After three exciting games and three frustrating losses, Vanderbilt fans find themselves in familiar waters. In arguably their best chance for victory, the Commodores once again fell short of their goal.
“We played a close football game,” said coach Bobby Johnson. “I thought both teams played hard, and it came down to three or four yards and a field goal.”
While Johnson is correct in his final assessment of the game, there is no blame to be placed on either the offense or the defense. Both sides performed admirably against the Razorbacks.
The offense was finally able to establish a running game with three players going over the 70-yard mark, and the defense, despite giving up close to 400 yards, managed to hassle freshman quarterback Mitch Mustain and contained the talented Arkansas tailbacks.
Instead, fans, players and coaches should focus on a few key plays that had (or could have had) a dramatic effect on the outcome of Saturday’s game.
Many will look to Bryant Hahnfeldt’s missed field goal in the final minute as the pivotal play on Saturday, but actually it wasn’t. More important, was the botched extra point attempt after Vanderbilt took a 13-7 lead in the second quarter.
It wasn’t the best snap,” Johnson said. “(Mackenzi Adams) said he should’ve had it, but he’s such a competitive guy, I expect that from him. We could have had a better snap, and we could have had a better hold.”
Unfortunately for the Commodores, this single missed point proved to be a game-changing play after quarterback Chris Nickson was unable to convert a two-point try in the fourth quarter. Had Hanhfeldt been able to connect after the second touchdown, the score would have most likely been tied on that last drive.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Commodores were unable to capitalize on two near-turnovers. The first, and most controversial, came on an apparently dropped swing pass from Mustain to sophomore tailback Darren McFadden. Standing on his own 21, Mustain tossed a quick shot to McFadden, who was open in the flats.
McFadden could not maintain possession of the ball, and it glanced off his fingertips. The controversy arose when linebacker Jonathon Goff picked up the ball and began running toward the end zone, assuming it was a backwards pass, and, therefore, a fumble. An official on field disagreed, blowing the ball dead.
The Jumbotron replay did reveal sufficient evidence to at least warrant the possibility of the fumble, yet because the ball was whistled dead, no instant replay challenge was allowed. While it will never be known how the replay officials would have called it, the play is enough to cause many Vanderbilt fans to wonder, “What if'”
“But the official called it incomplete, and those types of plays can’t be reviewed,” Johnson said.
Though both sides had opportunities to force turnovers, perhaps the biggest one came near the end of the fourth quarter. Trailing 21-19, the Vanderbilt defense forced the Razorbacks into a third-and-six.
Linebacker Marcus Buggs pressured Mustain into a bad decision and safety Reshard Langford got both hands on the ball with only green in front of him but was unable to hang on to it.
“It looked like Reshard could have made a play that could have changed the game for us,” Johnson said. “He wasn’t able to, but we forced the punt anyway.”
As the Commodores search for their first win this season, fans should not be dismayed. The team has progressed well since its first game in Ann Arbor, and both sides of the ball played well on Saturday. What the Commodores need, however, is just that extra little bit – be it a lucky call, an interception or one more yard on a field goal attempt.
