MrSEC » Vanderbilt

Vandy Doubles Its Recruiting Budget

John — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:58:26 +0000

Back in December of 2010 when Vanderbilt made the hire of James Franklin official, chancellor Nicholas S. Zeppos made the following statement:

“I told James if he needs a rocket to go to the moon to get a player — get the rocket.”

Fourteen months later, it looks like Franklin has talked Vandy officials into getting him the rocket they promised. And private planes. And helicopter rides.

In all, the Commodores claim to have doubled their football recruiting budget in Franklin’s first season.

VU’s de facto AD — vice chancellor of athletics David Williams — recently told Nashville’s The Tennessean that the school put “a lot” more money into the recruiting fund this year:

“I really won’t know the number until we get all the bills. We increased the budget for recruiting by probably 100%. Any time James decides to fly on a private plane or a helicopter — in this case a lot — it has to be approved. I think I got requests almost on a daily basis (the week before signing day). I would expect when the bill is paid, it will be a lot. It will be within the budget, but we’ve increased recruiting a lot.”

Good for Vanderbilt. The school invested in Franklin and Franklin delivered three four-star prospects, a bundle of three-star recruits, and what’s being called VU’s best-ever signing class.

Can Franklin keep the positive momentum rolling after a six-win season that led to a bowl bid? That remains to be seen. But credit him for creating some Commodore moment in the first place. And for convincing Vandy officials to pull out the school’s thick checkbook.

Stallings, VU Having To Take MTSU Seriously

John — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:53:43 +0000

When Kevin Stallings put nearby Middle Tennessee State on the Commodores’ 2012 basketball slate, you can bet he didn’t expect for the Blue Raiders to come in boasting a 19-2 record and a perfect 8-0 mark in the Sun Belt Conference:

“It certainly looks like a tough game right now. You can expect all of them to be tough, but Middle’s having a great year. They have a very, very good team. (Belmont coach) Rick Byrd told me early in the year when he played them after the first times, he said, ‘I’m telling you, they’re not really good for Middle or really good for their league. They’re really good.’ They’ve certainly proven him to be 100% correct.”

Vandy and MTSU battle at Memorial Gym tomorrow afternoon. The Commodores have won nine of their last 10 games and crushed Tennessee on Tuesday.

The SEC Responds To Stallings’ Schedule Complaint

John — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:07:56 +0000

Earlier this week, Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings made it clear that he’s not happy that East Division rival Kentucky won’t have to play a Thursday-Sunday turnaround for the second-straight year. (Like the one Vandy faces against Alabama and MSU tonight and Saturday.)

Yesterday, we gave you our take — that ESPN and CBS will always beg to get Kentucky (especially when at home at Rupp) lined up with their best timeslots. UK is the SEC’s flagship program and best TV draw. If that means more Tuesday games and less Thursday games for the Cats then ESPN is likely A-OK with it… even if it means someone else will move into those Thursday slots.

Jeff Lockridge of The Tennessean took Stallings’ complaint to the SEC office and got this reply from Craig Pinkerton, the league’s director of media relations:

“The SEC’s athletics directors have established a set of parameters to follow when building the men’s basketball schedule. These parameters are in place to ensure that the schedule is as equitable as possible and enables the SEC to fulfill its contractual obligations with television. We make our best effort to balance out the Thursday-Saturday tandem among all of the teams. Last year we began moving some Thursday games to Tuesday to alleviate some of the issues with the quick turnaround. Now we are playing two games Tuesday night with an ESPNU game that leads inot the ESPN Super Tuesday matchup.

We try to get every team at least one game and no more than four games on Thursday night. The key issues is avoiding teams playing on the road for both parts of a Thursday-Saturday tandem.”

The bottom line? Scheduling isn’t as easy as some think. Especially with television thrown into the mix. If Vandy was happy about its schedule, another school would be upset with its slate. There’s no way to please everyone. (Especially fans who will always view their schedule as the toughest and some other school’s as the easiest.)

Finally, we believe Stallings would have made a better point if he’d pointed out that Auburn, LSU and Kentucky all avoided the Thursday-Saturday turnaround. Instead, he just mentioned UK.

Redshirt Juniors Departing, VU’s Franklin Responds To Tweet Suggesting He’s Running Guys Off

John — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 16:12:21 +0000

College football is a cold, cruel world to athletes. If a school recruits you and signs you only to learn that your upside really isn’t as good as they initially thought… you’re adios’ed so fast your head spins.

Ah, but if you do all that you can for the school, find yourself unhappy, and want to transfer out… good luck getting clearance to do so.

That’s the lay of the land in this, the year of our Lord two-thousand-and-twelve. And it’s the same all over. Even at Vanderbilt.

Wait, what? Even at Vanderbilt?

If there were any doubts that James Franklin is turning around the Commodores program, this next wee bit of controversy should put them to rest.

Following the Liberty Bowl, senior tight end Brandon Barden tweeted the following message:

“If you go to Vandy now, you seriously sign a ONE year scholarship #dirtygame #gladtomoveon”

Sour grapes from one disgruntled player in serious need of some gruntling? Maybe. But Franklin also told The Tennessean yesterday that a number of redshirt juniors have decided not to return for their senior years.

“A lot of guys walked for Senior Day and a large number of those guys decided (not to return),” Franklin said. “That’s not based on our decision, but guys graduating and guys who haven’t been playing or not playing a significant role who are going to go get jobs or may go play at smaller schools.”

More players leaving means more spots are open on the VU roster. And that means Franklin can better cash in on the positivity created during his first season in Nashville which ended with a 6-7 record and a bowl trip.

But like every other football coach on the face of the planet, Franklin is shocked by the suggestion that he might have encouraged some of his players to look elsewhere.

“I would put our record of what we’ve done this year and what our athletic department and university have done for a long time against anybody. Most new coaches come in and there’s all kinds of new turnover in the program. I find (Barden’s twee) really interesting.

When you have 105 guys on a team and you’ve just suffered a tough loss, here’s going to be some things said. There are decisions made where guys don’t know the whole story behind it. It’s like I told the team, I have no problem with them coming in and talking to me and I’ll explain it to them.”

Our take? Franklin has Vandy in a position where it can act like other big-time football programs. And if a coach — any coach — can run off a few guys to open up more slots on signing day, he’s going to do it.

That doesn’t make it right, of course. But Franklin’s not doing anything at VU that isn’t being done elsewhere. The surprising part is that he’s got Vandy in this position after just one season.

Vandy Working On Extension For Franklin

John — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 15:06:40 +0000

James Franklin — perhaps the least-heralded hire of all the coaching moves in America last offseason — has Vanderbilt going bowling in his first year. His fiery demeanor has also brought attention to VU (and himself) from across the SEC. The Commodores might not be world-beaters at 6-6, but they sure aren’t a laughing stock any longer.

As a reward for Franklin’s success, Vanderbilt is working on an extension for its new coach. Some Nashville outlets quote vice chancellor of athletics David Williams as saying a deal is already in place. Other Nashville sites quote Williams as saying “We’re trying to work on something.”

While the school is planning to make a bigger commitment to its coach in terms of salary and security, Vandy is not yet ready to fork over cash for an indoor practice facility that Franklin has campaigned for.

“We hope to have something and keep working and see what we can do,” Williams said. “Right now we’re not in a position to move anything on that. But we’re going to be working real hard to do all of the things we can do and need to do.”

Franklin has also made it pretty clear throughout the season that attendance at Vanderbilt Stadium has disappointed him. Williams told The Tennessean yesterday that VU fans will need to help the school hang on to its successful, young coach.

“We’re fighting now in a situation of bowl picking… trying to get different bowl people to understand the value of having Vanderbilt in their bowl. And one of the questions is, ‘Well, will a lot of people come?’

Those are all sort of things that need to be part of this equation. I can do a lot and Vanderbilt can do a lot, but I can’t come over to your house and pick you up and make you sit in the stands or make you go to one of the bowl sites.

I think Coach has proved himself. He’s a good football coach. He’s a good person. He’s a good part of this community. Vanderbilt is prepared to step up and support that.

I just think we all have to stand up and support it and basically show the rest of the world, and more importantly show all of our coaches, we’re going to support you and fill up the place and travel with you.”

While Franklin deserves much of the credit for the Commodores’ success this year, the work of Bobby Johnson should not be forgotten. Johnson made VU competitive during his reign and actually took the Dores to their first bowl since 1982 in 2008. (The current VU senior class is the first in school history to reach two bowl games during a career.)

Johnson’s team slipped to 2-10 in his final season and Robbie Caldwell matched that record last year. But Johnson had been stockpiling players for the future. Franklin inherited a team with 28 redshirt juniors and seniors. Think about that. That’s a lot of guys that Johnson put on the shelf to age while he battled with a thinner roster. Toss in nine more true juniors and true seniors and it’s clear Franklin has been working with a roster of men, not boys. Johnson deserves some credit for that.

Vanderbilt will spend New Year’s Eve either in Nashville at the Music City Bowl or in Memphis at the Liberty Bowl. We suspect the Music City will select MSU in hopes of bringing more fans to town. That would leave the Liberty to deal with what would likely be a small Vandy turnout in Memphis. On the flipside, VU players would at least get to go to a bowl outside of town. In ’08, Vandy played in the Music City Bowl.

