NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - First-year Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson is putting his Commodores into position to challenge opponents in the fourth quarter. Now he has to teach them how to win. <br>
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The Commodores had chances this season to drive for a touchdown and beat South Carolina and Florida. But an interception ended their bid against the Gamecocks, and they turned it over on downs in a 21-17 loss to the then-23rd-ranked Gators last weekend. <br>
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Johnson said they need to keep getting into that position to gain confidence. <br>
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``There is no magic formula. You can't sit there and tell them you're going to win this time because we're whispering in your ear to win. It doesn't happen that way,'' Johnson said Monday at his weekly news conference. <br>
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``... The other team's trying really hard to win too. You have to battle really hard, and sometimes it's going to work for you. Getting better players, faster players, more accomplished players are going to help do that too.'' <br>
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Vanderbilt (2-8, 0-6 Southeastern Conference) has lost six of its last seven games, and now looks to matchups with Kentucky (6-4, 2-4) Saturday in Lexington or Tennessee to end a SEC losing skid that has reached 15 straight. <br>
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Heading to Lexington might help. The Commodores' last SEC victory was over Kentucky 24-20 on Nov. 11, 2000, and they have won three of their last five games in Lexington over the Wildcats. <br>
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As close as Vanderbilt has come, no one has had victory turn into defeat as quickly as Kentucky did in last weekend's 33-30 loss to LSU. <br>
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Johnson said he wishes his team would have a chance to win a game with a long pass at the end. Marcus Randall's 75-yard desperation pass to Devery Henderson stopped Kentucky's celebration in its tracks. <br>
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``I tell you that was one of the flukiest of all flukey plays I've seen,'' Johnson said. ``It was unbelievable. Kentucky can say they played well enough to win that game. They played a great game, hung in there and made the plays they had to make. That was, I think, very unfortunate for them to lose a game like that.'' <br>
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The question will be how the Wildcats react to that shocking ending. Johnson said he has never been through anything similar to Kentucky's loss to LSU. <br>
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``It could be devastating. It could be a rallying point. It could go either way. I think they're smart enough to handle it the right way,'' he said. <br>
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But Johnson has his hands full trying to rally his Commodores. He may get cornerback Dominique Morris back from an injured knee that kept him out against Florida, and that can only help against Jared Lorenzen, the SEC's most efficient quarterback.
