2014–2026 performance history

Vanderbilt over time

Season-by-season offense and defense game grades, with head-coaching changes placed on the timeline.

SECHead coach: Clark LeaView Vanderbilt games →
Offense · 2026 estimate85.0/100

33.2 average through 2 games

92.0 prior · 8 equivalent games
Defense · 2026 estimate45.7/100

49.3 average through 2 games

44.8 prior · 8 equivalent games

The trajectory

Game and Season Unit Ratings

Each small dot is one offensive or defensive game rating, arranged in the order played. For completed seasons, the short bar is that season’s average game rating. Both dot and bar values are labeled on a percentile scale. For 2026, the bar is the Bayesian estimate, while the outlined circle is the empirical games-only mean. Labeled background bands show each head coach’s era.

Vanderbilt individual offense and defense game grades by seasonEach small point is one game. Horizontal bars show completed-season means and the Bayesian estimate for 2026. The outlined 2026 circle is the empirical games-only mean. Alternating labeled bands identify head-coaching eras.Mason · ’14–’20Derek Mason, 2014–2020Lea · ’21–’26Clark Lea, 2021–2026offenseGame-grade percentile · higher is better9975502512014 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Temple · L 7–37; offense 31.9 percentile2014 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Ole Miss · L 3–41; offense 20.4 percentile2014 Week 3: Vanderbilt vs. Massachusetts · W 34–31; offense 31.3 percentile2014 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 34–48; offense 43.8 percentile2014 Week 5: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · L 7–17; offense 1.8 percentile2014 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Georgia · L 17–44; offense 41.3 percentile2014 Week 7: Vanderbilt vs. Charleston Southern · W 21–20; offense 5.2 percentile2014 Week 9: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 14–24; offense 26.1 percentile2014 Week 10: Vanderbilt vs. Old Dominion · W 42–28; offense 67.1 percentile2014 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · L 10–34; offense 15.3 percentile2014 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Mississippi State · L 0–51; offense 2.7 percentile2014 Week 14: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · L 17–24; offense 16.4 percentile2015 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Western Kentucky · L 12–14; offense 27.7 percentile2015 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 14–31; offense 38.0 percentile2015 Week 3: Vanderbilt vs. Austin Peay · W 47–7; offense 55.1 percentile2015 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 16–27; offense 21.4 percentile2015 Week 5: Vanderbilt at Middle Tennessee · W 17–13; offense 56.2 percentile2015 Week 7: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 10–19; offense 7.5 percentile2015 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · W 10–3; offense 16.0 percentile2015 Week 9: Vanderbilt at Houston · L 0–34; offense 19.0 percentile2015 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 7–9; offense 6.0 percentile2015 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · W 21–17; offense 5.5 percentile2015 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Texas A&M · L 0–25; offense 5.3 percentile2015 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · L 28–53; offense 77.9 percentile2016 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 10–13; offense 11.3 percentile2016 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Middle Tennessee · W 47–24; offense 40.5 percentile2016 Week 3: Vanderbilt at Georgia Tech · L 7–38; offense 11.7 percentile2016 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Western Kentucky · W 31–30; offense 56.8 percentile2016 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · L 6–13; offense 27.1 percentile2016 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · L 13–20; offense 18.7 percentile2016 Week 7: Vanderbilt at Georgia · W 17–16; offense 19.0 percentile2016 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee State · W 35–17; offense 58.6 percentile2016 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Auburn · L 16–23; offense 43.0 percentile2016 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 17–26; offense 23.8 percentile2016 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Ole Miss · W 38–17; offense 65.1 percentile2016 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · W 45–34; offense 84.2 percentile2016 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. NC State · L 17–41; offense 44.6 percentile2017 Week 1: Vanderbilt at Middle Tennessee · W 28–6; offense 71.5 percentile2017 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Alabama A&M · W 42–0; offense 67.5 percentile2017 Week 3: Vanderbilt vs. Kansas State · W 14–7; offense 11.6 percentile2017 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. Alabama · L 0–59; offense 6.0 percentile2017 Week 