Vandy’s Simmons Charged With Burglary And Robbery

John — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 19:28:43 +0000

Now here’s one you don’t see everyday…

Vanderbilt sophomore safety Andre Simmons has been arrested and charged with felony counts of burglary and robbery. He has also been suspended indefinitely from James Franklin’s team.

Jeff Lockridge of The Tennessean provides the details:

“According to a Davidson County affidavit, two black males — one armed with a handgun — entered Lupton Hall on Tuesday and took $5,000 from a safe in the room of Zachary Abelman, a sophomore forward on the school’s club ice hockey team. A fight ensued and Abelman was struck in the head with the gun.

One suspect ran out with the money while Simmons, 19, stayed behind to keep Abelman in the room. Once Simmons left, he was chased by Abelman and others to the Terrace Place Garage. Metro Police were called and took Simmons into custody there.”

If were to list all of the ways in which Simmons’ alleged actions were stupid this post would be 15 paragraphs long.

Incredible.

Vandy Disses Army Alma Mater, Apologizes

John — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 20:47:14 +0000

James Franklin has quickly turned around the in-game fortunes of the Vanderbilt football team. Now he needs to do something about VU’s postgame reputation.

Last week, Franklin himself took offense to a Georgia player’s taunts and wound up in a heated postgame exchange with UGA defensive coordinator Todd Grantham. On Saturday, Vanderbilt dissed the US Military Academy with its postgame behavior. Today the school issued an apology that read in part:

“We at Vanderbilt University would like to publicly offer our sincere apology for the events that occurred at the conclusion of our recent football game. While our football team performed our alma mater with our fans and band, the Black Knights, their band and cheerleaders, as well as their fans, stood at attention and honored us as would a worthy foe. However, after we were finished and the Black Knights began to perform their alma mater, our football team left the field and our loud speaker blasted music that had the result of drowning out the performing of your alma mater.

While there was no intention to be disrespectful, this was wrong and was a huge mistake on our part. There is no excuse for this oversight; we were just wrong and we are truly sorry.”

A nice touch by the Commodore brass to offer a public mea culpa.

Missouri Press Conference Update

John — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 17:02:48 +0000

The University of Missouri board of curators is scheduled to begin a press conference with reporters as soon as their final closed session meeting wraps up. That meeting has already run longer than expected.

As any SEC-related announcement is made, we’ll let you know right here.

* The presser was tentatively scheduled for 12:30pm ET. It’s now 1:15pm. Still we wait.

* And still waiting. An MU backdrop is not being put up in the media room.

* AD Mike Alden is scheduled to be on hand for the presser.

* Unanimous resolution: Chancellor Brady Deaton has authority to engage in contract talks with other conferences.

* Missouri also wants to look at continuing to play football and basketball games in Kansas City. (Why offer to play games in KC if you aren’t leaving that area and those area rivals?)

* 2 + 2 = SEC

* Deaton wouldn’t speak specifically about leaving Big 12 or joining SEC, but things wouldn’t have gotten this far if the SEC and Missouri hadn’t already nailed things down.

* This is almost the exact timeline that Texas A&M followed when entering the SEC.

* MU reps are working hard to not say too much — due to legal concerns — but it certainly looks as though Mizzou and the SEC are going to start speeding up the process.

* “No timeline” set but MU expects things to move “expeditiously.”

* “This is a very complex transaction to consider.” “We have to exercise our fiduciary duty.” By giving Deaton the the right to cut a new contract, MU is all but announcing they’re leaving the Big 12.

* Missouri anticipates any move it makes taking place before next season.

1:54 — That’s it for now. Mizzou is heading toward the SEC and the chancellor now has the ability to act on his own without having to run back and forth for board approval. The next stop — from what was suggested today — will be an announcement that Missouri has reached an agreement with the SEC or it has decided to stay. There will be no “What do we need to do to leave the Big 12?” step as there was in Texas A&M’s case.

We continue to believe that Missouri’s move to the SEC will be completed by mid- to late-next week.

We’ll have reaction on the site later this afternoon.

Vandy’s Ezeli Suspended Six Games For Accepting Improper Benefits

John — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 14:26:47 +0000

Vanderbilt is expected to have a Top 10-caliber hoops team this season. Vanderbilt is expected to challenge Kentucky and Florida for the SEC championship. But Vanderbilt has an early-season problem on its hands.

Senior center Festus Ezeli has been suspended for the first six games of the season for accepting improper benefits from a Vanderbilt alum. Ezeli had a meal — egads! — and a hotel room paid for by the VU fan while he was visiting friends this summer.

“I am very sorry and would never want to jeopardize my college career over such a petty thing as a meal or a hotel room,” the 6-11 big man said in a press release. “I would have been able to afford those things myself. I have always tried to do the right thing; I should have known better and am embarrassed that my mistake could affect my team.”

Vanderbilt officials reported the violation to the SEC and the NCAA in early August.

“Festus Ezeli is a good, honest student-athlete that accepted an act of kindness from a Vanderbilt alum and now faces the consequences,” said vice chancellor of athletics David Williams. “We have a very good compliance education process in place and this incident shows how easily someone can fall astray, even with the best intentions. We discovered this matter, reported it promptly and cooperated fully with the NCAA and its process and well abide by its conclusion.”

This story will no doubt leave NCAA-haters — and they are legion — outraged. “A meal and a hotel room,” they’ll shout.

While we agree this seems to be “a petty thing,” the NCAA must draw a line somewhere. When dealing with thousands of athletes across the country, it’s easier to just nix any kind of extra benefit altogether. If the NCAA went about it any other way, there would be debates about what the cut-off point should be:

Four meals are okay, but five are too many?

Dinner at McDonald’s is okay, but dinner at a top-dollar restaurant is not?

A weekend hotel stay is okay, but three nights is too many?

So the NCAA drew the line and Ezeli stepped over it. At least he’ll be back before conference play starts. Of course, any early season losses the Commodores suffer as a result of his the center’s absence could impact the team’s RPI — and thus seeding — come March.

Vandy Sports Boss Talks Expansion

John — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:36:52 +0000

Vanderbilt vice chancellor of athletics David Williams recently sat down for a lengthy chat on SEC expansion with Jeff Lockridge of The Tennessean. His comments are quite interesting as he discusses the impact of expansion on VU, the (absurd) idea that Vandy might be ousted from the league, and what the league would look for in a 14th school. (The gist of his answer: there are too many variables to list and he believes the league might spend “a couple of years” with 13 schools.)

He was also asked if the conference shuffle is strictly about getting into new markets for TV purposes. His response:

“Anytime somebody is going to expand in this day and age, if they can see an upside in TV revenue or TVs being turned on, that will certainly be a consideration of it. But there are other reasons. The Big Ten needed a 12th team. The Pac-10, I think, was a little concerned that they were sort of isolated on that West Coast, and how do we sort of expand and make some noise? The Big 12 looks like they’re going to try to just throw some times in to stay in business. Texas A&M comes to us and says, ‘We’d like to come to your conference. We don’t want to be in the Big 12 anymore.’ And we may see an opportunity to expand or protect our brand. The ACC obviously gets some television stuff up in the Northeast, but in the same time (they think) this may help us solidify our conference.

Sometimes, if I’m at 10 (schools in a conference) and someone is looking to take me to eight, maybe my best defense is to go on the offense and to go to 12.”

The full interview can be found here. Good stuff.

Writer Ranks VU’s Franklin As College Football’s Top New Coach

John — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 15:42:08 +0000

Two weeks into the season, it’s gotta be time to reveal some rankings and report cards, right? Right.

CBSSports.com’s Brett McMurphy has given grades to the 24 new FBS coaches in the country. At the top of the list with an A+ grade is… Vanderbilt’s James Franklin:

“Franklin had never been a head coach at any level until this year and so far, so good. He’s already matched Vanderbilt’s win total each of the past two years with a 2-0 start. With remaining games against Ole Miss, Army, Kentucky and Wake Forest, Franklin might just be able to squeeze out the Commodores’ first bowl berth since 2008.”

The question is: When will Nashvillians start turning out to watch Franklin’s team play? The new coach has already said his team deserves support for it’s 2-0 start. (Which makes us wonder what he’ll be thinking a year or two into the job, because Vandy fans rarely turn out for football.)

Another question: How do Ole Miss and Kentucky fans like being drawn up as potential Vandy victims?

Vandy’s Franklin Would Like A Bit More Fan Support

John — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:16:41 +0000

James Franklin has his Vanderbilt Commodores off to a 2-0 start and now there are two things he’d like to see happen:

1. He wants to see Vandy fans start showing up in greater numbers to support his team.

“I don’t know if I necessarily notice the empty seats, but what we want is sellouts. I think we’re a pretty good story right now. I think we’re showing enough signs that the people that are on the fence… I think these kids deserve it.”

2. He wants talk of “same old Vanderbilt” to be put to rest. On Saturday, Franklin said he heard a fan shout those words from the stands when the Dores fell behind to UConn in the fourth quarter (before coming back to win).

“I wanted to go up in the stands and let him know how I felt. But I thought it was more important that I directed my energy toward my team. And I’m glad he did it, because it made me recognize maybe that’s what we were thinking, too, and I needed to swing that (momentum) back in our direction.”

The fact that Franklin actually heard an individual shout from the stands during a game speaks to the fact that Vandy is averaging fewer than 30,000 fans per game.

The fact that he was bothered by what that fan said suggests Franklin will have to toughen his skin a bit if he’s going to stick around Vandy. ‘Cause whether he likes it or not, it’ll take more than a two-game win streak over Elon and UConn to banish the thought of “same old Vanderbilt” forever.

