James Franklin might be the most popular man in Nashville… and the least popular man in the state of Tennessee.  Vanderbilt fans love the man who’s taken the school’s football program to back-to-back bowls and locked up a nine-win season.  They also love him because he had the Commodores go toe-to-toe with the rival Vols — losing in overtime — in Knoxville two years ago… and because his team mopped the field with Tennessee 41-18 last year on the West End.

Tennessee’s fanbase hates Franklin for pretty much those exact same reasons.  Well, that and Franklin also has no problem stepping on the occasional toe.  From the Todd Grantham dust-up during his first season to the “Nicky Satan” episode earlier this offseason, Franklin hasn’t been afraid to do what he feels needs doing or to say what he thinks needs saying.  Love him or hate him, you can’t question his fire.  Fire that most believe burns hottest when it comes to the Vandy’s chief rival.

But in a short Q&A with The Tennessean, Vandy’s coach quickly shot down the idea that he had a “disdain for all things orange.”

“That’s not really accurate.  I’m trying to build our pride in the black and gold, and in the Star V, and in Vanderbilt. I have tremendous respect for the University of Tennessee, their history, their traditions, the state as a whole.

I’m trying to fight for the respect of our program. So it’s really not about anybody else’s colors. It’s about me demanding respect for Vanderbilt, the Commodores, the black and gold, the Star V and for our football program. That’s it.

I’m trying to get everyone in our stadium to wear black and gold. I’m trying to get everybody in Nashville to wear black and gold. I’m trying to get all of our alumni and fans all across the entire country to be proud to walk around wearing their black and gold and wearing the Star V and throwing the VU (sign) up to each other.

It’s a sense of brotherhood. It’s a sense of pride. I hear it all the time. I hear people tell me all the time that I see more Vanderbilt gear in stores. I see more Vanderbilt gear walking around in the community.”

The more Franklin has won, the more pride Vanderbilt fans have taken in their program.  Granted, Tennessee was at a low point when the Volunteers traveled to Nashville last season, but the stadium still featured more black and gold and less orange than anyone had seen in decades.

Moving forward, Franklin knows that the Commodore fanbase will have to continue to prove itself if VU is to land in better bowl games:

“… There’s no doubt that bowl games and cities at locations that want to sell tickets to their game, sell the place out, and bring people in that are going to bring revenue into their town, so teams that travel well (are considered).

That’s why I’m constantly talking to people about how we’ve made great strides, but the next step is we have to show everyone through our support and our fan base and our alumni and our students that we love our program and that we support our program.  That’s why we’re going to sell out every single game next year.  I think that’s going to be a good statement to the country of what’s going on here, and also to the bowl people about what’s going on.”

Franklin is only stating the obvious.  And hey, if we wrote it on Tuesday it had to be obvious, right?

The 41-year-old coach has Vanderbilt on the uptick.  From on-field results to recruiting wars to comments that sometime rub opposing fans the wrong way, Franklin is the first Vanderbilt football coach in years to elicit real emotion from the Dores’ rivals.  And that wouldn’t be the case if he weren’t doing something right.

You swat an annoying gnat.  You moan, scream, and complain about a bee that stings.

Franklin has given VU a stinger.

UPDATE – Speaking of stingers… Franklin was taken to task on Nashville radio yesterday for suggesting in a tweet last month that players who don’t sign with Vanderbilt “want 2 settle in life.”

SEC Football

1. Biggest negative recruiting weapon to be employed against Georgia? Probably defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, argues Michael Carvell at AJC.com.  The reason?  He has a track record, valuable NFL experience and because he’s a hot name in coaching circles, questions are being raised about how long he’ll be in Athens.  Coach Mark Richt: “We will always have great assistants here at Georgia. You know, we can’t control what everybody is going to do but neither can any other program sit around and promise they’re not going to have an assistant coach have an opportunity that he might take.”

