However, despite plenty of sputtering and missing, the Commodores rallied and escaped with a 31-30 victory at Western Kentucky, thanks to a failed 2-point conversion by the Hilltoppers at the end of the first overtime.
"Defensively, we leaked a lot of oil out there today, but we came up big when we needed to," Mason said. "That was important."
Kyle Shurmur's 5-yard pass to Nathan Marcus on the first possession of overtime gave Vanderbilt (2-2) its first lead of the game, and Tommy Openshaw added the point after for the Commodores.
Western Kentucky (2-2) answered quickly, needing just two plays to find the end zone on Mike White's 8-yard pass to Shaquille Johnson in overtime.
Hilltoppers coach Jeff Brohm elected to go for two points. White rolled to his right, but his pass was deflected into the air off Anthony Wales' helmet and ruled incomplete, as Vanderbilt players rushed the field to celebrate the comeback victory.
Brohm said he thought his team had a chance to win it with the 2-point try.
"I thought we had a chance to win. I thought the play was decent. Mike maybe put a little too much heat on it. I'd have to see the film. But, it ricocheted off (Anthony Wales') helmet, but it was a little hot coming out," Brohm said of the final play.
Wales said it was a play he should have made, regardless of the velocity of the pass.
"It was a great play call, they bit on the outside. It was attempted to me. It was a little hot, but I should have caught it. I'm a playmaker and I put that play on me," he said.
Vanderbilt's offense, which had struggled for much of the game, put together two impressive fourth-quarter drives for 10 points, including going 75 yards in the final 1:02 of regulation in seven plays to tie the game at 24-24 and force overtime. A pass interference call in the end zone on Western Kentucky's De'Andre Simmons against Vanderbilt's Trent Shurfield gave the Commodores the ball at the Hilltopper 2 with three seconds to play in regulation. Vanderbilt running back Ralph Webb, who had three rushing touchdowns in the game, leaped from just inside the 5 and landed just beyond the front edge of the end zone for the tying score.
"When we needed to establish some momentum, we did. The offense got it back and got rolling. The offense kept us alive," Mason said.
The Hilltoppers built a 14-0 lead in the first half, getting a 4-yard run from Anthony Wales to cap the opening drive of the game. WKU added a second-quarter score when backup quarterback Tyler Ferguson hit Nacarius Fant on a 61-yard pass play.
Webb capped touchdown drives for Vanderbilt of 4 and 2 yards to tie the game briefly at 14-14.
Wales put the Hilltoppers back in front with a 20-yard touchdown and the teams traded fourth-quarter field goals before the Commodores game-tying drive.