Report: Texas Lawmakers About To Get Involved In SEC Expansion

John — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 04:00:14 +0000

According to Orangebloods.com — the Rivals site covering the University of Texas — lawmakers in the Long Star State are on the verge of involving themselves in Expansionpalooza 2011. If they do, that could potentially be bad news for the SEC.

Until late last week, Texas politicians had given Texas A&M a free-pass to exit and head east to the Southeastern Conference. But now legislators are worried that Texas and Texas Tech could bolt from the Big 12 and race west to the Pac-12. Some/many/most politicos in Texas don’t want to see that happen. So…

According to Orangebloods:

“Sources said the reason lawmakers are hot is that they received assurances from the Big 12, including (UT president Bill) Powers, that the Big 12 would survive without Texas A&M.

And because of those assurances, lawmakers did not take an aggressive stand against Texas A&M withdrawing from the Big 12. But that may be changing.

Sources said members of the Legislature are or will be reaching out to Texas A&M president R. Bowen Loftin to tell him the Aggies may no longer have the blessing of lawmakers to leave the Big 12, especially if it looks like the Big 12 will collapse.”

In addition the site claims that Big 12 sources have said there is “an increasing likelihood of litigation” against the SEC.

Good luck to the Big 12 on that front.

The Big Ten began the expansion craze last summer. The Pac-10 then began flirting with Texas and others in an effort to swipe four- to six-teams from the Big 12, which would have extinguished the conference in one push. The Pac-1o was conducting an all-out raid last summer. By comparison, the SEC simply answered a phone call this July.

When the smoke cleared in 2010, Nebraska had left for the Big Ten and Colorado had departed for the Pac-12 (as it’s now called).

Unless the judge overseeing such a silly case attended Baylor, the Big 12 would have a hard time convincing any sane person that it was actually the third school out the door that destabilized the league. Especially when Oklahoma president David Boren has been making comments like this to the press:

“The Big 12 is not the same Big 12. I was extremely disappointed when Nebraska departed. Disappointed when Colorado departed.”

Missouri football coach Gary Pinkel also stated last week:

“Obviously we have some issues in our league… When Nebraska leaves one year, Colorado leaves and then also now Texas A&M. So it’s three real good football teams (that) are leaving.”

Do a Google search and you’ll find countless other Big 12 figures who’ve been publicly stating the obvious — that Nebraska and Colorado exited and hurt the league a full year before A&M started looking for an escape hatch.

But while a tortious interference case would likely be hard to prove, that doesn’t mean such a lawsuit still couldn’t gum up the works for Mike Slive and the Aggies. The mere threat of a lawsuit could cause SEC presidents to slow down out of fear that the person hearing such a case really would be a Baylor grad… angry that his Bears are in danger of being left for dead in this round of realignment. (Nevermind the fact that the Bears left TCU, SMU, Houston and Rice for dead when Baylor jumped to the Big 12 without remorse in the mid-90s.)

Back in 2003, several Big East schools filed suit against the ACC for a raid that netted the Southern league Boston College, Miami and Virginia Tech. In 2005, the ACC settled that suit for a grand total of $5 million. Pocket change.

But television contracts have jumped to another level since 2005 and the Big 12 — whoever’s left of the Big 12 — would likely ask for a cool billion of SEC cash. Well, even if there were just a 1% chance of losing that kind of cash, the SEC would need to do some serious risk/reward analyses. Perhaps the league would decide to stand pat and not offer A&M a landing spot. If that were to happen, would the Big 12 then be forced to re-admit a suddenly homeless Texas A&M? Now that would be a happy, long-lasting marriage, to be sure.

Bottom line? This thing isn’t over, folks. In some ways, it may just be getting started.

Oh, boy. Great. ’Cause who wants to talk about football?

UPDATE — Pete Thamel of The New York Times reports that Judith Zaffirini — the chairwoman of the Senate Higher Education Committee in Texas — claims the state senate has no intention of getting involved in conference expansion and realignment.

Franklin Wants An Indoor Practice Facility At Vandy

John — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 17:27:36 +0000

When Vanderbilt hired James Franklin last December, chancellor Nick Zeppos said that the new coach would be given every tool necessary to recruit and compete in the SEC.

“I told James if he needs a rocket to go to the moon to get a player — get the rocket.”

Fast-forward to yesterday. An electrical storm forced Vanderbilt off its practice field for a full 45 minutes. Franklin saw an opportunity to reiterate a request he’s made before.

“Here’s another example of why we need an indoor facility,” the coach said. He also pointed out that even Tennessee State — an FCS program just down the road from Vandy — has an indoor facility.

That’s all well and good, but The Tennessean’s Jeff Lockridge writes:

“While Vanderbilt’s campus is virtually landlocked, Franklin is adamant that there can be some solution. However, right now an indoor facility is merely a discussion point and not in the administration’s plans.”

Maybe Franklin should ask for a rocket instead.

Franklin Climbing The “Likeability” Chart

John — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 16:22:17 +0000

A tip of the hat to the guys at ESPN who noticed the following video, released by Vanderbilt’s athletic department earlier this week. In it, James Franklin goes one-on-one with a second-grader known as Ally the Kid Reporter.

In a word: cute. (And I’m usually not real big on “cute.”)

Franklin continues to hit the right buttons when it comes to public appearances and enthusiasm. Look out, Mark Richt, Vandy’s new coach is shooting up the likeability chart.

Vandy’s Franklin Levels A Player In Practice

John — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 18:36:44 +0000

Count me as a sucker for feel-good stories. Last summer I wrote that I would like to South Carolina and Ole Miss reach the SEC Championship Game as neither had been there before. Turns out, one team made it, the other fell apart.

Well, I don’t think Vanderbilt is going to be reaching Atlanta anytime soon, but new coach James Franklin is 2011′s feel-good story in the SEC. Whether he can win games is still an unknown, but his passion and energy for the job are obvious.

In addition to lining up a series of surprising early commitments and accepting every speaking engagement that’s he been offered, Vandy’s young coach has taken to playing some quarterback during Commodore practices. Yesterday, he even leveled a VU defender during a shoulder pads and shorts session.

Jeff Lockridge of The Tennessean has the details:

“After Franklin was intercepted by LB Archibald Barnes on a pass over the middle, the coach gave chase toward the front left pylon as Barnes attempted to return the pick for a score. Sophomore DB Andre Hall was shielding Barnes when Franklin — not wearing any pads, mind you — put two arms into Hall an sent him flying out of bounds. It was a priceless moment.”

It sound like the coach enjoyed doling out a lick, too. “I didn’t know who it was (I hit),” Franklin said. “I was trying to find out who it was. It was fun. It was fun to get out there and compete with them and fly around and show them how competitive that we’re all going to be in this program… everyone.”

Eleven SEC coaches would disagree with me, but a competitive Vanderbilt program would be great for the league. So here’s hoping the roster Franklin has inherited won’t lead to so many losses in 2011 that the coach’s forward momentum is stopped. Personally, I’d like to see what this guy could do if he started to catch a break or two.

Vandy Ticket Sales Down Despite Franklin’s Sales Job

John — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 18:45:22 +0000

James Franklin has done just about everything Vanderbilt’s administration could have hoped for when it hired him.

He’s recruited well. He’s talked to every civic group and booster club that would have him. He’s gained national attention for Commodore football. And he’s brought passion to the VU program.

Unfortunately, none of that is translating into ticket sales.

As The Tennessean reports today, season ticket sales are actually down in Nashville this year. VU has sold about 11,000 season tickets. Last year at this time, Commodore fans had bought about 12,500 such tickets.

As Jeff Lockridge points out, the school is trying to find ways to improve the gameday experience around Vanderbilt Stadium. No question, that’s a necessity.

But it’s downright disappointing that Vandy fans aren’t showing more support for a coach who has gotten off to such a smashing start on the West End. If ‘Dore fans ever really want to see their program move forward, they’ll need to step up right along with their coaches and players.

Franklin At The Podium

John — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 14:54:45 +0000

Here’s a rundown of Vanderbilt coach James Franklin’s comments:

* Franklin gave no opening statement and instead went straight to questions.

* Asked if a potential move by the NCAA to higher academic standards would benefit Vandy, Franklin said: “You could make the argument by raising those standards it will help level the playing field a little bit. But what it’s also gonna do, it’s also gonna make sure that those better students are more attractive to all these different institutions as well. … But I’m all for as many rules that we want to institute because we’re already living at a higher standard than most schools across the country anyway.

* Franklin is as confident a first-time coach as I’ve ever seen at SEC Media Days. He’s comfortable and it’s easy to see why he’s won over so many people in Nashville and so many prospects across the South.

* “I really believe there’s very few schools that are gonna be able to compete with us when it comes to recruiting because we have an opportunity to offer things that very few schools can. Come to Vanderbilt and you can get a world class education. The next 40 years of your life you have a degree that really matters.” Take that diploma mills. Franklin also said playing in the SEC and being located in a city like Nashville are pluses. “The academic experience, the athletic experience, and the social experience. And then the last factor is these guys want to play early. We can offer that.” This guy’s pretty good, folks.

* Franklin said that he looks at Vandy’s position in the SEC as “a big challenge, but a big opportunity.” He also said, “This is going to be a process.”

* Franklin said he has no control over the past and the fact that he’s Vandy’s third coach in three years. “Our players have bought in completely to what we’re doing.”

