After winning their first two SEC games of the Derek Mason era and getting within shouting distance of a bowl game in 2015, there was reason for optimism for Vanderbilt heading into 2016.
A squad that won four games and lost three others by a combined 13 points became a trendy pick to make a bowl game. There was enough returning production on a top-30 defense that even a modest offensive improvement was assumed to be enough to help nudge the Commodores forward.
Three games into the season, the Commodores still have a lot of questions to answer.