5: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 24–38; offense 28.1 percentile2017 Week 6: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 14–45; offense 22.2 percentile2017 Week 7: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 35–57; offense 41.7 percentile2017 Week 9: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 27–34; offense 71.0 percentile2017 Week 10: Vanderbilt vs. Western Kentucky · W 31–17; offense 80.3 percentile2017 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · L 21–44; offense 34.7 percentile2017 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · L 17–45; offense 14.1 percentile2017 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · W 42–24; offense 95.8 percentile2018 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Middle Tennessee · W 35–7; offense 85.1 percentile2018 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Nevada · W 41–10; offense 80.0 percentile2018 Week 3: Vanderbilt at Notre Dame · L 17–22; offense 55.1 percentile2018 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 14–37; offense 10.7 percentile2018 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee State · W 31–27; offense 42.4 percentile2018 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Georgia · L 13–41; offense 27.4 percentile2018 Week 7: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · L 27–37; offense 57.9 percentile2018 Week 8: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · L 7–14; offense 26.8 percentile2018 Week 9: Vanderbilt at Arkansas · W 45–31; offense 80.1 percentile2018 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 28–33; offense 83.6 percentile2018 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Ole Miss · W 36–29; offense 40.8 percentile2018 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · W 38–13; offense 50.0 percentile2018 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Baylor · L 38–45; offense 86.2 percentile2019 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 6–30; offense 39.2 percentile2019 Week 2: Vanderbilt at Purdue · L 24–42; offense 34.9 percentile2019 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. LSU · L 38–66; offense 45.4 percentile2019 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Northern Illinois · W 24–18; offense 40.6 percentile2019 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 6–31; offense 1.5 percentile2019 Week 7: Vanderbilt vs. UNLV · L 10–34; offense 28.6 percentile2019 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · W 21–14; offense 43.5 percentile2019 Week 10: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 7–24; offense 15.8 percentile2019 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 0–56; offense 2.5 percentile2019 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · L 14–38; offense 22.3 percentile2019 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. East Tennessee State · W 38–0; offense 45.8 percentile2019 Week 14: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · L 10–28; offense 29.2 percentile2020 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Texas A&M · L 12–17; offense 19.9 percentile2020 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. LSU · L 7–41; offense 7.8 percentile2020 Week 6: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 7–41; offense 0.3 percentile2020 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Mississippi State · L 17–24; offense 54.1 percentile2020 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · L 35–38; offense 79.1 percentile2020 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · L 17–38; offense 35.9 percentile2020 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 0–41; offense 2.1 percentile2020 Week 15: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · L 17–42; offense 1.1 percentile2021 Week 2: Vanderbilt at Colorado State · W 24–21; offense 19.2 percentile2021 Week 3: Vanderbilt vs. Stanford · L 23–41; offense 9.3 percentile2021 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 0–62; offense 2.0 percentile2021 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. UConn · W 30–28; offense 19.4 percentile2021 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 0–42; offense 6.1 percentile2021 Week 7: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 20–21; offense 20.7 percentile2021 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Mississippi State · L 6–45; offense 1.0 percentile2021 Week 9: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · L 28–37; offense 25.0 percentile2021 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · L 17–34; offense 14.3 percentile2021 Week 12: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 17–31; offense 25.7 percentile2022 Week 1: Vanderbilt at Hawai'i · W 63–10; offense 93.2 percentile2022 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Elon · W 42–31; offense 20.0 percentile2022 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Wake Forest · L 25–45; offense 20.6 percentile2022 