Vanderbilt football opens its season Saturday at 11:00 AM central time against Virginia Tech in a game that is among its most important of the season.
Here's some last-minute notes and thoughts ahead of that matchup.
Vanderbilt enters Saturday as a 13.5-point underdog with plenty to prove
It's prove it time for Vanderbilt, who will face a Virginia Tech team with plenty of expectation and experience.
Saturday's outing will be a barometer for Vanderbilt that will likely be a precursor for the rest of its season.
The quarterback competition looks to be settled
Nothing is official at this point, but New Mexico State transfer Diego Pavia will likely start Vanderbilt's opener after winning the quarterback competition in the fall.
Pavia, who is the most experienced option at quarterback, feels he's got plenty to prove as the Vanderbilt starter.
Vanderbilt opens the season relatively healthy
In a refreshing twist after last season's abundance of soft-tissue injuries, nearly the entire depth chart will be full go for Vanderbilt with the exception of wide receiver Dariyan Wiley and STAR Maurice Hampton.
Both of them are questionable for Saturday's contest with hamstring injuries.
Great equalizer plays could play a key part in Saturday's matchup
Virginia Tech is more experienced and more physically imposing than Vanderbilt is, the Commodores will need to force turnovers and get some explosive plays to compete.
That will be difficult against Kyron Drones, who only threw three interceptions last season.
Vanderbilt's offense will be heavily oriented on ball security, but will need to open things up a bit for chunk plays that can make up for the talent gap.
Perhaps Vanderbilt has more up its sleeve than it showed in fall camp offensively
Offensive coordinator Tim Beck didn't tip his hand at any elaborate trick plays throughout fall camp, but his track record at New Mexico State could indicate that Vanderbilt will look to do some exotic things on Saturday.
It would make sense for Vanderbilt to turn heavily to its tight ends
Vanderbilt's tight ends stood out throughout fall camp while a perceived position of weakness for Virginia Tech is linebacker, with Vanderbilt's question marks offensively it could look to work in its tight ends early and often.
Coaching positions seem to be set
If Vanderbilt's scrimmages are any indication, which Beck says is the case, then he'll be in the press box on gameday while Lea and Jerry Kill will be on the field.
Vanderbilt giving placekicker Brock Taylor some leeway
Lea said on Thursday that Taylor's allowed range will fluctuate as a result of situation, but will likely be around 50 yards as a result of Taylor's offseason preparation.
Clark Lea "was not involved" in defensive gameplanning last season, but will run that operation this season
Lea provided a glimpse into the changes in his preparation for a game on Thursday.
"I was way more able to see the three phases and spend time more broadly, this time around I'm pretty narrowly focused on what I need to do for Saturday in my role."
Vanderbilt's uniform selection for Saturday
Vanderbilt looked into wearing white uniforms on Saturday to combat the heat, but was forced to wear black jerseys as a result of NCAA rules.
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Could Nate Johnson see the field for some package plays?
Vanderbilt still has the quarterback position listed as "Diego Pavia or Nate Johnson" and while Pavia is likely to be the starter, Johnson's speed will be hard to keep off of the field.
Saturday's heat
The temperature is set to reach up to 90 degrees on Saturday with the high coming between noon and 1:00 central.
That could affect Vanderbilt on Saturday.
"On Saturday we've gotta trust our training," Lea said. "The hotter it is and the more we're impacted by it, the more people you've gotta play. We have to be ready to put people in, insert people in the game to give them a chance to spell a one for a series to make sure we're ready in the fourth quarter."
