The Vanderbilt Commodores got so, so close.
But in the end, Vandy has missed the College Football Playoff.
By Sunday's announcement show, that was the expected result.
It still stings. Vanderbilt put together a 10-2 season, and Diego Pavia made himself one of the favorites for the Heisman Trophy.
They've never had a football season like this at Vandy ever. It still wasn't enough.
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Why did Vandy miss the College Football Playoff?
Vanderbilt couldn't overcome its two losses.
Vanderbilt's two losses came to Alabama and to Texas.
Two-loss Utah and BYU both miss out, as well, although they don't have the marquee brand of the SEC on their side.
Many are making the case that the Commodores wouldn't have been a question for the CFP at all if they were a different program.
Check out this post on X from SEC Network reporter Alyssa Lang:
"Can’t stop thinking about the fact that a 10-2 SEC team is likely going to get left out today. Can’t help but wonder if some other programs had the same schedule & record that Vandy has, if they’d also get left out."
Vanderbilt will just have to settle for playing great in a bowl game, not the CFP.
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