Week 3: Vanderbilt at Northern Illinois · W 38–28; offense 79.4 percentile2022 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Alabama · L 3–55; offense 1.8 percentile2022 Week 6: Vanderbilt vs. Ole Miss · L 28–52; offense 65.1 percentile2022 Week 7: Vanderbilt at Georgia · L 0–55; offense 12.8 percentile2022 Week 8: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 14–17; offense 7.5 percentile2022 Week 10: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 27–38; offense 61.0 percentile2022 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · W 24–21; offense 88.3 percentile2022 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · W 31–24; offense 28.1 percentile2022 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · L 0–56; offense 0.3 percentile2023 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Hawai'i · W 35–28; offense 27.6 percentile2023 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Alabama A&M · W 47–13; offense 42.3 percentile2023 Week 2: Vanderbilt at Wake Forest · L 20–36; offense 40.2 percentile2023 Week 3: Vanderbilt at UNLV · L 37–40; offense 45.0 percentile2023 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · L 28–45; offense 41.2 percentile2023 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · L 21–38; offense 41.2 percentile2023 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 14–38; offense 35.0 percentile2023 Week 7: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 20–37; offense 46.8 percentile2023 Week 9: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 7–33; offense 12.1 percentile2023 Week 10: Vanderbilt vs. Auburn · L 15–31; offense 1.5 percentile2023 Week 11: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 6–47; offense 18.4 percentile2023 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · L 24–48; offense 49.6 percentile2024 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Virginia Tech · W 34–27; offense 52.4 percentile2024 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Alcorn State · W 55–0; offense 65.0 percentile2024 Week 3: Vanderbilt at Georgia State · L 32–36; offense 39.4 percentile2024 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 27–30; offense 25.3 percentile2024 Week 6: Vanderbilt vs. Alabama · W 40–35; offense 72.5 percentile2024 Week 7: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · W 20–13; offense 76.9 percentile2024 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Ball State · W 24–14; offense 37.7 percentile2024 Week 9: Vanderbilt vs. Texas · L 24–27; offense 41.0 percentile2024 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Auburn · W 17–7; offense 16.4 percentile2024 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 7–28; offense 22.1 percentile2024 Week 13: Vanderbilt at LSU · L 17–24; offense 47.0 percentile2024 Week 14: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · L 23–36; offense 59.2 percentile2024 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia Tech · W 35–27; offense 65.2 percentile2025 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Charleston Southern · W 45–3; offense 85.9 percentile2025 Week 2: Vanderbilt at Virginia Tech · W 44–20; offense 98.3 percentile2025 Week 3: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · W 31–7; offense 72.8 percentile2025 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia State · W 70–21; offense 92.9 percentile2025 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Utah State · W 55–35; offense 99.5 percentile2025 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Alabama · L 14–30; offense 43.3 percentile2025 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. LSU · W 31–24; offense 81.9 percentile2025 Week 9: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · W 17–10; offense 49.5 percentile2025 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Texas · L 31–34; offense 98.6 percentile2025 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Auburn · W 45–38; offense 98.6 percentile2025 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · W 45–17; offense 85.8 percentile2025 Week 14: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · W 45–24; offense 99.9 percentile2025 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Iowa · L 27–34; offense 83.8 percentile2026 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Austin Peay · W 28–9; offense 53.6 percentile2026 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Delaware · W 35–26; offense 16.8 percentile2014 offense season mean: 20.2 percentile2015 offense season mean: 23.4 percentile2016 offense season mean: 37.1 percentile2017 offense season mean: 44.6 percentile2018 offense season mean: 56.8 percentile2019 offense season mean: 24.5 percentile2020 offense season mean: 13.6 percentile2021 offense season mean: 11.2 percentile2022 offense season mean: 32.2 percentile2023 offense season mean: 29.9 percentile2024 offense season mean: 47.3 percentile2025 offense season mean: 92.0 percentile2026 offense