Vandy QB Stephen Rivers glad he didn't get benched
It certainly wasn't the kind of result Stephen Rivers had hoped for after making his first start as a college quarterback, but he appreciated not being yanked at any point in Vanderbilt's 41-3 loss Saturday to Ole Miss.
Rivers, a graduate student who transferred from LSU, was part of the shuffling that took place against Temple when three quarterbacks came in and out of the game.
He replaced sophomore Patton Robinette as the starter Saturday and was allowed to stay on LP Field until the bitter end.
"It meant a lot that I got to play the whole game," said Rivers, who completed 6 of 25 passes for 60 yards a threw one interception, which was returned for a touchdown. "I appreciate the coaches having faith in me and putting me in there, sticking with me and having an opportunity to lead this team."
Rivers played in four games while he was at LSU where he spent most of his time behind current Titans quarterback Zach Mettenberger.
"It was my first start and there were definitely some rookie mistakes," Rivers said. "There were definitely things that I'm going to learn from."
Coach Derek Mason did not name Rivers the starter publicly. Rivers said Mason told him on Friday that he would start, but he already had a pretty good indication that would be the case.
"You could tell by the reps I was getting in practice as the week went along that I might get a shot," Rivers said.
Mason said Rivers came out of the opener with the edge after he completed 12 of 25 passes for 181 yards with an interception and a fumble.
When asked to critique Rivers' performance against Ole Miss, Mason said: "It wasn't just about Stephen Rivers. There were opportunities where we had guys open, OK, I will admit that. But we still need to have guys makes plays."
Missing Seymour: Mason had indicated that Jerron Seymour, last year's leading rusher, would play after missing the first game with an undisclosed injury, but he did not.
"Jerron was working through the process of getting ready and I felt like I didn't see the guy in my mind who I saw on film," Mason said. "I thought he moved well early in the week, but as we got toward the end of the week he looked sore, sluggish and just a little slow. I want to make sure that he has his best chance to get out there and play well."
Redshirt freshman Ralph Webb made his second start at running back and rushed for 95 yards on 18 carries.
Freshman Dallas Rivers had 23 yards on five carries.
Azubike returns: Outside linebacker Caleb Azubike returned to action in impressive fashion.
The junior from McGavock missed last week's game after missing several practices in fall camp because of the death of his grandmother.
He earned a starting assignment and recorded seven tackles, including two sacks.
Off the bench: Junior strong safety Jahmel McIntosh came off the bench to lead Vandy in solo tackles with six.
McIntosh tied outside linebacker Kyle Woestmann and inside linebacker Darreon Herring with eight total tackles.
McIntosh had only two tackles (one solo, one assist) in the first game.
Joining the team: After making a point not to run out of the tunnel with his players in the Temple game, Mason did join them as they came onto LP Field.
New starters: Redshirt freshman receiver C.J. Duncan, sophomore receiver Latevius Rayford and sophomore right tackle Will Holden were new starters on offense.
Neither Duncan nor Rayford had catches.
Gaines in the house: Former Vanderbilt running back Brad Gaines attended the game.
He is part of the SEC Storied "It's Time: The Story of Brad Gaines and Chucky Mullins," which debuted this week on the SEC Network.
Mullins, a defensive back for Ole Miss, was paralyzed after tackling Gaines in a game 25 years ago. Gaines and Mullins developed a friendship after that. Mullins died two years later.
Mullins wore No. 38 and after Saturday's game Gaines pointed out the Rebels' margin of victory was 38 points.
"Like I've said all along, the Lord works throughout this," Gaines said.
Reach MIke Organ at 615-259-8021 and on Twitter at @MikeOrganWriter.