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First-year Vanderbilt coach James Franklin knows the Commodores were manhandled in Saturday night's 21-3 loss to No. 12 South Carolina.
But he also knows enough of his program's often woebegone history to understand they can't dwell on it and let another season go down the drain.
''I told them I love them unconditionally,'' Franklin said after the game. ''I know they are hurting as bad as we are as a coaching staff. We have a lot of work to do but that's what I've told them after the three wins as well.''
The Commodores (3-1, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) lost a chance to start a season with four wins for just the fourth time in the past 50 years. They gained just 77 yards and five first downs, went 1-of-14 on third down conversions and were sacked six times.
Running back Jerron Seymour credited the defensive front for South Carolina (4-0, 2-0) for the intensity they brought to disrupt anything the Commodores want to do.
''We couldn't get in a groove with things. They are gifted, very athletic, big. They cause a lot of problems. You have to give them a lot of credit,'' Seymour said.
Vanderbilt quarterback Larry Smith was harassed all night. He was 12-of-16 passing, but they were almost all short throws, totaling just 44 yards. He finally got knocked out of the game in the third quarter trying to recover his own fumble. Franklin refused to say why Smith had to be gingerly taken off the field.
''Larry will be OK,'' Franklin said. ''He's banged up. It wasn't just the hits tonight, it was the hits he's taken over the last four weeks.''
Backup Jordan Rodgers, whose older brother is Green Bay Packers star Aaron Rodgers, completed his first two passes, but only gained 2 yards.
Zac Stacy was Vanderbilt's leading rusher with 18 yards on seven carries, while Jonathan Krause caught nine passes for 55 yards.
The Commodores did pick off South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia four times, increasing their season total to 14 interceptions. They failed to return one of the picks for a touchdown for the first time this season. The defense held the nation's leading rusher, Marcus Lattimore, to just 77 yards on 20 carries and all-SEC receiver Alshon Jeffery caught just two passes for 34 yards.
''I thought our defense played extremely well. They played well enough to win,'' Franklin said,
And it may be small comfort, but Vanderbilt did frustrate South Carolina's offense enough to make Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier again say he's sorry to the team's fans.
''I apologize to Gamecock fans for such a putrid offensive performance,'' Spurrier said.
But there was one key mistake that deflated Vanderbilt. The Commodores trailed just 7-3 in the final minute of the second quarter, with South Carolina's only touchdown coming on a fumble recovery. The clock was running under 30 seconds and the Gamecocks were out of time-outs when Garcia found Lattimore on a screen pass that turned into a 52-yard touchdown and a 14-3 halftime deficit.
''The defense can't give that up. I know a few of us weren't set up on time. We just have to tackle better,'' defensive tackle Rob Lohr said. ''You can't give up a big play like that going into the half. That's a game-changer right there.''
The Commodores remained upbeat despite the loss. The team seemed to quickly want to forget about the loss and head into next week's practice with a fresh start.
''We have to move forward and with the bye week we have to get better and start preparing for our next opponent,'' Seymour said.
That would be No. 3 Alabama, which has an even better defense, allowing just 184 yards a game.
''We've got a long ways to go, we got a lot of work to do,'' Franklin said. ''No different than what I've been saying each week.''