* “If there’s a good player out there anywhere — anywhere in this world — that’s the right fit for Vanderbilt, we’re gonna go after them and we have the ability to do that now.”

* Franklin said he wants “125 leaders, not just one or two or three.”

* The coach said he and his staff have to reach out to the Vanderbilt community to help get more fans in the stands and create a better homefield advantage.

* Franklin’s session was short — because most of the writers left with Nick Saban apparently — but he did a nice job. Whether or not his enthusiasm, confidence and intelligence will translate into success at Vandy is anyone’ guess, but if nothing else, VU fans can be happy that their coach has enthusiasm, confidence and intelligence. An impressive debut for a guy facing SEC Media Days for the first time.

It’s Time To Start Taking VU’s Franklin Seriously

John — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 15:00:41 +0000

After ousting Robbie Caldwell, Vanderbilt wanted a big name coach. Unfortunately, VU officials learned that big name coaches don’t take risky jobs like Vandy’s… regardless of the size of the paycheck.

So the Commodores went to their fallback list and tabbed James Franklin as their new head coach. He had no recruiting ties to the deep South. He had no SEC experience. And when Vandy started sniffing around, Maryland — where Franklin had been the coach-in-waiting — did nothing to keep him.

While those signs didn’t look to good at the outset, ‘Dore fans have to feel pretty good about things now, just a few months later. Franklin hasn’t coached a game yet and no one knows if he can actually turn around a VU program that has been on the fritz for, oh, about a century. But he’s certainly having success selling the idea that he can fix up the place.

On national signing day, Franklin inked quarterback Lafonte Thorougood who was thought to be heading to perennial Top 20 program Virginia Tech. Recruitniks perked up. And already Franklin’s lined up seven commitments for the class of 2012 with five of those players graded as three-star prospects by Rivals.com.

Included in that mix of commits is defensive end/linebacker prospect Josh Dawson of Tucker High in Georgia. Dawson picked Vandy despite having scholarship offers from Georgia, Michigan State, Mississippi State, NC State, Notre Dame, Purdue, South Carolina, South Florida, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest. Yeah, that’s right. He picked Vanderbilt over the likes of Georgia, Notre Dame and Virginia Tech.

Speaking with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Dawson made it clear that Franklin’s pitch is working.

“Coach Franklin is passionate about winning and the game of football. He knows the game and he is serious about it. He’s preaching the things that parents need to hear and the players need to hear.

People are realizing that Vanderbilt is on the rise. Vanderbilt is serious about competing for SEC championship, so recruits are getting onboard.”

Okay, so championship talk might be a little over the top at this stage, but SEC fans should start paying attention to what’s going on in Nashville these days. If nothing else, Franklin has some pretty good recruits — as well as the Vandy fanbase — talking about the Black and Gold in a positive way.

For a guy 99% of SEC fans knew nothing about when he was hired, that’s a darn good start.

Vandy’s Stallings Would Pull For His Son Over Vandy At CWS

John — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 15:55:48 +0000

Vanderbilt grads should be among the sharpest folks in the SEC. So here’s hoping they’ll understand why Commodore basketball coach Kevin Stallings will be pulling for North Carolina should the Tar Heels and ‘Dores meet at the College World Series.

Jacob Stallings is a catcher for the Tar Heels and his father was in Chapel Hill Saturday as UNC clinched its CWS berth. Vanderbilt has also booked a trip to Omaha.

“There is no dilemma,” Kevin Stallings said of a possible UNC-Vandy matchup. “It’s a little awkward. But my two favorite baseball teams have made it to Omaha. It’s the best kind of dilemma… if you want to call it a dilemma. It’s a case of two things that I was really hoping would happen, happening.”

While the father danced around the “who would you pull for” question, his son did not. “I’m sure he’ll be rooting for the Heels in this one,” Jacob Stallings said. “It will be a fun week for him. I’m sure he’ll have some interviews, and I hope Vanderbilt fans understand why he’ll be cheering for Carolina.”

We hope so, too.

Last year, legendary Georgia coach Vince Dooley turned off a few Georgia backers when he said he admitted that he would be staying home and pulling for Tennessee — and his son Derek — when the Vols battled Georgia in Athens. As if any man would pull against his own son.

Vanderbilt’s Franklin A Salesman And A Coach

John — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 15:46:21 +0000

Coaching at Vanderbilt is a tough enough job without having to worry about “selling” the program to fans and recruits. But that’s just what new Commodore football coach James Franklin is having to do in Nashville. And so far, he’s been having pretty good success.

Franklin told ESPN.com’s Chris Low:

“As the head coach at Vanderbilt, I’ve got to wear a lot more hats than a coach at a more established program. …

I think people are understanding our message and where we want to take this program, and they want to be a part of it. We have a great product to sell.”

“Gee Should Follow Tressel Out The Door”

John — Tue, 31 May 2011 15:16:37 +0000

For Vanderbilt fans out there who still roll their eyes at the mention of former VU president Gordon Gee — now overseeing the trainwreck at Ohio State — Jeff Schultz of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes something today that you might approve of:

“Gee should follow (Jim) Tressel out the door. He exuded pomposity at Vanderbilt when he disbanded the athletic department, and more recently downplayed Tressel’s alleged NCAA infractions. Asked whether he considered firing Tressel, he giggled and responded, ‘I’m just hoping the coach doesn’t dismiss me.’

Further proof that a wall full of diplomas doesn’t ensure a man has integrity.”

Vandy Will Tackle The Jersey Shore In November

John — Thu, 19 May 2011 16:21:08 +0000

Kevin Stallings’ Vanderbilt basketball team has signed up to play in the 2011 Legends Classic at the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey this November. Vandy, Texas, NC State and Oregon State will each host two games in their home arenas and then move on to the semifinals of the “tournament” which will be played in Jersey the weekend before Thanksgiving.

Vandy — as well as the other aforementioned schools — will all move on to Jersey regardless of the outcomes of the two games they’ll play on their home courts… so this isn’t a true tourney in the traditional sense.

Oh, for a publicity shot of Snookie kissing Stallings’ brilliant bald head.

VU’s Jenkins, Ezeli, Taylor To Return

John — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 13:50:59 +0000

Vanderbilt announced yesterday afternoon that basketball stars Festus Ezeli, John Jenkins and Jeffery Taylor will all return to Nashville for the 2011-12 season, bypassing the NBA draft.

“Obviously, we are very excited that those three guys have all decided to return to our program next season,” Kevin Stallings said via press release. “All three carefully, thoughtfully, and diligently acquired information, with my help, about their draft status for the upcoming NBA draft. After receiving the information, all three decided individually that it was their desire to return to Vanderbilt. I comment and applaud them for the intelligent and diligent way they approached this process in making their decision. Their return certainly positions our team for an exciting season next year.”

Indeed it does. Vanderbilt will likely go into the season ranked in the nation’s Top 15.

Now if they can just win a first-round NCAA Tournament game…

VU Players Say They’re Better Than Last Year Already

John — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 16:22:35 +0000

Maybe James Franklin is going to be the next Mark Fox. When Fox was hired from Nevada, most folks around the SEC — including some basketball vets — shrugged their shoulders and said, “Who?” Two years later and Fox is currently one of the first names you hear when “up and coming” coaches are mentioned.

Granted, taking over a roster with two potential NBA first-rounders and landing in a fertile recruiting zone like Georgia gives Fox a leg up on Franklin, but the early returns are positive for Vanderbilt’s unheralded new football coach.

If nothing else, Franklin has brought a new energy to the Commodore program and that’s a positive. A better Vandy is good for the SEC.

And according to Franklin, his players believe they are better: “Talking to our kids, I say where are we at right now? They say that we’re a better football team right now than we were at any point last year.”

(That doesn’t say much for the work of interim Robbie Caldwell, of course.)

“Whether that’s true or not, they believe that and that’s important,” Franklin added. “Were we perfect out there (during yesterday’s spring game)? No. We’ve got a long ways to go. But they believe, and from talking to people, we’re much further ahead at this point than we were last year. I just want to build on that.”

As Jeff Lockridge of The Tennessean points out, however, “better” is a relative term. The Commodores have finished 2-10 in each of the past two seasons.

Ohio State To Host Vandy In 2013

John — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 13:35:57 +0000

Perhaps we should call it the Bowtie Bowl in honor of Ohio State-turned-Vanderbilt-turned-Ohio State president Gordon Gee. Or maybe we should simply salute new Vandy coach James Franklin for inking such a big-time game. Either way, Ohio State announced yesterday that Vanderbilt will be the Buckeyes season-opener in Columbus on August 31st, 2013.

The Buckeyes were 0-9 all-time against the SEC in bowl games before toppling Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl last season — with the aid of five players who should have been ineligible. Perhaps scheduling Vandy is a way for the Buckeyes to build some more confidence for the next time they meet up with one of the SEC’s big boys.

It’s good to see that Vandy’s new coach isn’t scared to put some meat on the ‘Dores’ menu. And as someone who’s seen many a game at Ohio Stadium, I suggest VU fans take advantage of the opportunity to visit one of college football’s true (non-SEC) shrines.

VU Assistant Rice Lands Monmouth Job

John — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 15:52:30 +0000

Longtime Kevin Stallings assistant King Rice will be the next head coach at Monmouth University. The former North Carolina point guard is expected to be named the school’s coach today.