Bayesian estimate: 85.0 percentile2026 offense empirical mean: 33.2 percentiledefenseGame-grade percentile · higher is better9975502512014 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Temple · L 7–37; defense 70.4 percentile2014 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Ole Miss · L 3–41; defense 4.8 percentile2014 Week 3: Vanderbilt vs. Massachusetts · W 34–31; defense 41.0 percentile2014 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 34–48; defense 10.1 percentile2014 Week 5: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · L 7–17; defense 53.3 percentile2014 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Georgia · L 17–44; defense 31.4 percentile2014 Week 7: Vanderbilt vs. Charleston Southern · W 21–20; defense 27.0 percentile2014 Week 9: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 14–24; defense 13.1 percentile2014 Week 10: Vanderbilt vs. Old Dominion · W 42–28; defense 75.8 percentile2014 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · L 10–34; defense 31.8 percentile2014 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Mississippi State · L 0–51; defense 12.8 percentile2014 Week 14: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · L 17–24; defense 73.9 percentile2015 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Western Kentucky · L 12–14; defense 99.8 percentile2015 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 14–31; defense 54.0 percentile2015 Week 3: Vanderbilt vs. Austin Peay · W 47–7; defense 86.6 percentile2015 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 16–27; defense 80.4 percentile2015 Week 5: Vanderbilt at Middle Tennessee · W 17–13; defense 98.1 percentile2015 Week 7: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 10–19; defense 60.3 percentile2015 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · W 10–3; defense 82.0 percentile2015 Week 9: Vanderbilt at Houston · L 0–34; defense 91.1 percentile2015 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 7–9; defense 92.2 percentile2015 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · W 21–17; defense 82.2 percentile2015 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Texas A&M · L 0–25; defense 50.5 percentile2015 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · L 28–53; defense 7.8 percentile2016 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 10–13; defense 56.7 percentile2016 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Middle Tennessee · W 47–24; defense 48.1 percentile2016 Week 3: Vanderbilt at Georgia Tech · L 7–38; defense 13.5 percentile2016 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Western Kentucky · W 31–30; defense 71.4 percentile2016 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · L 6–13; defense 84.7 percentile2016 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · L 13–20; defense 74.1 percentile2016 Week 7: Vanderbilt at Georgia · W 17–16; defense 79.6 percentile2016 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee State · W 35–17; defense 8.2 percentile2016 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Auburn · L 16–23; defense 60.1 percentile2016 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 17–26; defense 54.6 percentile2016 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Ole Miss · W 38–17; defense 94.6 percentile2016 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · W 45–34; defense 12.1 percentile2016 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. NC State · L 17–41; defense 26.7 percentile2017 Week 1: Vanderbilt at Middle Tennessee · W 28–6; defense 92.8 percentile2017 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Alabama A&M · W 42–0; defense 83.9 percentile2017 Week 3: Vanderbilt vs. Kansas State · W 14–7; defense 87.2 percentile2017 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. Alabama · L 0–59; defense 2.4 percentile2017 Week 5: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 24–38; defense 20.2 percentile2017 Week 6: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 14–45; defense 0.4 percentile2017 Week 7: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 35–57; defense 24.0 percentile2017 Week 9: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 27–34; defense 14.1 percentile2017 Week 10: Vanderbilt vs. Western Kentucky · W 31–17; defense 81.6 percentile2017 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · L 21–44; defense 13.8 percentile2017 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · L 17–45; defense 50.2 percentile2017 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · W 42–24; defense 37.2 percentile2018 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Middle Tennessee · W 35–7; defense 63.6 percentile2018 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Nevada · W 41–10; defense 93.5 percentile2018 Week 3: Vanderbilt at Notre Dame · L 17–22; defense 63.1 percentile2018 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 14–37; defense 17.1 percentile2018 