Clark Lea approaches Vanderbilt's 'critical moment' as rumors swirl, 10-win streak hangs in the balance


Coach Clark Lea is on track to lead the Vanderbilt Commodores to their first 10-win season in program history. However, in the midst of this success, his name has been part of the recent coaching carousel rumors.

With teams like LSU, Florida and Penn State looking for new head coaches, Clark Lea's name has been thrown around as a potential candidate. On Thursday, Vanderbilt's coach highlighted how he handle these training rumors in the midst of his responsibilities with the program.

“My fight is for this program first, and they know it,” Clark Lea said he said according to On3. “We don't talk about anything external, but we stay focused on where we are, who we are and the climb we're on. They've been incredible that way. Once you start addressing one, you almost leave yourself susceptible to addressing all of them. And then what have we done? We've brought the outside in and lost our focus.

“So the fight is on for this program. This is a critical moment in time for Vanderbilt Football. I feel like that, and it's a moment for the push and the big vision. It's a launching point going forward. My role requires me every day to be where my feet are, and that I'm pouring into this team in a way that they feel focused and intentional. We've had no problems that way.”

The Vanderbilt Commodores we said goodbye this week. Last week, they pulled off a 45-38 overtime win over the Auburn Tigers. They are ranked No. 12 in the AP Top 25 with a record of 8-2 (4-2 SEC).

Clark Lea shares his honest thoughts on Diego Pavia's last home game with Vanderbilt

This Saturday, quarterback Diego Pavia he will possibly play his final home game for the Vanderbilt Commodores against Kentucky.

On the SEC Network with Paul Finebaum on Friday, coach Clark Lea shared his honest thoughts on the situation.

“He's got to go play in the NFL,” Lea said. “He deserves a chance to do that. He's a great quarterback. He's going to be missed like crazy. There's so many guys that are going to be with him tomorrow that they're going to be the last ones.

“Like I said before, they all left a mark on our program. It's going to be emotional man. It's going to be emotional for me to be there with him and I'm going to try to soak up every second of it because as big as tomorrow is, there are so many memories and so many moments that are special and are the foundation of where we are.”

This season, Diego Pavia has recorded 2,440 yards and 21 TDs passing.