Rice has been at Vanderbilt for the past five seasons. Monmouth has reached the NCAA Tournament three times in the last 14 years.

Go Inside Vandy’s “War Room” On Signing Day

John — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 14:16:03 +0000

If I told you that you could go inside an SEC program’s football offices on signing day, I’m guessing Vanderbilt wouldn’t be your first choice. But through a snappy video released by the VU athletic department that’s just what you can do… go inside Vandy’s “War Room.”

The six-minute clip of signing day highlights is a wise recruiting move by James Franklin and company. The video also gives fans a behind-the-scenes look at their new staff’s personalities.

Trust me, it’s worth a watch.

Who knows how Franklin and his staff will do long-term, but the early results are surprisingly positive. The Commodores had a good finish on signing day landing several prospects who had been considering other BCS programs. And videos like the one above help to bring some pizzazz to a program that for too long has been an afterthought.

Franklin was a fallback choice for Vandy. Most SEC fans had never heard of him before December. But that doesn’t matter now, because’s off to a good start on Nashville’s West End.

Think Stallings Has Anyone In Mind?

John — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 18:11:00 +0000

You might have noticed something new during televised SEC basketball games this year — coaches doing interviews during games. ESPN has taken a cue from NBA coverage and begun pushing for more in-game (during timeout) interviews.

Seeing as how ESPN is forking over $150 million bucks to the SEC for broadcast rights, Mike Slive has “encouraged” the league’s coaches to play along. But not all coaches enjoy that added spotlight.

Kevin Stallings of Vanderbilt said yesterday during the SEC’s weekly teleconference that the interviews were something that “ESPN had the desire to do.”

“We were encouraged as a group to be willing participants, so we agreed that we would be. There are some coaches that love to see themselves on camera and all that, but I don’t think in general it’s something coaches would prefer to do.”

Think he might be referring to a certain orange-blazer-wearing rival who toils just down the road from Nashville? Or maybe a coach with slicked-back hair to Stallings’ north?

Former VU Coach Joins Clemson Staff

John — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 20:28:42 +0000

Former Vanderbilt head coach Robbie Caldwell — the man who got all of one year to prove himself in Nashville — has landed himself a job on Dabo Swinney’s staff at Clemson. Caldwell will coach the offensive line for the Tigers next year.

Ironically, Caldwell will replace another former SEC head coach on Clemson’s staff. Former South Carolina head man Brad Scott is leaving the O-line position to take a job in Clemson’s athletic department.

Caldwell coached at Vandy from 2002 through this past season when he was thrust into the head coach’s role mid-summer. The Commodores finished with a 2-10 record, identical to the final mark of Bobby Johnson who abruptly retired last July (ruining one day of my own Las Vegas vacation, I might add).

Like most media members who follow the SEC, we at MrSEC wish Caldwell nothing but success. His entertaining persona will be missed at Media Days in a few months. I’m pretty sure no one expects James Franklin to tell any stories of turkey insemination.

Shoop Wants To Run The Tampa Two At Vandy

John — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 16:19:06 +0000

New Vanderbilt defensive coordinator Bob Shoop opened up to The Tennessean yesterday about his plans for the Commodore defense. Two words: Tampa Two.

“If you’re asking my beliefs in a perfect world, the Tampa 4-3 is something I have always studied,” Shoop said. “Coach (Mike) Tomlin has had a great effect on me when he was at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He’s now the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers and he’s a William & Mary graduate, so he and I have spend a great deal of time together.

“My experiences at Boston College, we were a big zone-blitz, fire-zone team. And a little bit of what we call our ‘chaos package,’ which is our third-down deal. If you watch the Packers or the Steelers, or the Ravens or maybe the Eagles or Jets… some of the unorthodox style of things that they do to create pass-rush mismatched and to get after the quarterback. Those are the things we will ultimately end up being.”

At least that’s the goal. The Packers, Steelers, Ravens, Eagles and Jets all have an awful lot of talent on their defensive units. Whether VU can recruit the players necessary to make such a gambling style pay off is yet to be seen.

If the Commodores are going to run more Tampa Two defense (from a 4-3 base), James Franklin and crew will need to recruit fast defensive ends, cornerbacks who can jam receivers at the line of scrimmage, and smaller, faster linebackers who will be called upon to drop into coverage quite a bit. Speed is the key, not necessarily size in the traditional Tampa Two.

Vandy’s Defensive Staff Is Complete

John — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 23:55:44 +0000

Vanderbilt fans, you have a complete coaching staff. Question is — Do you feel good about it?

When Robbie Caldwell was forced out before the final game of last season, the scuttlebutt from Nashville centered around a newly committed VU administration. It was time for Vandy to take football seriously. The school would spend money, it would go after a “name” coach.

But when Auburn’s Gus Malzahn turned down an offer that was believed to have been worth at least $2.5 million per year, the Commodores went in another direction. They hired the up-and-coming offensive coordinator at Maryland, James Franklin.

Franklin announced his offensive staff a few weeks ago. Today he unveiled his defensive hires. They are:

Bob Shoop — Defensive coordinator and safeties coach (from William & Mary)

Brent Pry — Co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach (from Georgia Southern)

Wesley McGriff — Defensive backs coach (from Miami)

Sean Spencer — Defensive line coach (from Bowling Green)

Add those four to Franklin’s five offensive aides — John Donovan (Maryland), Charles Bankins (Maryland), Chris Beatty (West Virginia), Ricky Rahne (Kansas State) and holdover Herb Hand — and you have a staff with very little experience recruiting in the Deep South. On the defensive side of the ball you also have three coaches whose backgrounds consist mainly of small college experience.

The new Vandy staff might be the best bunch Commodore fans have ever seen when all is said and done, but for now it’s hard to imagine most VU backers taking anything other than a wait-and-see approach. This new staff just isn’t filled with the recognizable names they had hoped for.

Of course, if they win… that won’t matter.

(By the way, is it just me or is the bow-tie wearing Mr. Pringles a perfect advertising tie-in with Vandy or what? He looks like a successful VU grad.)

Vandy Still Looking For A D-Line Coach; Secondary Coach Reportedly Onboard

John — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 15:07:41 +0000

Earlier this week, we told you that Vanderbilt — though no official announcement has been made — had hired Bob Shoop (from William & Mary) and Brent Pry (from Georgia Southern) to act as co-defensive coordinators.

VandySports.com — the Rivals site covering the Commodores — has also reported that new coach James Franklin has hired former Miami Hurricanes secondary coach Wesley McGriff. McGriff (photo at left) would be the first member of Vandy’s new staff to have recruited extensively in the Deep South for an FBS school. In addition to Miami, he also spent two seasons on Guy Morriss’ staff at Kentucky.

As was the case with his offensive staff, Franklin apparently wants to announce his defensive hires all at once. So until he inks a defensive line coach, expect no official announcements from Nashville’s West End.

Reports: Shoop, Pry To Vandy

John — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 17:15:17 +0000

Multiple internet sites are reporting that yesterday’s rumors have become today’s facts.

William & Mary defensive coordinator Bob Shoop has resigned and is expected to be hired in that same capacity at Vanderbilt.

FootballScoop.com is reporting that former Georgia Southern defensive coordinator Brent Pry will join James Franklin’s staff as Shoop’s co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.

It is expected that Shoop will coach the Commodores’ safeties.

(As for the photo, that’s Shoop on the left, Pry on the right.)

Reports And Rumors On Vandy DC Front

John — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 14:59:43 +0000

New Vanderbilt head coach James Franklin has already put the finishing touches on his offensive staff, but work on the defensive side of the ball remains. According to FootballScoop.com, things may now be heating up in that area.

The website reports this morning: “Our sources tell us that James Franklin has offered a position to Georgia Southern defensive coordinator Brent Pry.”

Rumors have persisted all weekend that Pry would leave Statesboro for a job with the Commodores, but no one seems to know whether he’ll serve as Franklin’s defensive coordinator or not.

Pry has been a coordinator at two schools — Georgia Southern last season and Louisiana-Lafayette from 2002 through 2006. He has also coached at Western Carolina and Memphis. That’s not exactly an SEC resume, but at least Pry has recruited the Deep South, unlike most of Franklin’s new aides.

Pry currently coaches safeties for the Eagles, but he has coached defensive linemen and linebackers at previous stops.

Other rumors making the rounds have William & Mary defensive coordinator Bob Shoop taking over the same spot in Nashville. Don’t be surprised if VU goes the co-coordinator route.

Shoop has been at William & Mary since 2007. Prior that he has coached at Yale and Villanova. He was also head coach at Columbia from 2003 to 2005.

According to the W&M website, Shoop handles recruiting in Western Pennsylvania and Richmond. And he coaches the secondary for The Tribe in addition to coordinating the defense.

While Yale and William & Mary might not look too impressive on an SEC coach’s resume — and they don’t — Shoop was named the FCS Coordinator of the Year by the aforementioned FootballScoop.com. If Franklin turns to the FCS for his aides, Shoop would certainly be high on the list.

Vanderbilt has four spots open on the defensive side of the ball.

Franklin: “There Are Bright Days Ahead” At Vandy

John — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 14:21:07 +0000

Vanderbilt’s James Franklin was introduced to Commodore fans at halftime of Wednesday’s basketball win over Ole Miss. Like every new coach ever hired, Franklin rallied the troops with promises of progress.

“We have a plan; we have a vision for what this program could be, but we can’t do it alone,” Franklin said. We need everybody’s support. We need this community, we need this campus to come together and unite more than it ever has before.”

