Vanderbilt beats Austin Peay in lightning-shortened opener

Vanderbilt defeated Austin Peay 28-9 on Sept. 5 in Nashville, with lightning ending the game with 2:16 remaining in the fourth quarter. The victory gave the Commodores five consecutive season-opening wins under head coach Clark Lea.

A sellout crowd of 35,000 watched Vanderbilt extend its home winning streak to eight games, the program’s longest since a nine-game run spanning the 1954, 1955 and 1956 seasons. Vanderbilt has sold out five consecutive home games dating to last season.

Brock Taylor opened the scoring with a 32-yard field goal. Vanderbilt has scored on its first possession for four straight seasons. Taylor scored eight points to reach exactly 200 for his career, sixth in program history. With 15 makes in his last 16 field-goal attempts, he is 33-of-37 for his career.

Vanderbilt’s blocked extra-point return and punt-return touchdown produced eight points. Issa Ouattara blocked an extra-point attempt after Austin Peay’s first touchdown, and Martel Hight returned the kick 88 yards for two points. It was Vanderbilt’s first blocked PAT returned for a score since Adam Butler and Steven Clarke combined for one against Kentucky on Nov. 16, 2013.

Josiah Broxton later returned a punt 27 yards for a touchdown, Vanderbilt’s first punt-return score since Hight’s against Alcorn State on Sept. 7, 2024. Ouattara also set career highs with two sacks and two tackles for loss.

Blaze Berlowitz scored on a 7-yard run, his third career rushing touchdown, while Sedrick Alexander’s 18-yard score was the 22nd of his career. That moved Alexander alone into fourth place on Vanderbilt’s career rushing-touchdown list.

Vanderbilt reached 100-plus rushing yards and 100-plus passing yards in the first half of a season opener for the first time since 2010. Nine Commodores caught passes, including first Vanderbilt receptions for Jayvontay Conner, Ja’Cory Thomas and Maurice Veney. Sherrill surpassed 1,500 career receiving yards and finished with four catches for 70 yards.

Why it matters

Vanderbilt has won eight consecutive home games for the first time since a nine-game run spanning the 1954, 1955 and 1956 seasons. The Commodores also have five straight season-opening victories under Clark Lea.