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Vanderbilt announces new DC as Clark Lea relinquishes role
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Vanderbilt is coming off its first winning season and bowl victory in over a decade. Heading into 2025, the Commodores are making a key change to the coaching staff to try and keep things rolling.
On Monday, Vanderbilt football announced that head coach Clark Lea was naming Steve Gregory as the defensive coordinator with Nick Lezynski adding the role of co-DC. Gregory was a secondary coach and associate DC last season while Lezynski serves as the linebackers coach and has been the defensive run game coordinator since 2023.
Last season, Lea served as his own DC. Under his guidance, Vanderbilt’s scoring defense jumped from 126th in 2023 to 50th in 2024. The rushing defense also jumped more than 50 spots — from 104th to 52nd — in 2024 while finishing 17th nationally and 2nd in SEC football with a +9 turnover margin.
During the 2024 season, Vanderbilt finished 7-6 while registering a historic upset over then-No. 1 Alabama. It was the first winning season with a bowl game win for the program since 2013 under James Franklin.
The early 2025 win total for the Commodores has been set at 4.5, per bet365. Be sure to use the bet365 TN bonus code to get in on the action as Vandy looks to eclipse that number for a return trip to bowl season.
Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.
