I don't know, Vanderbilt was only really blown out by Tennesee. They played Michigan tough for three quarters until losing by 20. Other than that, they were in all their games and even manhandled a couple of there non-conference opponents. They were better than an Indiana or Illinois, which are truely below average teams. Vandy is solidly in the middle of the pack on the scheme of Div I football.
Don't forget Michigan State. They were far superior to Indiana and Illinois.
Indiana was up and down, mostly associated with their head coach's health problems. When he wasn't in the hospital, they were often surprisingly good.