Chad Morris
– It was good to walk into a locker room with coaches and players smiling and the music going. It was great to be able to finish a game, and it was definitely a team effort. It was good to get a win, especially with the injuries we've been battling.
– We're excited to have Ty Storey back.
– Dalton Wagner and Austin Capps played significant roles, and that was good to see as well. Colton Jackson missed Saturday's game with back spasms.
– Kam Curl played his best game of the season. Santos Ramirez did some good things and continues to improve. Ryan Pulley played his best game. Jamario Bell is someone who is doing good things, and Randy Ramsey played his best game. Armon Watts continues to be a factor. Briston Guidry was a factor. He's not in shape because he's been out of late, but he is a factor when in the game.
– Special teams, after watching the film, verifies what I believe and that is field position plays a big role in games. It also allowed our defense a long field to work with. Deon Stewart was part of that. He had a 29-yard punt return, which was big. Connor Limpert's consistency has been a big plus. He's made 10 consecutive field goals dating back to the Auburn game.
– Vanderbilt will feature a defense that has created 14 turnovers this season and played top-15 Kentucky down to the wire on the road on Saturday.
– Ty Storey is cleared from concussion protocol, Morris said. Jeremy Patton is still out, Johnny Gibson (knee) is day-to-day right now. Jared Cornelius went out with an ankle injury, Rakeem Boyd is back. Armon Watts is day-to-day with a quad injury and Buster Brown is day-to-day. Colton Jackson is probable with a back issue. That injury is not related to his back injury from the preseason. TJ Hammonds is out.
– Vanderbilt is very well coached, and they're going to give you their best. We know we're in for a battle. We know these guys have continued to improve all year long just like we have.
– When you play true freshmen you know mistakes are going to be made. How do they respond when things don't go well. Noland's body language and ability to shake off his first interception was impressive.
– Rakeem Boyd did get here until around the first of August. He's getting into game shape, and done a great job catching the ball out of the backfield. And there's a comfort factor, too.
– On Pulley: Watching him and the way he practices, he's got a lot of confidence. He's got a great future in this game.
– On Hammonds: We hope to get him back in November. If he is unable to come back then we will redshirt him.
– Never coached against Derek Mason, but he is a very respected coach in this profession. I think he's a phenomenal coach.
– On Nate Dalton: Morris said Dalton "will not be around this week." We've got a standard and I'm not going to deviate.
John Chavis
– Much better feeling walking in here today. I'm proud of our kids. We didn't play perfect by any stretch. We gave up a couple of big plays and that can't happen. I'm going to be critical because I think it's the time to be critical. We got a little soft inside in the running game for a stretch.
– The third quarter was probably the best quarter of football we've played. The first five minutes of the second half was crucial.
– Putting together a shutout is hard and you want to be able to do that. The goal is to do that all the time, but we play good teams and good coaches and it doesn't go the way you always want it to. But we can build on that. We played a good football team that's plenty capable of scoring. Hopefully they'll continue to build confidence. We're not there yet, but I think it will help.
– Vanderbilt has a good scheme, and they are a little bit more pro-style than what we've seen. Kyle Shurmur is a good quarterback. He's a veteran guy. Ke'Shawn Vaughn is a strong running back. Shurmur looks really good and having a good back helps.
– Pulley losing playing time sparked him. He didn't pout. He served his penalty and he got ready to help this team win. His interception was big for us. It's about discipline and helping these young men grow. He responded well.
– Sosa Agim probably had his best game, and he's got the potential to be even better. What I mean is this, we've got to get better and that's what we've been talking about all year. He did a really good job. Not that he's been loafing, but he's been playing harder than he has all year. You can't just line up and do your job. You have to do it with a certain amount of energy.
– I saw some relief from the players after the game. They were really excited about the win. The amount of time a guy puts into the chances they get, there was definitely some joy and happiness.
– I've sat down with Derek Mason before and he's a first class guy and he's a great football coach. His resume is loaded and he's done this for a long time. The way he runs his program at Vanderbilt is the way you should run things.
Joe Craddock
– It's all about continuity up front and the more you can play with one another, you'll grow together and get on the same page. I thought those guys handled adversity well, even before the game started with Colton Jackson's back spasms. Dalton Wagner did a nice job filling in for Colton.
– Connor played well, and he got dealt a tough hand early. He was very aware and able to overcome the interception. But he didn't lose confidence.
– Ty did everything he could do last week to play and prepared like he was going to get to play. He just couldn't clear the protocol. I know he wanted to play and he passed his test yesterday. He'll be ready to go this week.
– We ask our quarterbacks do a lot at the line and like I said last week, Tulsa didn't present a traditional look. He did a nice job studying those looks throughout the week. As the game went, he gained some confidence in what he was doing and what the defense was doing to take things away. The ball to Pettway down the sideline and two quick hitters to O'Grady were great reads.
– I would have liked to see Rakeem get a few more touches. We had him on a little bit of a snap count and touch count. Trumain Carroll was keeping me updated on that. He was dealing with cramps and dehydration.
– Vanderbilt linebacker Jordan Griffin leads the SEC in tackles. He's an older guy. He's going to be a guy we have to account for at all times.
– Vandy is long at corner. They are multiple on defense and show you some different techniques and fly to the football. It's going to be a good test and a good challenge for us.
– We didn't punt against Ole Miss until Ty got hurt. He's gained a lot of confidence in himself and the offensive line. You could sense he wasn't out there last week. He's been doing a really nice job and I expect him to pick back up where he left off.