# 2017 Vanderbilt Commodores football team

The 2017 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University in the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Commodores played their home games at Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee and compete in the East Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by fourth-year head coach Derek Mason. The team earned a final record of 5–7 (1–7 SEC) in a season notable for wins against Kansas State, then in the top 20, and Tennessee, but also for sizeable losses against SEC opponents Alabama (by 59 points), Georgia (by 31), and Missouri (by 28). The Tennessee win at Neyland Stadium was the Commodores' fourth in six games, a feat unequaled by VU in that rivalry since 1926.

## Schedule

Vanderbilt announced its 2017 football schedule on September 13, 2016. The 2017 schedule consisted of 7 home games and 5 away games in the regular season. The Commodores hosted SEC foes Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, and Missouri, and traveled to Florida, Ole Miss, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
The Commodores hosted three of their four non–conference games, against Alabama A&M from the Southwestern Athletic Conference, Kansas State from the Big 12 Conference and Western Kentucky from Conference USA. Vanderbilt traveled to Middle Tennessee (also from Conference USA) and ended a five-game losing streak in opening games dating from 2012.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 2 | 7:00 p.m. | at Middle Tennessee* | Johnny "Red" Floyd StadiumMurfreesboro, TN | CBSSN | W 28–6 | 26,717 |
| September 9 | 3:00 p.m. | Alabama A&M* | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN | SECN | W 42–0 | 25,802 |
| September 16 | 6:30 p.m. | No. 18 Kansas State* | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN | ESPNU | W 14–7 | 40,350 |
| September 23 | 2:30 p.m. | No. 1 Alabama | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN (SEC Nation) | CBS | L 0–59 | 40,350 |
| September 30 | 11:00 a.m. | at No. 21 Florida | Ben Hill Griffin StadiumGainesville, FL | ESPN | L 24–38 | 84,478 |
| October 7 | 11:00 a.m. | No. 5 Georgia † | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN (rivalry) | ESPN | L 14–45 | 36,282 |
| October 14 | 2:30 p.m. | at Ole Miss | Vaught–Hemingway StadiumOxford, MS (rivalry) | SECN | L 35–57 | 60,157 |
| October 28 | 3:00 p.m. | at South Carolina | Williams-Brice StadiumColumbia, SC | SECN | L 27–34 | 78,992 |
| November 4 | 11:00 a.m. | Western Kentucky* | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN | ESPNU | W 31–17 | 26,350 |
| November 11 | 3:00 p.m. | Kentucky | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN (rivalry) | SECN | L 21–44 | 27,346 |
| November 18 | 6:30 p.m. | Missouri | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN | SECN | L 17–45 | 22,910 |
| November 25 | 3:00 p.m. | at Tennessee | Neyland StadiumKnoxville, TN (rivalry) | SECN | W 42–24 | 83,117 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from AP Poll released prior to gameAll times are in Central time |||||||
    Schedule Source:

## Game summaries
### Middle Tennessee

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vanderbilt | 14 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 28 |
| MTSU | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1915 | Vanderbilt 30–0 | 13–3 | 10–3 | 3–0 | 2016 | Vanderbilt, 47–24 |

### Alabama A&M

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Alabama A&M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vanderbilt | 14 | 21 | 7 | 0 | 42 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| | First game in series | | | | | |

### Kansas State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Kansas State | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Vanderbilt | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1984 | Vanderbilt 26–14 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1984 | Vanderbilt 26–14 |

### Alabama

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Alabama | 21 | 10 | 21 | 7 | 59 |
| Vanderbilt | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1903 | Vanderbilt 30–0 | 19–61–4 | 13–28–2 | 6–31–2 | 2011 | Alabama 34–0 |

### Florida

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vanderbilt | 7 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
| Florida | 7 | 10 | 7 | 14 | 38 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1945 | Vanderbilt 7–0 | 10–37–2 | 7–15–1 | 3–22–1 | 2016 | Florida 13–6 |

### Georgia

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Georgia | 7 | 14 | 17 | 7 | 45 |
| Vanderbilt | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1893 | Vanderbilt 35–0 | 19–56–2 | 11–25–2 | 8–31 | 2016 | Vanderbilt 17–16 |

### Ole Miss

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vanderbilt | 0 | 21 | 0 | 14 | 35 |
| Ole Miss | 7 | 28 | 12 | 10 | 57 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1894 | Vanderbilt 40–0 | 38–50–2 | 27–24–2 | 11–26 | 2016 | Vanderbilt 38–17 |

### South Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vanderbilt | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 27 |
| South Carolina | 14 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 34 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1961 | South Carolina 23–7 | 4–22 | 2–11 | 2–11 | 2016 | South Carolina 13–10 |

### Western Kentucky

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Western Kentucky | 7 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 17 |
| Vanderbilt | 14 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 31 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1931 | Vanderbilt 52–6 | 4–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 2016 | Vanderbilt 31–30 OT |

### Kentucky

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Kentucky | 7 | 13 | 21 | 3 | 44 |
| Vanderbilt | 7 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 21 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1896 | Vanderbilt 6–0 | 42–43–4 | 27–19–2 | 15–24–2 | 2016 | Kentucky 13–6 |

### Missouri

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Missouri | 7 | 28 | 3 | 7 | 45 |
| Vanderbilt | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 17 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1895 | Missouri 14–0 | 3–5–1 | 1–1–1 | 2–4 | 2016 | Missouri 26–17 |

### Tennessee

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vanderbilt | 7 | 14 | 0 | 21 | 42 |
| Tennessee | 14 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 24 |
| First meeting | Result | Overall record | Home | Away | Last meeting | Result |
| 1892 | Vanderbilt 12–0 | 31–75–5 | 20–36–4 | 11–39–1 | 2016 | Vanderbilt 45–34 |