“Thank you so much. I can guarantee you that there are bright days ahead. We have a very specific plan. Failure is not an option. Go Dores!”

The “plan” part sounds good, but a lot of folks have had plans. Santa Ana had a very specific plan. Hirohito had a specific plan. Jefferson Davis had a very specific plan. Specific plans don’t always work.

Best of luck to Franklin, but it’s hard not to think that Vandy would have been better off hiring someone with head coaching experience to lead such an uphill climb.

Franklin Unveils Coaching Staff At Vandy

John — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 13:40:25 +0000

James Franklin likes ‘em young. His assistants that is.

Vanderbilt’s new coach officially announced the hirings of six assistants yesterday and the average age of the five offensive coaches is 36.8.

“I want a diverse staff,” Franklin said. “When I say a diverse staff, I’m talking age. I’m talking diversity in terms of this country because we’re going to recruit nationally. But in the end, what I’m looking for is enthusiasm. I don’t care if you’re 50 years old or if you’re 32 years old. I’m not really concerned about age.”

The hires:

Offensive coordinator and running backs coach John Donovan — Donovan has been Franklin’s “main mentor.” He coached with Franklin at Maryland where he was serving as the Terps’ running backs coach last year. He was in College Park for 10 years. Franklin told The Tennessean that he has not decided whether he or Donovan will call plays.

Tight ends and special teams coach Charles Bankins – Bankins is also a former Maryland coach.

Quarterbacks coach Ricky Rahne – Rahne is just 30 and got his start at Kansas State when Franklin hired him as a graduate assistant in 2006. He served as KSU’s tight ends coach last season.

Wide receivers coach Chris Beatty – Beatty comes from West Virginia.

Offensive line coach Herb Hand – Hand is lone holdover from the Bobby Johnson/Robbie Caldwell regime.

Strength and conditioning coach Dwight Galt – Another ex-Marylander.

Franklin is still working to fill out his defensive staff. He still needs to hire a defensive coordinator.

As for the men on the offensive side of the ball, something stands out and it’s not their age.

Donovan — Maryland, Georgia Tech, Villanova

Banklins — Maryland, Richmond, Hampton, St. Louis Rams, Indiana (PA), James Madison, Eastern Kentucky

Rahne — Kansas State, Cornell, Holy Cross

Beatty — West Virginia, Northern Illinois, Hampton

Toss in Franklin and the new guys at Vanderbilt have no SEC experience whatsoever. And with the exception of Donovan’s stint at Georgia Tech (from 1998 to 2000), there are no Deep South recruiting ties.

Maybe that won’t matter. After all, Franklin says he’ll be recruiting nationally. But at most SEC schools, new coaches like to hire a few assistants with roots in the South.

Vandy Making Coaching Hires

John — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 16:49:39 +0000

According to FootballScoop.com, Vanderbilt’s James Franklin has added two pieces to his new coaching staff:

* Chris Beatty will be VU’s new receivers coach and recruiting coordinator. Beatty previously coached running backs and slot receivers in West Virginia’s spread-option attack. He was fired as part of an offensive house-cleaning that coincided with the hiring of coach-in-waiting Dana Holgorsen.

* Charles Huff will take over the offensive quality control assignment in Nashville. He comes from Hampton University where he was the O-line and special teams coach last year. Prior to his year at Hampton, Huff was an intern on the Maryland staff where he worked with Franklin.

FootballScoop reports that Vanderbilt has offered its defensive coordinator position to Jeff Casteel, also of West Virginia. Casteel has a good reputation and VU would probably need to hand over some big cash to lure him out of Morgantown. He also happens to be a West Virginia native.

When Vanderbilt hired Franklin, questions arose regarding his recruiting ties in the Deep South — he has none. From the names being connected to Vandy these days, it appears the majority of Franklin’s staff will be starting from scratch in Dixie, too.

Maryland Forces Out Friedgen, But Not Over Franklin

John — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 14:02:22 +0000

When Vanderbilt officials made a dash toward Maryland offensive coordinator James Franklin last week, we wondered if Terrapin officials would force out Ralph Friedgen and try to keep their coach-in-waiting.

Not quite.

Maryland is trying to force Friedgen out following an 8-4 season… and a lot of empty seats in College Park. (As of this morning, The Baltimore Sun reports that the coach is refusing to retire.) But his attempted ouster is apparently tied to Mike Leach, not Franklin.

According to numerous reports, Maryland officials did not make any type of counter-offer to keep Franklin.

As the story goes, Under Armour founder Kevin Plank — Maryland’s top booster — has close ties to Leach, the former Texas Tech coach. But Leach’s agent said this weekend that there’s been no contact between the school and his client.

Either way, it’s clear that Maryland didn’t fight very hard to keep its coach-in-waiting. Instead, they might have their eyes on Leach, a coach who numerous Vanderbilt fans would have loved to see in black and gold. Now that doesn’t mean Franklin can’t be successful at Vandy. Perhaps the Terps’ previous AD — who put the coach-in-waiting deal in place — is a better judge of coaches than Maryland’s current AD.

But you can bet Vandy fans have taken notice of the fact Franklin’s last school had no problems letting him walk.

What We Know About Franklin; Niumatalolo Was Interested?

John — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 14:46:10 +0000

I’m guessing most of you are like former Vanderbilt quarterback Whit Taylor when it comes to VU’s supposed new coach James Franklin. Here’s what Taylor told The Tennessean about Vandy’s next head coach:

“I hadn’t heard of the name until this past weekend. I pulled up his name (on the computer) and read his bio.”

Uh, yeah. Exactly.

But here’s what we do know:

* Franklin has some NFL experience and landed the coach-in-waiting gig at Maryland when Raheem Morris of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers talked to him about becoming a Bucs assistant.

* His West Coast offense had more success in 2010 than it did in 2008 or 2009.

* He’s been called a strong recruiter with an energetic personality…

* But he’s never coached or recruited in the Deep South.

* He also interviewed for the Iowa State head coach job when Gene Chizik left for Auburn. (The job went to former Auburn defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads.)

* Most Maryland fans — at least on the web — are taking a ho-hum approach to Franklin’s departure. It seems they weren’t in love with his offensive results and they weren’t thrilled with the prospect of him replacing Ralph Friedgen.

* Maryland’s former AD actually put the coach-in-waiting deal together and the current AD — who inherited the plan — was not a fan of it. That might explain why Maryland hasn’t fought harder to retain their “next head coach.”

According to The Tennessean, ESPN.com senior writer Ivan Maisel said that Franklin is “considered a very good recruiter.” He also said, “You have to assume that working with Ralph he has leaned to coach an offense, because Ralph is one of the best.”

“Can he thread the very fine needle that is Vanderbilt recruiting? You got me. I don’t know,” Maisel said. “To put all their chips behind a guy who never has been a head coach is gutsy.”

Interestingly, Vandy might not have had to go the “never been a head coach” route. Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo told a Knoxville radio show yesterday that he was interested in and intrigued by the Vandy job.

“How do I put this?” he said. “I’m not going to talk from their side. I’m just going to say this, I mean, it was a job that there was some interest on my part. You know, something that I was interested in and I’ll let that side speak for their side. It was a job that was definitely intriguing to me.”

If Niumatalolo was truly interested, then why didn’t Vanderbilt officials pursue him harder? His triple-option attack would stand a better chance of working with lesser athletes than Franklin’s West Coast attack.

Just a very odd search for Vanderbilt.

UPDATE — Jeff Barker of The Baltimore Sun wonders if Franklin will take any Maryland staffers with him to Nashville.

He also reveals that the high-energy Franklin once called a former quarterback at 4:30am to make sure he was up early for practice. The player said Franklin could be a “maniac” at times.

“Some players and assistants really respond to Franklin’s style. Others not so much.”

Vandy Is Expected To Hire Franklin Today

John — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 14:27:54 +0000

A member of Vanderbilt’s search committee told The Tennessean yesterday that the school’s search is about to be “all wrapped up.” Numerous sites reported that James Franklin had finally been hired and that a press conference would follow today.

And still we wait.

Jeff Lockridge of The Tennessean caught up with Franklin but Maryland’s offensive coordinator would not confirm that a deal was done.

“I don’t know where you could have gotten that information. I hope to meet you at some point, but I have nothing to confirm for you at this point.”

Sounds like someone told Franklin that he and the “friends close to Franklin” who kept speaking to The Washington Post needed to zip it for a while.

VandySports.com says that VU has indeed offered and Franklin has indeed accepted the job.

ESPN.com says the search is over, too.

And the aforementioned Post is already looking at what Franklin’s departure means for Maryland.

So we’re done here, right? Franklin’s the guy?

Vanderbilt vice chancellor David Williams still won’t say. “I’m getting close. I’m not at liberty to say with who.”

According to The Associated Press, Williams said he wants to have a deal done by the end of the weekend.

So two more days of this?

Damn.

(Vandy apparently plans to announce its hire on Facebook. Insert “Farmville” joke… here.)

VU Official Says Search About To Be “All Wrapped Up”

admin — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 22:40:34 +0000

“We’re about to have this all wrapped up.”

Those are the words of Vanderbilt Board of Trust and search committee member John Ingram. They were uttered this afternoon. They were uttered in regards to Maryland offensive coordinator James Franklin.

The Tennessean reports that vice chancellor David Williams — the man who has been running the VU search — has not returned phone calls all day.