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee State · W 31–27; defense 12.6 percentile2018 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Georgia · L 13–41; defense 13.4 percentile2018 Week 7: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · L 27–37; defense 33.2 percentile2018 Week 8: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · L 7–14; defense 67.1 percentile2018 Week 9: Vanderbilt at Arkansas · W 45–31; defense 7.2 percentile2018 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 28–33; defense 21.7 percentile2018 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Ole Miss · W 36–29; defense 22.6 percentile2018 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · W 38–13; defense 69.6 percentile2018 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Baylor · L 38–45; defense 8.3 percentile2019 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 6–30; defense 15.9 percentile2019 Week 2: Vanderbilt at Purdue · L 24–42; defense 27.4 percentile2019 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. LSU · L 38–66; defense 24.2 percentile2019 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Northern Illinois · W 24–18; defense 33.2 percentile2019 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 6–31; defense 29.5 percentile2019 Week 7: Vanderbilt vs. UNLV · L 10–34; defense 25.9 percentile2019 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · W 21–14; defense 78.0 percentile2019 Week 10: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 7–24; defense 25.0 percentile2019 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 0–56; defense 17.5 percentile2019 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · L 14–38; defense 0.7 percentile2019 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. East Tennessee State · W 38–0; defense 81.0 percentile2019 Week 14: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · L 10–28; defense 18.0 percentile2020 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Texas A&M · L 12–17; defense 85.2 percentile2020 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. LSU · L 7–41; defense 8.2 percentile2020 Week 6: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 7–41; defense 10.3 percentile2020 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Mississippi State · L 17–24; defense 81.3 percentile2020 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · L 35–38; defense 1.5 percentile2020 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · L 17–38; defense 12.5 percentile2020 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 0–41; defense 5.2 percentile2020 Week 15: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · L 17–42; defense 12.1 percentile2021 Week 2: Vanderbilt at Colorado State · W 24–21; defense 46.8 percentile2021 Week 3: Vanderbilt vs. Stanford · L 23–41; defense 7.6 percentile2021 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 0–62; defense 24.8 percentile2021 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. UConn · W 30–28; defense 8.6 percentile2021 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 0–42; defense 24.1 percentile2021 Week 7: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 20–21; defense 13.0 percentile2021 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Mississippi State · L 6–45; defense 3.7 percentile2021 Week 9: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · L 28–37; defense 19.6 percentile2021 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · L 17–34; defense 9.3 percentile2021 Week 12: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 17–31; defense 32.6 percentile2022 Week 1: Vanderbilt at Hawai'i · W 63–10; defense 64.3 percentile2022 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Elon · W 42–31; defense 17.5 percentile2022 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Wake Forest · L 25–45; defense 41.0 percentile2022 Week 3: Vanderbilt at Northern Illinois · W 38–28; defense 15.1 percentile2022 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Alabama · L 3–55; defense 9.8 percentile2022 Week 6: Vanderbilt vs. Ole Miss · L 28–52; defense 1.8 percentile2022 Week 7: Vanderbilt at Georgia · L 0–55; defense 15.9 percentile2022 Week 8: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 14–17; defense 76.0 percentile2022 Week 10: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 27–38; defense 6.8 percentile2022 Week 11: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · W 24–21; defense 22.9 percentile2022 Week 12: Vanderbilt vs. Florida · W 31–24; defense 42.3 percentile2022 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · L 0–56; defense 30.4 percentile2023 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Hawai'i · W 35–28; defense 33.8 percentile2023 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Alabama A&M · W 47–13; defense 33.5 percentile2023 Week 2: Vanderbilt at Wake Forest · L 20–36; defense 6.7 percentile2023 Week 3: Vanderbilt at UNLV · L 37–40; defense 