Austin Peay · W 28-9 · FCS
No catches.
Delaware · W 35-26
No catches.
NC State · W 35-31
No catches.
Kentucky · L 17-34
5 catches, 49 yards
The other 4 games average 18 yards. This one was 31 above.
Spence has catches in 5 of Vanderbilt’s 8 games: none against Austin Peay, Delaware and NC State.
Dashed line: 100 yards.
3 stories in the last 30 days, from 3 outlets.
Cole Spence
Four seasons in the Vanderbilt receiving corps to date. A game that shows it: 49 receiving yards and 5 receptions against Kentucky — Week 8, 2026.
121 receiving yards · 11 catches · 0 receiving TD
Play style
Shows up in the passing game from any alignment.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
from 3 outlets
Sports Illustrated Oct 9 · 1 outlet
from 5 outlets
VUFB - Cole Spence Arkansas Week - October 13
Vanderbilt Commodores Oct 13 · 1 outlet
Vanderbilt Commodores
Yahoo SportsEach week: his team’s game, the stories about him that week, and the week’s biggest news headline.
Stories are headlines grouped by what they are about, counted through Nov 4.
Fans first named Cole Spence at Georgia.
Against Kentucky on Oct. 24: 5 catches for 49 yards. In the 5 games drawn here: 11 catches for 121 yards. Vanderbilt has thrown to him 18 times in 163 passes.
Each game is split into its four quarters, so the columns line up from game to game; inside a quarter, plays keep their order. Third and fourth downs are marked under the line, bold when he moved the chains.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Vanderbilt | 11 | 121 | 11.0 | 0 | 27 |
| 2025 | Vanderbilt | 15 | 233 | 15.5 | 2 | 33 |
| 2024 | Vanderbilt | 10 | 101 | 10.1 | 2 | 17 |
| 2022 | Vanderbilt | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 36 | 455 | 12.6 | 4 | 33 |
Last game (Wk 8): 49 receiving yards, 5 catches.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 5 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 4 | L 15-21@ Auburn | 2 | 18 | 9.0 | 0 | 10 | |
| Wk 5 | L 14-38@ No. 2 Georgia | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 0 | 15 | |
| Wk 6 | L 17-52vs No. 9 Ole Miss | 2 | 27 | 13.5 | 0 | 27 | |
| Wk 7 | L 21-31vs Arkansas | 1 | 12 | 12.0 | 0 | 12 | |
| Wk 8 | L 17-34@ No. 12 Kentucky | 5 | 49 | 9.8 | 0 | 18 | Season-high 49 yds |
| Total | 11 | 121 | 11.0 | 0 | 27 |
Week 8 · 2026
L 17-34
at Kentucky
The plays that mattered most
Ratings of the games shown run from -0 to +27 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Receiver profile · Targets, catch rate, and throw depth
How often he's targeted, and how well it works
Targets
187% of team targetsCatch rate
61%11 of 18 targetsBehind LOS · Negative air yds
Short · 0–9 air yds
Middle · 10–19 air yds
61% catch rate on 18 targets · 7% of the team's targets.
4 seasons under Clark Lea — 25-21 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 5 games
Home vs Road
| REC/g | YDS/g | YPR | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home2g | 1.5 | 19.5 | 12.8 | 0.0 |
| Road3g | 2.7 | 27.3 | 11.3 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| REC/g | YDS/g | YPR | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-74g | 1.5 | 18.0 | 12.4 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 5.0 | 49.0 | 9.8 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Clark Lea
Pass share
51.0%
253 pass / 243 run
Plays / game
62.0
8 games
Team sack rate
5.0%
281 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced, slow tempo.
Player standing · 2026
About as many catches a game as a typical FBS tight end who plays every week.
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 20 games over four seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2022–2026
1 coachPlayed every college season under Clark Lea.
