Vanderbilt 35, Tennessee State 17
When: 7:30 PM ET, Saturday, October 22, 2016
Where: Vanderbilt Stadium, Nashville, Tennessee
Temperature:
61°
Head Official:
Brad Rogers
Attendance:
31084
By The Sports Xchange
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Running backs Ralph Webb and Khari Blasingame ran for 125 and 100 yards respectively, as Vanderbilt bowled over FCS-foe Tennessee State, 35-17, on homecoming at Vanderbilt Stadium on Saturday night.
The Commodores (4-4) posted season highs in rushing yards (358) and total offense (501).
Webb broke off a 49-yard run to the Tennessee State 49 on the second half's first drive, Blasingame easily dashed in from 4 yards out to give Vanderbilt a 28-17 lead.
Vanderbilt wide receiver Trent Sherfield scored on a 14-yard end-around with 6:08 left.
On the game's second snap, Tennessee State quarterback Ronald Butler found wide receiver Patrick Smith open on the right side behind Vanderbilt cornerback Torren McGaster. Smith raced untouched for a 93-yard touchdown.
Webb dashed for 46 to the Tennessee State 7 on Vanderbilt's ensuing drive, and two plays later, Blasingame punched it in from the half-yard line. Tennessee State's Butler and Smith hooked up on a 2-yard scoring strike on the game's next drive.
With 8:01 left before half, Vanderbilt quarterback Kyle Shurmur connected with tight end Jared Pinkey for a score, the first of the latter's career. Another Blasingame scoring run with 1:46 left before half gave the Commodores their first lead.
Tennessee State, ranked No. 25 in the latest FCS poll, racked up 410 yards against Vanderbilt, but was undone by a pair of costly turnovers. Vanderbilt did not commit a turnover.
The two teams, whose campuses are just miles apart in Nashville, met for just the second time in history.
Top Game Performances
Rushing
Tennessee State |
|
Vanderbilt |
Erick Evans
|
Player |
Ralph Webb
|
9 |
Attempts |
9 |
69 |
Yards |
125 |
7.7 |
Avg Yards |
13.9 |
0 |
Touchdowns |
0 |
0 |
Long |
0 |
Receiving
Tennessee State |
|
Vanderbilt |
Patrick Smith
|
Player |
Jared Pinkney
|
7 |
Receptions |
4 |
170 |
Yards |
50 |
24.3 |
Avg Yards |
12.5 |
2 |
Touchdowns |
1 |
0 |
Long |
0 |
Team Stats Summary
|
Yards |
Scoring |
Defense |
Team |
Tot |
Rus |
Pas |
TD |
FG |
INT |
Sck |
FF |
Tennessee State |
410 |
125 |
285 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Vanderbilt
|
501 |
358 |
143 |
5 |
0 |
1 |
3.0 |
2 |