2008 Vanderbilt Commodores football team

American college football season February 2026 August 2023 football 2008 Vanderbilt Commodores Vanderbilt Commodores logo.svg 125 Southeastern Conference SEC Eastern Division 7–6 4–4 Bobby Johnson 7th Ted Cain 7th Bruce Fowler 7th Multiple 4–3 Vanderbilt Stadium Music City Bowl champion Music City Bowl W Won 16–14 vs. Boston College Reshard Langford Bradley Vierling George Smith The 2008 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University during the 2008–09 college football season. The team's head coach was Bobby Johnson, who served his seventh season in the position. The Commodores played their six home games at Vanderbilt Stadium at Dudley Field in Nashville, Tennessee. This was Vanderbilt's first 5–0 start since 1943 and first bowl appearance since 1982, ending a streak of 25 straight losing seasons. Schedule 2008 AP Poll released week prior to game Central August 28 6:30 p.m. w y y Miami (OH) Yager Stadium Oxford, OH ESPNU http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=282410193 34–13 18,398 September 4 7:30 p.m. w South Carolina 24 Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN ESPN http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=282480238 24–17 36,850 September 13 6:00 p.m. w y Rice Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=282570238 38–21 37,370 September 20 6:00 p.m. w y Ole Miss rivalry Vaught–Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=282640145 23–17 51,281 October 4 5:00 p.m. w 19 Auburn 13 College GameDay Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN ESPN http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=282780238 14–13 39,773 October 11 1:30 p.m. l y 13 Mississippi State Davis Wade Stadium Starkville, MS PPV http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=282850344 14–17 43,619 October 18 11:30 a.m. l y 22 Georgia 10 rivalry Sanford Stadium Athens, GA Raycom http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=282920061 14–24 92,746 October 25 2:00 p.m. l y y Duke Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=282990238 7–10 38,270 November 8 7:00 p.m. l Florida 4 Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN ESPN2 http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=283130238 14–42 39,773 November 15 7:00 p.m. w y Kentucky rivalry Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY ESPN2 http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=283200096 31–24 65,595 November 22 11:30 a.m. l Tennessee rivalry Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN Raycom http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=283270238 10–20 38,725 November 29 6:00 p.m. l y y Wake Forest BB&T Field Winston-Salem, NC ESPNU http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=283340154 10–23 25,902 December 31 2:30 p.m. w y y Boston College Music City Bowl LP Field Nashville, TN ESPN http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=283660238 16–14 54,250 Season summary Following a 4–0 start to the season, the Vanderbilt Commodores were ranked for the first time on the AP Poll since 1984.https://www.espn.com/college-football/preview?gameId=282780238 Auburn's offense looks to get on track against upstart Vandy ESPN 2008-10-04 2008-10-25 https://web.archive.org/web/20081007032134/http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/preview?gameId=282780238 7 October 2008 live Following the victory over Auburn, the Commodores were 5–0 for the first time since 1943.https://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/Vandy-is-officially-dandy-3191681.php Vandy is officially dandy: Commodores upset Auburn; Alabama holds off Kentucky Associated Press 2008-10-05 2008-10-25 After the good start, the Commodores would lose their next four games before a 31-24 victory over Kentucky that declared them bowl eligible for the first time since 1982. Vandy would then lose their final two games of the regular season. They ended the season by going to the Music City Bowl where they defeated Boston College by a score of 16-14, ending a 53-year bowl victory drought. Game summaries Miami (OH) Commodores 17 10 0 7 34 RedHawks 3 7 3 0 13 South Carolina Gamecocks 7 3 0 7 17 Commodores 0 3 14 7 24 Rice Owls 14 7 0 0 21 Commodores 7 14 10 7 38 Ole Miss Commodores 14 3 0 6 23 Rebels 17 0 0 0 17 Auburn Tigers 13 0 0 0 13 Commodores 0 7 7 0 14 ESPN's College GameDay broadcast from Vanderbilt's campus prior to the Auburn game. Mississippi State Commodores 0 7 0 7 14 Bulldogs 3 0 7 7 15 Georgia Commodores 0 7 7 0 14 Bulldogs 7 7 7 3 24 Duke Blue Devils 0 7 3 0 10 Commodores 0 0 0 7 7 Florida Gators 21 14 7 0 42 Commodores 0 0 7 7 14 Kentucky Commodores 14 10 0 7 31 Wildcats 0 7 10 7 24 Tennessee Volunteers 0 20 0 0 20 Commodores 0 0 10 0 10 Wake Forest Commodores 3 0 0 7 10 Demon Deacons 3 7 7 6 31 Boston College 2008 Music City Bowl Eagles 0 7 0 7 14 Commodores 6 0 7 3 16 Coaching staff Bobby Johnson – Head coach Ted Cain – Offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Bruce Fowler – Defensive coordinator Robbie Caldwell – Assistant head coach/offensive line coach Rick Logo – Defensive line coach Warren Belin – Linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator Jamie Bryant – Defensive backs coach and special teams coordinator Charlie Fisher – Co-passing game coordinator & wide receivers Jacob DeLucia – Co-passing game coordinator & quarterbacks Desmond Kitchings – Running backs coach Michael Hazel – Assistant director of football operations Joey Orck – Offensive quality control Andy Frank – Defensive quality control Norval McKenzie – Offensive graduate assistant Mark Moehring – Defensive graduate assistant Tom Bossung – Head athletic trainer Brian Reese – Associate director of student athletics John Sisk – Director of speed, strength and conditioning Luke Wyatt – Head equipment manager Gary Veach – Assistant equipment manager References Vanderbilt Category:Vanderbilt Commodores football seasons Category:Music City Bowl champion seasons Vanderbilt Commodores football Category:2008 in Nashville, Tennessee