scored on 49-yard run to put Dores up for good in 27-23 win at Ole Miss |
| Vanderbilt | 2019-22 | 26 | Last-second TD pass at Kentucky lifted Dores to upset win on road |
| Vanderbilt | 2000-03 | 23 | Jay Cutler threw 4 TDs in 28-17 win over Kentucky |
| Vanderbilt | 1995-98 | 22 | First-time starter Greg Zolman passed for 279 yards, TD to beat South Carolina 17-14 |
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