Vanderbilt edges Ole Miss 36-29

A Jordan Ta’amu pass to DaMarkus Lodge fell short in OT, as the Vanderbilt Commodores held strong and defeated the Ole Miss Rebels 36-29.

The Rebels and Commodores were in OT, and Ole Miss was in need of a touchdown. They were faced with trying to play spoiler to the Commodores. Since they won’t be partaking in the postseason, they wanted to try to ensure that Vandy wasn’t either. Unfortunately for the Rebels, their efforts were squandered.

The aforementioned Ta’amu had 457 yards passing on 52 attempts. He tossed two touchdowns, one to the aforementioned Lodge (on a ridiculous catch) and to the great A.J. Brown. Brown himself had an incredible day, going for 212 yards on nine catches. Lodge’s 9-117-1 looks rather pedestrian, even if that’s still a sensational effort in its own right. Eight different receivers caught passes from Ta’amu on the day.

Kyle Shurmur meanwhile went 22-for-34 for 191 yards. He threw three touchdown passes, two to Kalija Lipscomb and the other to C.J. Bolar. The leader in receiving yards was unsurprisingly Jared Pinkney, who had 85 yards, besting Lipscomb’s 69.

The star of the show for the ‘Dores was Ke’Shawn Vaughn. Vaughn ran for 127 yards on just 25 carries, giving him a gaudy 5.1 yards per carry. He had one rushing touchdown as well in the 3rd quarter, as he had himself a day.

The win means that Vanderbilt is now one win a way from bowl eligibility. They’ll face the Tennessee Volunteers this Saturday, who are also 5-6 and a win away from bowl eligibility. Fun times in Tennessee, eh?

Ole Miss, meanwhile, will look to ruin their rival’s season, as they face the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the Egg Bowl.