1981 Vanderbilt Commodores football team

The 1981 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University in the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Commodores were led by head coach George MacIntyre in his third season and finished the season with a record of four wins and seven losses (4–7 overall, 1–5 in the SEC).

1981 Vanderbilt Commodores football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	4–7 (1–5 SEC)
Head coach	George MacIntyre (3rd season)
Offensive coordinator	Watson Brown (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Ron McCrone (3rd season)
Home stadium	Vanderbilt Stadium
Seasons ← 1980 1982 →

1981 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 6 Georgia +	6	–	0	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
No. 7 Alabama +	6	–	0	–	0			9	–	2	–	1
Mississippi State	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Tennessee	3	–	3	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Florida	3	–	3	–	0			7	–	5	–	0
Auburn	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Kentucky	2	–	4	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Ole Miss	1	–	4	–	1			4	–	6	–	1
LSU	1	–	4	–	1			3	–	7	–	1
Vanderbilt	1	–	5	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
+ – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 12	Maryland*	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN		W 23–17	38,624	[1]
September 19	at No. 14 Mississippi State	Scott Field Starkville, MS		L 9–29	32,045	[2]
September 26	No. 10 Alabama	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN		L 7–28	41,000	[3]
October 3	at No. 17 Miami (FL)*	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL		L 16–48	27,654	[4]
October 10	at Tulane*	Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, LA		L 10–14	32,431	[5]
October 17	No. 9 Georgia	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN (rivalry)	ABC	L 21–53	39,657	[6]
October 24	at Ole Miss	Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS (rivalry)		W 27–23	37,426	[7]
October 31	Memphis State*	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN		W 26–0	33,285	[8]
November 7	Kentucky	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN (rivalry)		L 10–17	40,250	[9]
November 21	Chattanooga*	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN		W 28–14	26,241	[10]
November 28	at Tennessee	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)		L 34–38	92,824	[11]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[12]

Personnel

1981 Vanderbilt Commodores football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB Jim Bronner QB Whit Taylor Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach George MacIntyre Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "Vanderbilt surprises, Terrapins bow, 23–17". The Baltimore Sun. September 13, 1981. Retrieved November 1, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Commodores buried by Bulldog runners". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. September 20, 1981. Retrieved November 1, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Tide sinks Commodores, 28–7". The Tennessean. September 27, 1981. Retrieved February 19, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Miami rips Vanderbilt 48–16". The Palm Beach Post. October 4, 1981. Retrieved November 1, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Tulane tips Vanderbilt". The Tennessean. October 11, 1981. Retrieved October 19, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "'Dogs put on 'show". The Leaf-Chronicle. October 18, 1981. Retrieved November 1, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Fumbling Rebels lose to Vandy". Enterprise-Journal. October 25, 1981. Retrieved November 1, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Vandy blanks Memphis State". The Courier-Journal. November 1, 1981. Retrieved November 1, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "At last...Kentucky breaks losing streak with 17–10 win over Vanderbilt". Messenger-Inquirer. November 8, 1981. Retrieved November 1, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Vandy wins final home game". The Tennessean. November 22, 1981. Retrieved August 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Vandy refuses chance to tie". The Jackson Sun. November 29, 1981. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "1981 Vanderbilt Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved January 9, 2016.