The Athletic (premium): If Vanderbilt football dropped the ‘Vanderbilt,’ no one would question the progress
Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2023 6:24 am
Joe Rexrode writes a VERY positive piece about VU football... teaser quotes...
Also because, for those who haven’t noticed, Vanderbilt has in a couple of years vaporized the obstacles it spent decades placing in the way of all who dared wear the whistle on West End. And because the guy who does now is as committed as his support is transformative. Clark Lea said Vanderbilt will be “the best program in the country” a year ago at SEC media days, and on Tuesday at the same event, he trotted that out again along with terms such as “dominant program” and “toughest team in our conference.”
Lea’s 7-17 record in two seasons at his alma mater has a long way to go to catch up with those forecasts. They sound hyperbolic for a program that was last nationally relevant when the Model T was Ford’s best seller. But Vanderbilt fans shouldn’t let grandiose visions or time-tested insults distract from what he’s actually doing: building a winner.
How big, how fragile, how sustainable, these are all great questions. Based on actions and no words, though, I’ll make a prediction that is bolder than it may sound given Vanderbilt’s competition: Lea’s Commodores will soon stack together three straight winning seasons. That last happened at Vanderbilt from 1957-59 under Arthur Guepe.
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The Athletic: If Vanderbilt football dropped the ‘Vanderbilt,’ no one would question the progress
(by Joe Rexrode)
Also because, for those who haven’t noticed, Vanderbilt has in a couple of years vaporized the obstacles it spent decades placing in the way of all who dared wear the whistle on West End. And because the guy who does now is as committed as his support is transformative. Clark Lea said Vanderbilt will be “the best program in the country” a year ago at SEC media days, and on Tuesday at the same event, he trotted that out again along with terms such as “dominant program” and “toughest team in our conference.”
Lea’s 7-17 record in two seasons at his alma mater has a long way to go to catch up with those forecasts. They sound hyperbolic for a program that was last nationally relevant when the Model T was Ford’s best seller. But Vanderbilt fans shouldn’t let grandiose visions or time-tested insults distract from what he’s actually doing: building a winner.
How big, how fragile, how sustainable, these are all great questions. Based on actions and no words, though, I’ll make a prediction that is bolder than it may sound given Vanderbilt’s competition: Lea’s Commodores will soon stack together three straight winning seasons. That last happened at Vanderbilt from 1957-59 under Arthur Guepe.
More...
The Athletic: If Vanderbilt football dropped the ‘Vanderbilt,’ no one would question the progress
(by Joe Rexrode)