It’s not easy to stand out in the Southeastern Conference’s crowd of 10 football teams in the AP Top 25 poll, but Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea and his Commodores are pulling it off.
No. 17 Vanderbilt, which is 5-1 overall and 1-1 in the SEC, was voted the league’s most surprising team at the midpoint of the regular season by Associated Press journalists who cover the conference. Lea was voted the top coach.
Lea, a Nashville native and former fullback for the Commodores, came home as his alma mater’s head coach in 2021. He began his tenure with three consecutive losing seasons before making dramatic changes. The Commodores shocked the college football world last season with a 40-35 win over No. 1 Alabama, giving Vanderbilt its first win over a top-ranked team. The 2024 team finished 7-6, and this year’s version hopes to better that.
Here’s a look at other SEC midseason honorees.
Top offensive player: Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson, who threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns in a win over Vanderbilt on Oct. 4, was the landslide winner. Simpson, a redshirt junior and first-year starter, leads the SEC with 16 touchdown passes and has thrown only one interception while completing 70.9% of his attempts for the sixth-ranked Crimson Tide. Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia also received a vote.
Top defensive player: Texas A&M defensive end Cashius Howell leads the SEC with eight sacks. He recorded three in a 31-9 win over Mississippi State on Oct. 4 and is a big reason the Aggies are undefeated and are the SEC’s highest-ranked team this week at No. 4.
Top first-year freshman: Juan Gaston became the first true freshman offensive lineman to start a season opener at Georgia since right tackle and future NFL player Andrew Thomas in 2017. He has started at right guard and right tackle as the ninth-ranked Bulldogs have dealt with injuries on their offensive line and had his own ankle injury last week. Another true freshman, Dontrell Glover, also has started on the line. “We’re blessed to have the two freshmen can come along as fast as they did, because those two guys have helped us,” coach Kirby Smart said.
Top first-year transfer: Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, a transfer from Division II member Ferris State, has been a difference maker for the fifth-ranked Rebels. Chambliss has the attention of Smart as the Rebels prepare to play at Georgia on Saturday. Smart said Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin’s staff “should get the greatest award there is for finding this guy. I don’t know who scouted, who found him, but he is a really good football player that they went out and got and did a tremendous job.” Chambliss has passed for 1,286 yards and rushed for 281. He has passed for seven touchdowns with only one interception.
Most surprising team: This is the fifth consecutive week Vanderbilt has been ranked in the AP Top 25, the most in program history. The Commodores had been ranked four weeks each in 2008, 1941 and 1937.
Most disappointing team: South Carolina drew the fifth-most votes in the preseason poll at SEC media days. The Gamecocks (3-3, 1-3) have failed to meet those expectations and have lost three of their past four games.
Hottest seat: Florida coach Billy Napier wins this dubious distinction at midseason for the second consecutive year. The Gators fell to 2-4 overall and 1-2 in the conference with last week’s 34-17 loss at Texas A&M. Napier fell to 0-14 on the road against ranked opponents. The heat had already increased with an 18-16 home loss to American Conference member South Florida on Sept. 6.
Biggest injury: Tennessee cornerback Jermod McCoy was an preseason AP All-America first-team selection but has yet to take the field as he continues to recover from an ACL injury in January. “He’s got more to go,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said last week. “You look at the position he plays, all the reactionary work that you have to have in, so you’re always balancing his ability to be prepared and short-term, long-term health as well.”