Ingram said “There is a lot of clutter out there, and that’s what it is — clutter,” when asked about reports that Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain and Texas Tech coach Tommy Tuberville (oh, please) have recently expressed interest in the Vandy job.

Vanderbilt is about to have a coach. A coach who has no real ties to the South and whose offense at Maryland didn’t engender a great deal of love from Terp fans. And he’s someone who 95% of SEC fans had never heard of prior to Vandy’s search.

In other words, he’s exactly the type of coach we believed would accept the monumental task of trying to win where no one else has won.

UPDATE – VandySports.com is reporting that a Friday press conference is expected. The site also claims that Franklin “will earn close to Kentucky first-year head coach Joker Phillips in terms of salary and compensation.”

Phillips made $1.7 million this past season, ahead of only Mississippi State’s Dan Mullen and Vandy’s last coach, Robbie Caldwell. Given that Mullen is expected to get a bump at MSU, Franklin will likely be the SEC’s lowest-paid head coach.

Williams Opens Up About Vandy Search, Franklin

John — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 22:35:11 +0000

Okay. We said we weren’t going to say anything more about Vandy’s search until James Franklin was officially hired — if he’s ever officially hired. But Vanderbilt vice chancellor David Williams went on the radio in Nashville today and revealed some interesting tidbits about the ongoing search:

* “I want to know about the national aspect of recruiting and I want to know who and how you will build your staff. Not only from a philosophy standpoint, but I’d like to hear names.”

(So Williams has his candidate trying to put together a staff before he’ll hire him? It’s one thing for a Lane Kiffin to promise to bring his daddy with him… it’s another to make a man actually start lining up assistants just in case he gets the job.)

* “This is a time when Vanderbilt is very committed. The board is committed, the chancellor is committed, and I am committed. We are committed to being very competitive.” But about those rumors of a $3 million a year commitment to Gus Malzahn? “Three million is a little bit on the high side. Now, if we were talking to Nick Saban, maybe the number would go up. I think you have to look who you are talking to. I can tell you for a fact, we were not waving $3 million (a year) for seven years to anyone.”

(Numerous sources have reported that Vanderbilt offered to pay Malzahn middle-of-the-pack money in the SEC. That would be around $2.5 million. A MrSEC.com source close to the situation said the number $2.7 million.)

* “Jeremy (Foley) picked up the phone, made one call and got his man. All power to Jeremy, but Vanderbilt doesn’t have that luxury. He did it in three days. I actually told our chancellor, even after Jeremy said it would take two and a half weeks, that he would get it done in a few days.”

Meanwhile… Vanderbilt fans continue to watch the sands fall through the hourglass.

And The Baltimore Sun wonders what Franklin must be thinking right about now.

Vandy “Talking” To Franklin, But No Deal Yet

John — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 13:57:59 +0000

Vanderbilt vice chancellor David Williams has told The Tennessean that no official offer has been extended to Maryland offensive coordinator James Franklin.

“Been talking to him, still talking to him. That’s where we’re at. There are so many moving parts and you have to come to that agreement. You have to talk to (candidates), then you have to talk to the people that represent them. Sometimes that goes good. Sometimes it doesn’t go good. But we’re talking. It can go a little slower sometimes, and it can also go faster than you think.”

Vandy fans, we at MrSEC.com wish you the best of luck. But we’re done with the VU search until someone actually accepts the job. No more of Mr. Williams’ double-talk for us.

Yesterday, ESPN’s Joe Schad reported that a source told him Franklin was set to accept Vandy’s offer. (Maybe his source really was Dan Mullen’s wife.) The Washington Post’s Eric Prisbell wrote that “two sources close to Franklin” said he was expected to take the job. (Just as Gus Malzahn was “expected” to take the job a day earlier.)

Maybe Franklin is ready to accept. Maybe Franklin thinks the process is further along than it actually is.

Or maybe Vanderbilt’s search has simply turned into a train wreck.

Nearly a month ago, VU forced out Robbie Caldwell in order to get a jump on other schools whose jobs would also soon come open. Since then, Minnesota, Florida, Miami, Indiana, Colorado and others have all come open… and been filled.

Vandy decided to spend more money on its football program and targeted several “name” candidates for the job this time around. We praised that decision. But we also said no “name” candidate would likely accept a job that came with Vandy’s baggage (ie: decades of losing).

Turns out, no “name candidates” — Al Golden, Troy Calhoun, Gus Malzahn — were interested enough to actually put pen to paper.

Over the weekend, VU officials allowed rumors to spread regarding their pursuit of Malzahn. Commodore fans got excited. Other candidates pulled out of the running (which is a sure sign a deal was believed imminent).

And then Malzahn backed away. Williams told The Tennessean that he didn’t even know that Malzahn had backed away. Result: Most Vandy fans were disappointed/angry… while Vandy officials looked clueless.

Now it appears we’re in the rinse/repeat mode with Vandy and Franklin. Well, no thanks.

To the Vanderbilt administration, best of luck in finally landing a coach. (Though at this point, it looks like going without an AD and football coach might be a possibility.)

To Vandy fans, we feel for you. You deserve better. Those of you who have been loyal to VU through the years — in both attendance and donations — shouldn’t be treated to an emotional roller-coaster such as this.

Vanderbilt’s search has gone on longer than any of the other schools’ searches mentioned above. It’s been littered with more turndowns and dead-ends than any of the schools’ searches mentioned above, too.

Well, until Vandy finally inks Franklin or someone else, we’re done with the rumor mill of VU’s search.

We want to cover SEC football and basketball. Not train wrecks.

UPDATE — Here’s The Baltimore Sun’s take on the Franklin situation. The Washington Post — wisely — has decided to walk away from this story this morning. Meanwhile, ESPN’s Chris Low has reiterated Schad’s report from yesterday.

Franklin To Vandy. Really.

John — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 20:35:22 +0000

My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over. Or something like that.

Vandy fans meet James Franklin. James Franklin meet Vandy’s fans.

A source has told ESPN.com’s Joe Schad that Maryland’s offensive coordinator does plan to accept the Vanderbilt head coaching job.

No word on whether or not the source was Dan Mullen’s wife.

Schad + The Washington Post = Reality? Maybe?

VU Update: No Update

John — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 18:46:04 +0000

Anybody else notice that no one is saying anything new on the James Franklin-to-Vanderbilt front?

I just got off the phone with a source in Nashville who said vice chancellor David Williams and the rest of the Commodore brass have gone stone silent as a result of this weekend’s Gus Malzahn implosion.

For that reason, The Washington Post remains the only outlet to suggest that Franklin is currently working on contract details with Vandy.

A number of Vanderbilt and Maryland backers are saying that The Post has been wrong on this story once before, so why pay attention to them now? But the paper was only a sorta/kinda wrong on its “Malzahn’s the guy” story from last weekend.

Here’s what we mean by that: The Post was told by a source close to Franklin — perhaps Franklin himself — that he was no longer in the running for the Vanderbilt job. And despite what Williams has said, half of Nashville knew full well that Vandy had placed an offer on the table for Malzahn. Franklin (and/or the source close to him) knew that, too.

So The Post got word that Malzahn was the top candidate and that Franklin was pulling out of the search… it added 2 plus 2… but the numbers didn’t add up to 4 because Malzahn backed away from the negotiating table. And to be fair, Williams sounded just as surprised by that — “I don’t know where they stand” — as The Post’s reporter must have been.

Maybe Franklin (or a source close to him) has a hard time getting a read on where the coach really stands in Vandy’s search which might explain why he (or a source close to him) continues to give “I’m in” and “I’m out” signals to The Post.

Point: The Post wasn’t completely wrong on its Malzahn’s gonna get the job report. The Post seems to be sharing info straight from the Franklin camp.

And at this point it sounds like Franklin (or a source close to him) believes he’s going to get the Vanderbilt job.

Report: Franklin Expected To Be Vandy’s Man

John — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 15:12:20 +0000

That didn’t take long.

According to The Washington Post, Maryland offensive coordinator and head-coach-in-waiting James Franklin “is expected to become the next head football coach at Vanderbilt,” according to two sources close to the coach.

The Post reports that contract details are being worked out today and Franklin could be introduced at Vandy in the next 24 hours.

There is no word on whether or not Maryland will make a last-minute try to keep Franklin. He was originally scheduled to take over the Terps’ program by January of 2012, but current coach Ralph Friedgen now wants to coach past that date.

Attendance and fan support have dropped in College Park in recent years and it’s possible that Maryland athletic director Kevin Anderson still might force Friedgen out in order to keep Franklin. However, how excited would the Terrapin fanbase be to simply promote one of Friedgen’s aides?

If you want an idea of the “this was the guy we wanted all along” spin that’s sure to come out of Nashville, here’s some bio information on Franklin from the time he was announced as Maryland’s coach-in-waiting. It’s a solid resume.

Look, the guy may turn out to be the next Nick Saban. And Vandy fans can rightly say — if David Williams can close this deal — that they stole Maryland’s next head coach. That’s a good thing. But truth be told this is exactly the type of hire most people expected VU to make when Robbie Caldwell was forced out nearly a month ago: An up-and-coming assistant with very little name recognition.

If Franklin’s the guy, is there any reason to believe he is a better hire than Bobby Johnson was? He may be. But is there any reason to suspect that?

