Why Georgia Shouldn't Sleep on Vanderbilt

Vanderbilt lost to Western Kentucky on opening night, in a way only Vandy can.

The 'Dores turned the ball over twice in the red zone and failed on a potential game-tying two-point conversion in the final minute to fall to the visiting Hilltoppers in front of a crowd in Nashville that sounded decidedly pro-Western Kentucky.

Head coach Derek Mason's crew doesn't stand a chance against visiting Georgia this week, right?

Not so fast, according to Bulldog head coach Mark Richt.

"We've got to play better at Vanderbilt than we have been playing, and that's one of our big challenges," he said in quotes emailed by Georgia. "But you're right, there's been—three out of the last four, three were extremely close and we lost one of them. I think the other one, there was a little bit of a margin there. Just haven't played extremely well there."

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Is that coachspeak?

Of course it is, but it's also accurate. Georgia fell apart late in a 31-27 loss in Nashville two years ago, and escaped with a five-point victory in 2011.

Those 'Dores teams were different, of course. 

But lost in "Vandy being Vandy" last Thursday night was the fact that Mason's defense—and he's calling the plays this year—looked incredibly solid against a Western Kentucky team under head coach Jeff Brohm that is known for its potent offense. The 'Dores gave up just 246 yards to the Hilltoppers, just 37 yards on the ground and kept Vandy in the game time and time again.

"They actually held Western Kentucky to the lowest number of first downs, I think which was 11, and the lowest amount of yards in the Jeff Brohm era," Richt said. "Western Kentucky is a very good offensive football team. Matter of fact, we had their staff come and see us this last offseason and spend time with them, just talking ball and trying to learn from them some of the things we do."

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Now, of course, nobody on Western Kentucky's roster compares to Bulldog running back Nick Chubb (or Sony Michel and Keith Marshall, for that matter). Job No. 1 for Mason will be to stop the Bulldogs on the ground, which, of course, is much more difficult than his task last week. 

"He just breaks a lot of arm tackles," Mason said in quotes released by Vanderbilt. "It's going to be a big thing, just getting 11 hats on the ball and gang-tackling." 

Don't expect Chubb to be taking Vandy lightly now.

As Adam Sparks of the Tennessean noted, offensive lineman Jake Bernstein would rather have 'Dores running back Ralph Webb over Chubb.

It's probably not a great idea for Vandy to poke the 220-pound bear, even though it did play a tremendous defensive game in a loss last week.

Georgia isn't (and shouldn't) take Vanderbilt lightly. 

While the loss to Western Kentucky was "peak Vandy," Mason showed that moving himself into the defensive coordinator role was the right move. He's a tremendous play-caller, has a solid front seven led by defensive end Caleb Azubike and linebacker Stephen Weatherly and has a history of playing well against the Bulldogs at home.

Even though Georgia will likely get the win, don't be surprised if Vandy keeps this closer than the three-touchdown spread that Odds Shark has for the showdown in Nashville.

Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports. Statistics are courtesy of CFBStats.com.

Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and national college football video analyst for Bleacher Report, as well as a host on Bleacher Report Radio on SiriusXM 83. Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.