The 2008 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...

 during the 2008–09 college football season

2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season

The 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 28, 2008, progressing through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in Miami Gardens, Florida on January 8, 2009, where the #2...

. The team's head coach was Bobby Johnson

Bobby Johnson

Robert Alan Johnson is a retired American football coach and former player. He was most recently the head football coach at Vanderbilt University, a position he held from the 2002 season until his retirement in 2010....

, who served his seventh season in the position. The Commodores played their six home games at Vanderbilt Stadium at Dudley Field

Vanderbilt Stadium

Vanderbilt Stadium at Dudley Field is a football stadium located in Nashville, Tennessee. Completed in 1922 as the first stadium in the South to be used exclusively for college football, it is the home of the Vanderbilt University football team...

 in Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

.

Schedule

Season Summary

Following a 4–0 start to the season, the Vanderbilt Commodores were ranked for the first time on the AP Poll

AP Poll

The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...

 since 1984. Following the victory over Auburn, the Commodores were 5–0 for the first time since 1943. After the good start, the Commodores would lose their next four games before a 31-24 victory over Kentucky that declared them bowl eligible for the first time since 1982. Vandy would then lose their final two games of the regular season.They ended the season by going to the Music City Bowl where they defeated Boston College by a score of 16-14, ending a 53-year bowl victory drought.

Miami (OH)

South Carolina

Rice

Ole Miss

Auburn

This game was notably broadcasted on ESPN's

ESPN

Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....

 national television program College GameDay.

Mississippi State

Georgia

Duke

Florida

Kentucky

Tennessee

Wake Forest

Boston College

Coaching staff

• Bobby Johnson
  Bobby Johnson
  Robert Alan Johnson is a retired American football coach and former player. He was most recently the head football coach at Vanderbilt University, a position he held from the 2002 season until his retirement in 2010....
  
  - Head Coach
• Ted Cain - Offensive Coordinator and Tight Ends Coach
• Bruce Fowler - Defensive Coordinator
• Robbie Caldwell - Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Line Coach
• Rick Logo - Defensive Line Coach
• Warren Belin - Linebackers Coach and Recruiting Coordinator
• Jamie Bryant - Defensive Backs Coach and Special Teams Coordinator
• Charlie Fisher - Co-Passing Game Coordinator & Wide Receivers
• Jimmy Kiser - Co-Passing Game Coordinator & Quarterbacks
• Des Kitchings - Running Backs Coach
• Michael Hazel - Assistant Director of Football Operations
• Joey Orck - Offensive Quality Control
• Andy Frank - Defensive Quality Control
• Norval McKenzie - Offensive Graduate Assistant
• Mark Moehring - Defensive Graduate Assistant
• Tom Bossung - Head Athletic Trainer
• Brian Reese - Associate Director of Student Athletics
• John Sisk - Director of Speed, Strength and Conditioning
• Luke Wyatt - Head Equipment Manager