And while Al Golden or Troy Calhoun or Gus Malzahn would have garnered “SportsCenter” coverage for the Commodores, will Franklin’s hire get much more than a blurb-type of mention? Here’s guessing more attention is paid to Malzahn’s turn-down than Franklin’s hire. Sadly, that’s not the kind of press Vandy officials wanted — or deserved — in opening up their checkbook and aiming for some big name guys.

So here’s hoping VU can ink Franklin and that he does well in Nashville.

(But to those of you who chose to get ugly and angry when we told you things would go in this direction… uh… we told you so.)

Malzahn Gets Money, Vandy Begins Again, And The Commodores Need An Athletic Director

John — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 14:10:39 +0000

It’s not a great day to be a Vanderbilt fan. In addition to losing out on the one assistant coach who might excite its fanbase, now VU officials get to spend a day hearing everyone say Gus Malzahn was wise to turn down their lucrative offer.

That’s doubly rough. (Especially considering how angry some Vandy fans got what when someone just tried to warn them that the job was a tough sell.)

While Malzahn walked away from — reportedly — $2.5 to $3 million in Nashville, he did get his current salary at Auburn doubled. At $1.3 million per year, Malzahn is now believed to be the nation’s highest-paid assistant coach.

The Birmingham News also points out that Malzahn’s new salary makes him higher paid than about half the FBS head coaches in America. For now, he’s even higher paid than Mississippi State’s Dan Mullen. Not bad a payoff for simply flirting with Vandy.

The new pact is believed to be longer than the three-year deal he has been working under.

“Gus Malzahn has played a large role in the success of our football program the last two year and we’re very pleased to be able to give him a raise and extend his contract,” Gene Chizik said via press release. “In my opinion we have the best staff in the country, and while we want our coaches to strive to become head coaches, retaining them as long as we can is important.”

Mike Szvetitz of The Opelika-Auburn News says Malzahn made the right call:

“Money is not what (Malzahn’s) about. He’s about his faith and his family. Oh and, of course, football and winning. And he’s been doing a lot of that lately. Especially this season.

Could he do the same in Nashville? I think we all know the answer to that one: Not on the level he’s doing it on the Plains. Not even close.”

Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News agrees that Malzahn was wise to pass on Vandy:

“With the right staff and schedule, you can win at Vandy, though not big or often. After all, two years ago, Vanderbilt beat Auburn. The Commodores went to a bowl that season. The Tigers did not.

And still, despite the possibilities, and his faith in his own abilities, Malzahn turned down the opportunity. It’s another genius move.”

No doubt, some Vandy fans will accuse Malzahn of being “scared.” When someone passes on a rebuilding job, jilted fans usually say the candidate is chicken.

More likely, Malzahn — like all football coaches — simply hates to lose. And everyone knows that Vanderbilt has been a place where coaches lose. Big. And a lot.

Someone can change that. With the right hire and the right money spent on the program, Vandy might someday reach a Northwestern-level of success. (Stanford’s BCS-level success is a product of the Pac-10.) But finding the right guy — someone willing to drink a lot of Mylanta during the building process — will be the hard part.

We at MrSEC have not taken the obligatory shots at Vanderbilt over the years for the school’s decision to drop the athletic director position from its program. The Commodores have done quite well in just about every other sport and the football team even went to a bowl game under Bobby Johnson.

But this latest search suggests that a serious, big-time, A-1 winner of an AD is needed for one thing — bagging a serious, big-time, A-1 coaching candidate for football.

Vanderbilt is a tough, tough sell. That requires a top-flight salesman. The old “sell Popsicles to an Eskimo” kind of guy. Vice Chancellor of University Affairs and Athletics David Williams is apparently not that guy. And that’s not his fault. He wasn’t hire to be the world’s slickest AD.

But now he’s the man who’s forced to go back to the drawing board.

“This process is very, very, very much a moving-target thing, and you’re trying to figure out how to play it,” Williams told The Tennessean.

“I can’t tell you that (James Franklin) will be my next call because I don’t know. I really don’t know. Certainly I would suggest I would probably be talking to him. But I had a list of people this (Monday) morning I planned to talk to. He was on that list, but there are other people on that list.”

Well, that must sound great to Maryland’s offensive coordinator.

Williams says he wants to hire a coach by week’s end. And Vandy Board of Trust member John Ingram tells VU fans not to fear.

“A lot of people are really wound up about one guy. But we have several good guys.”

Perhaps. But none of those guys believed to be on Vandy’s list have any name value with fans. They’re just assistants. Assistants no one in the SEC had paid much attention to until they popped up on VU’s list.

Now, one of those coaches might be great. But Commodore fans wanted a name hire. They thought they had one in Malzahn. And now they’re going to have to get charged up over a fallback choice. They will, of course, because that’s what fans do. But the excitement level Malzahn (or a proven head coach) might have brought is likely unattainable.

To land Malzahn or a proven head coach, it appears Vandy needed an ace athletic director with some snake oil salesman in him. And that they don’t have.

VU: No Deal Was In Place For Malzahn

admin — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 20:54:43 +0000

Vanderbilt vice chancellor David Williams has told The Tennessean that there never was a deal in place to make Gus Malzahn the school’s next football coach.

Amazingly, Williams also told the paper that he will have to phone Malzahn’s people to find out if the coach really is pulling out of Vandy’s search. “I don’t want to say a deal is dead because there was no deal to be dead,” he said.

Williams even told Jeff Lockridge that Malzahn remains a “person of interest” along with Maryland offensive coordinator James Franklin and others.

“There still are discussions (with Malzahn),” Williams said. “They may feel they don’t want to talk anymore. I haven’t been on the phone with anybody for the last hour and a half. I don’t know where they stand. They may not want to be interested enough anymore.”

Oh, boy. Where to start?

* First, Vandy fans, you might want to turn away because those of you who view objective opinion as “anti-Vandy bias” aren’t going to like some of this…

* From Day One, we at MrSEC have said that a) it’s good that Vandy is showing a willingness to spend money — if it really did — and b) it would likely make little difference in the end. Most coaches view Vanderbilt as a dead-end job and no amount of money could lure them into what has become the graveyard of the SEC. We were ripped for that (of course). “Can’t wait to hear what you say when we hire a name coach.” To the guy who wrote that — you may be waiting for a while.

Williams had a tough job selling the VU program. Just check the history books and you’ll see why. But…

* How can Williams actually tell a newspaper that he doesn’t know if Malzahn is in or out? If that’s the case, then allow me to ask, “What the heck have you been doing for the past 72 hours?” It’s called a phone. Put it to your ear and call.

* If VU didn’t believe a deal was in place, why have Commodore officials been in silent mode since Saturday? That’s what happens when folks hunker down to talk cash, buyouts and bonuses. And Williams never denied that the two parties were working on a deal until it was reported that Malzahn had turned Vandy down. Only then was there “no deal in place.”

* Williams had better hope that Malzahn really is still a “person of interest” because he’s now given VU fans reason to get their hopes up. Again. By commenting publicly on this he’s also backed Malzahn into a corner from which the only escape might be a loud shout of: “I don’t want your job!” Dumb.

* In all likelihood, Vandy did believe they had Malzahn interested in their job. As they chased him, other candidates removed their names from the search because no one wants to be the guy who isn’t chosen. And Williams saying “no deal was in place” is probably just a cover because no school wants to be the school that isn’t chosen, either.

* None of this — from a perception standpoint — looks good for the Commodore program. Their search has dragged on longer than most other searches. The head coaches they approached were not interested in their job. The man at the top of their list apparently turned them down despite what most believed to be a jaw-dropping offer. And now the man running their search tells the press that he doesn’t know if his top candidate is interested or not. Trust me — unless Williams lands Malzahn or another surprise hire — there will be a lot of talk about the fact that Vandy didn’t have an athletic director to run this search.

* Last Monday we wrote that with so many names popping up in the press, either Williams was laying down a lot of smokescreens… or he was scrambling in all directions to find anyone who would accept an offer from Vanderbilt. If Williams doesn’t know if Malzahn is interested (or that Greg Roman and Franklin have reportedly pulled their names out of the hat), then it looks more like that latter than the former.

* Here’s hoping VU officials can still work some magic. Commodore fans deserve better than the emotional roller-coaster and “I don’t know if he’s interested or not” confusion they’ve been treated to for the past 24 hours.

Twitter Muddies The Water Again On Malzahn

John — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 16:52:18 +0000

Auburn and Vandy fans, are you riding the Twitter lightning today? Are you hanging breathlessly on every tweet?

Then you’re ca-razy.

Every time some dunderhead stumbles across The Washington Post’s weekend report that claimed Gus Malzahn was all but hired by Vanderbilt, a new tweet pops up. Dozens more then spin off of that one.

“Malzahn hired!” “Malzahn’s coming to Vandy!”

Only… no. Not hired. Not yet. What’s new to Twitter is old to everyone else.

Not to be outdone, a number of people continue to spread word of the AuburnSports.com report that claimed Malzahn will turn down Vandy’s lucrative offer. Tweets pile on top of tweets.

“Malzahn’s staying put!” “Malzahn turns down offer!”

Nope. Not yet.

This Twitter nonsense is beyond ridiculous. In my opinion, Twitter will eventually lead to the downfall of Western Civilization via disinformation and the general dumbing down of an already dumbed-down culture.

Go read a single page from “Hamlet.” Then read Twitter for 30 seconds. Now try to argue that our society isn’t dumber than The Bard’s.

(And as always, you can follow us at twitter.com/mrsec.)