Clark Lea claims this is the best roster he’s had at Vanderbilt

The Vanderbilt Commodores are coming off their first winning season since 2013 and their first bowl appearance since 2018. Now, head coach Clark Lea is looking to build on that success with what he believes is the best roster he’s had at Vanderbilt.

With Fall Camp coming to an end soon and the regular season ready to get underway, Lea praised his team. Going into his fifth season with the program, it’s taken some time to build into what it is now, but he’s excited about where Vanderbilt is as a program.

“It’s the best that we’ve had since I’ve been here,” Clark Lea said. “I think just in terms of depth. Part of that is developmental. Part of that has been strategic portal additions.”

Clark Lea came to Vanderbilt in 2021. At the time, he inherited a team coming off a winless season in 2020. In total, they’d won just three games over the last two seasons. That meant he was heading into a rebuild, which took some time, going 2-10 twice in his first three seasons. Finally, by year four, he broke through and went 6-6 in the regular season to go to the Birmingham Bowl. A win there made the Commodores 7-6 and gave them a winning season.

One of the keys going into 2025 for Vanderbilt was retaining quarterback Diego Pavia. The star had transferred in ahead of the 2024 season and needed to enter a legal battle for an extra season of eligibility. Earning it, he’s returned and will be the key centerpiece around the upcoming roster.

“I think going into year five, you should have the best roster you’ve had,” Lea said. “You know? But it’s good to feel like we’ve got a good team. In our league, that will get you to the game. I mean, we’ve got to find ways to win. That’ll be a challenge, but we like our team.”

Clark Lea began his coaching career at Harvard-Westlake. Since then, he’s had stops at UCLA, South Dakota State, Bowling Green, Syracuse, Wake Forest, and Notre Dame. There have been talented teams, and while he was hesitant to compare this team to any of those, he did emphasize he’s excited for this year’s Vanderbilt team.

“As far as my coaching career, I think it’s hard to say. I feel like the game’s changed so much in the last few years,” Lea said. “But I think with where we are in terms of the skill we have, kind of our physical identity. Up front, we have what it takes to reach for the things that we want to reach for. So, I’m excited about that.”

Vanderbilt opens the season on August 30th against Charleston Southern. Later, on September 13th, Vanderbilt is going to travel to South Carolina to kickoff SEC play.