The Vanderbilt Commodores were oozing with confidence heading into their big matchup against the Alabama Crimson Tide, only to be destroyed.
The refrain of overconfidence has been the same for many years now: We want Bama. Whenever a team and their fans get to feeling themselves, they essentially call out the Alabama Crimson Tide, the perennial powerhouse and National Championship contender under Nick Saban. However, rarely does the overconfident team get immediate satisfaction. The Vanderbilt Commodores, however, did.
After starting the season 3-0, their third win coming with an upset over Kansas State, the Vanderbilt fans began chanting “We want Bama”. As fate would have it, the Commodores matchup in Week 4 would see them face the Crimson Tide in Nashville. Throughout the week, the confidence from Vandy was evident.
Then the two teams took the field and that confidence almost immediately dissipated. Alabama smacked Vandy in the mouth on both sides of the ball and made things particularly brutal. They jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the first half with Damien Harris ripping through their defense, with Bo Scarbrough also getting in on the fun.
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Even worse, though, was the hurting that the Alabama defense put on what had been a nice Vanderbilt offense. From start to finish, the Commodores could barely breathe on offense. Kyle Shurmur finished the day going just 4-of-15 for 18 yards and a pick. Ralph Webb wasn’t much better as he took six carries for 20 yards.
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By the third quarter, Saban was already calling in the backups with freshmen Tua Tagovailoa and Najee Harris getting into the game. That didn’t stop the bleeding for Vanderbilt, though, as the Crimson Tide continued to pour it on. By the time the final whistle sounded, Alabama had put a 59-0 shellacking on the Commodores in their house.
So next time you’re favorite team is playing well and you feel the urge to chant “We want Bama”, remember Vandy and the lesson they taught us on Saturday: No you don’t.