53.6 percentile2023 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · L 28–45; defense 52.1 percentile2023 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · L 21–38; defense 36.3 percentile2023 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Florida · L 14–38; defense 4.4 percentile2023 Week 7: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia · L 20–37; defense 40.8 percentile2023 Week 9: Vanderbilt at Ole Miss · L 7–33; defense 33.0 percentile2023 Week 10: Vanderbilt vs. Auburn · L 15–31; defense 34.2 percentile2023 Week 11: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · L 6–47; defense 13.7 percentile2023 Week 13: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · L 24–48; defense 7.0 percentile2024 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Virginia Tech · W 34–27; defense 24.8 percentile2024 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Alcorn State · W 55–0; defense 86.1 percentile2024 Week 3: Vanderbilt at Georgia State · L 32–36; defense 34.7 percentile2024 Week 4: Vanderbilt at Missouri · L 27–30; defense 72.6 percentile2024 Week 6: Vanderbilt vs. Alabama · W 40–35; defense 12.9 percentile2024 Week 7: Vanderbilt at Kentucky · W 20–13; defense 22.1 percentile2024 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. Ball State · W 24–14; defense 56.5 percentile2024 Week 9: Vanderbilt vs. Texas · L 24–27; defense 50.9 percentile2024 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Auburn · W 17–7; defense 96.8 percentile2024 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina · L 7–28; defense 16.0 percentile2024 Week 13: Vanderbilt at LSU · L 17–24; defense 9.9 percentile2024 Week 14: Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee · L 23–36; defense 7.9 percentile2024 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia Tech · W 35–27; defense 60.6 percentile2025 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Charleston Southern · W 45–3; defense 65.6 percentile2025 Week 2: Vanderbilt at Virginia Tech · W 44–20; defense 63.8 percentile2025 Week 3: Vanderbilt at South Carolina · W 31–7; defense 55.5 percentile2025 Week 4: Vanderbilt vs. Georgia State · W 70–21; defense 70.3 percentile2025 Week 5: Vanderbilt vs. Utah State · W 55–35; defense 57.6 percentile2025 Week 6: Vanderbilt at Alabama · L 14–30; defense 16.3 percentile2025 Week 8: Vanderbilt vs. LSU · W 31–24; defense 18.2 percentile2025 Week 9: Vanderbilt vs. Missouri · W 17–10; defense 78.0 percentile2025 Week 10: Vanderbilt at Texas · L 31–34; defense 12.3 percentile2025 Week 11: Vanderbilt vs. Auburn · W 45–38; defense 6.1 percentile2025 Week 13: Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky · W 45–17; defense 76.7 percentile2025 Week 14: Vanderbilt at Tennessee · W 45–24; defense 76.4 percentile2025 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Iowa · L 27–34; defense 17.0 percentile2026 Week 1: Vanderbilt vs. Austin Peay · W 28–9; defense 34.5 percentile2026 Week 2: Vanderbilt vs. Delaware · W 35–26; defense 64.1 percentile2014 defense season mean: 33.7 percentile2015 defense season mean: 80.7 percentile2016 defense season mean: 52.7 percentile2017 defense season mean: 36.3 percentile2018 defense season mean: 35.4 percentile2019 defense season mean: 27.2 percentile2020 defense season mean: 19.6 percentile2021 defense season mean: 16.4 percentile2022 defense season mean: 24.0 percentile2023 defense season mean: 25.5 percentile2024 defense season mean: 41.9 percentile2025 defense season mean: 44.8 percentile2026 defense Bayesian estimate: 45.7 percentile2026 defense empirical mean: 49.3 percentile2014201520162017201820192020202120222023202420252026
Individual gameSeason bar · 2026 is the estimate2026 empirical meanCoaching-era band
2014Derek Mason
2020Derek Mason / Todd Fitch
2021Clark Lea

How to read 2026

The current-season estimate intelligently blends last season with new data.

The 2026 estimate is a Bayesian weighted average of normal-score Z-values. The 2025 season mean counts like 8 games of prior evidence; each completed 2026 game counts once. The result is then translated back to the 0–100 percentile scale.

2026 Z = (8 × 2025 mean Z + games played × 2026 mean Z) ÷ (8 + games played)

Season record

Every annual grade and coach

Retrospective rows average the available single-game grades in normal-score space. The result is shown as a percentile. Roughly speaking, a 95th-percentile season corresponds to about the eighth-best team in a 160-team field.

SeasonHead coachGamesOffenseDefense
2026Live estimateClark Lea2
85.0 estimate33.2 games-only average
45.7 estimate49.3 games-only average
2025Clark Lea1392.044.8
2024Clark Lea1347.341.9
2023Clark Lea1229.925.5
2022Clark Lea1232.224.0
2021Clark LeaCoaching change1011.216.4
2020Derek Mason / Todd FitchCoaching change813.619.6
2019Derek Mason1224.527.2
2018Derek Mason1356.835.4
2017Derek Mason1244.636.3
2016Derek Mason1337.152.7
2015Derek Mason1223.480.7
2014Derek MasonCoaching change1220.233.7