Stanford, Vanderbilt Announce Four-Game Football Series...Next Decade

Vanderbilt fulfilled the SEC's rule of scheduling at least one non-conference game against a Power 5 opponent on Wednesday. And they made sure to keep it in the nerd family.

Vanderbilt and Stanford agreed to a four-game series that will split hosting duties between Nashville and Palo Alto. The Commodores will host the Cardinal in 2021 and 2025 and Stanford will return the favor in 2024 and 2027. The news could reunite current Vandy coach Derek Mason with his former employers. Mason roamed the Stanford sidelines for four years and spent three as an associate head coach and defensive coordinator before being hired by the 'Dores.

Here's a nifty graphic breaking down the scheduling, courtesy of VUCommodores.com:

That 2021 game will mark the first time the two teams have ever met - a surprising stat given Vanderbilt's history of scheduling non-conference games against other private universities from power conferences like Duke, Northwestern, and Wake Forest. These games against Stanford will satisfy the SEC rule that all programs must play one game against a team from a power conference each year starting in 2016. The 'Dores also have matchups with Georgia Tech and Kansas State waiting for them in the future.