2. The latest 300-pound behemoth to get an offer from Alabama?  6-foot-7, 310 pound Roderick Johnson from suburban St. Louis, MO.  ”All I have to say is it’s Alabama. It’s Alabama baby. The last three years they have run the SEC.” Johnson is now the fifth 300-pound + lineman that Alabama has offered since Mario Cristobal became the offensive line coach.

3. Five-star defensive back Tony Brown wants to play two sports – football and track.  The Beaumont, Texas star is tied for the fastest 60-meter hurdle this year at 7.76 seconds. He has offers from than 20 schools, including LSU.

4. Joliet, Illinois linebacker Clifton Garrett is a top target of Ole Miss for 2014. Rivals rates him the 53rd best player in the country.  Garrett is expected to visit Oxford later this spring. Here’s what his high school coach had to say: “I know that he likes (Ole Miss). To what extent he’s interested? That I couldn’t tell you.”

5. The Ole Miss 2014 class is up to six players with the commitment of Greenwood, Mississippi wide receiver Sammie Epps.

6. One of the  nation’s top wide receiver prospects has an offer from Auburn.  Homestead, Florida wide receiver Ermon Lane said recently he prefers a pro-style offense ”because that’s what most of the NFL teams run.”  Lane’s cousin is a former Miami linebacker.  In addition to Miami, Florida, Florida State, Alabama, Georgia, and LSU are all thought to have a shot.

7. Texas A&M’s 2014 class is up to 10 commitments, seven on the defensive side.  Defensive back commitment Cedric Collins: “The excitement around A&M right now is well deserved for the year we had. The win over Alabama was just the beginning. The goal is not just to win the SEC, but a (national) championship, and Johnny winning the Heisman was just a great way to start with our first year in the SEC.”

8. Charleston, Arkansas quarterback Ty Storey threw for almost 4,400 yards his sophomore year.  He visited Arkansas over the weekend. Storey likes Bret Bielema’s offense: “I like it because it’s more like a pro-style offense so it gets you ready for the next level and hopefully I can be there one day.” Gus Malzahn offered Storey a scholarship when he was at Arkansas State.

SEC Basketball

9. Little Rock, Arkansas guard Anton Beard decommitted from Missouri in February.  He now has a new top four and three of them are in the SEC.  Beard tweeted this morning: “Narrow my list to 4- Umass, Arkansas , LSU , Tennessee …”

Excellence will be rewarded at Georgia.  That’s been the message since Greg McGarity arrived from Gainesville as the Dawgs’ athletic director.  And after back-to-back double-digit-win seasons and a pair of SEC East titles, the recent excellence of UGA’s football staff is indeed being rewarded.

Last month, Mark Richt was given a one-year extension and a bump in salary that took him from $2.8 to $3.2 million.  Yesterday it was revealed that all of Richt’s assistants have been handed pay raises, too.

McGarity said:

“(The raises) are representative of the job this staff has done really over the last two years.  They kept the ship together.  Even though 2010 wasn’t what we wanted to do, Mark and his staff turned it around and did it the right way.  This is just representative of a job that’s well done and bodes well for the future.”

Offensive coordinator Mike Bobo — the only man in Athens who takes more heat from fans than Richt — was given the biggest boost in salary from $335,000 per year all the way to $575,000.  That makes him the fourth-highest paid offensive coordinator in the SEC behind Brent Pease (Florida), Cam Cameron (LSU), and Doug Nussmeier (Alabama)… three men with a combined two years of experience at their current schools.

Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham was given a $25,000 raise to $850,000 which puts him behind only Kirby Smart (Alabama) and John Chavis (LSU) in the SEC.

Offensive line coach Will Friend received a $90,000 raise while receivers coach Tony Ball was given a $50,000 bump.  The other assistants all received $25,000 pay hikes like Grantham.

Georgia opens the season with a road game at Clemson and then home dates with South Carolina, North Texas and LSU.  If the Bulldogs get off to a slow start you can expect to hear many moans and groans about the salary increases the school’s coaches received this offseason.

Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham is in New Orleans today to interview with the Saints, according to sources who spoke with the Times-Picayune. On Wednesday, Grantham wouldn’t comment specifically on the Saints rumors or the apparent interest in him from the Philadelphia Eagles for their defensive coordinator job.

“I like my job here. At the same time, as you move forward, if opportunities came up, I don’t think it’s fair to comment on every particular one, because then all I’d be doing is talking about the rumors and innuendos and those types of things. And then I wouldn’t be able to do my job.

“At the end of the day when you have time to reflect and sit down, the first thing you always do is you say, ‘What’s the best thing for your family.’ Because you have a family to take care of. And as you answer those questions, it kind of filters out to the way you want it.”

With signing day Wednesday, what was his message to recruits?

“I told guys that I love Georgia, and I think this is a great place. My family loves it, and I love it, and I fully expect to be here. But as coaches, if things come up, you’re always gonna say, ‘Hey, what’s best for your family,’ and see what happens. Nothing’s come up for me from the standpoint of I feel like I have to contractually say something.”

Grantham has to notify Georgia A.D. Greg McGarity about serious discussions for another job.  But according to Grantham, as of Wednesday afternoon, that had not been necessary.

Update: McGarity confirms interest from Saints, releases statement.

“In accordance with his contractual obligation, Todd Grantham notified me Wednesday night of the New Orleans Saints’ interest in interviewing him for the defensive coordinator position.”

Three-star defensive end Davin Bellamy from Chamblee, Georgia has decided to stay at home and play football at Georgia.

He chose the Bulldogs over Tennessee, Florida State and Oregon.

Bellamy made news last week after his visit to Oregon when he tweeted a photo of himself, some fellow recruits, four girls and a bong.  Bellamy said he had nothing to do with the bong.

His mother made news today by telling The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Georgia officials have assured her that defensive coordinator Todd Grantham is going nowhere, despite rumors tying him to the D-coordinator job with the NFL’s New Orleans Saints.

Former Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley has been officially named receivers coach for the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys
Dooley’s new job will not impact his $5 million buyout from Tennessee
Ex-Mississippi State WR Chad Bumphis has angered some Ole Miss fans via Twitter by telling prospects “DON’T go with the money!”
Ole Miss stands to finish with a top 10 recruiting class leading to rumors of rule-breaking
Reports out of New Orleans say Georgia defensive defensive corodinator Todd Grantham will interview for the same position with the Saints
In SEC hoops action Tuesday night, Arkansas beat Florida 80-69 and Kentucky beat South Carolina 77-55
Tennessee’s Kenny Hall will not be suspended after getting arrested for driving on a suspended driver’s license
Follow SEC football, basketball, and recruiting at twitter.com/mrsec
Follow all 14 SEC schools tomorrow on National Signing Day at MrSEC.com

Kentucky’s new football staff will make $720,000 more than last year’s staff
Ex-Florida QB Jacoby Brissett has reportedly transferred to North Carolina State
Florida OL Jessamen Dunker released from jail after allegedly stealing a scooter
Auburn FB Blake Burgess had his 2010 SEC and BCS championship rings stolen this week
Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham has been tied to the defensive coordinator opening with the NFL’s Eagles
Florida defensive coordinator Dan Quinn has left to take the DC job with the Seattle Seahawks…
Linebackers coach D.J. Durkin promoted at Florida to the defensive coordinator position
SEC Thursday Night Basketball…Florida 68, Texas A&M 47
Follow the SEC all day, every day at MrSEC.com and twitter.com/mrsec

At Georgia, you can run down a list of NFL prospects and “watch list” athletes on Todd Grantham’s defense — Jarvis Jones, Bacarri Rambo, John Jenkins, etc.  But the Bulldog defense hasn’t lived up to its full potential yet, even with everyone back from suspension.

At Florida, the situation is a bit different.  The Gator D has been better than expected without all the hype and star power.  Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn likes it that way, too.

Read the rest of this entry »

After Georgia’s win in Nashville last season, Vanderbilt coach James Franklin and Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham had a few postgame words for one another on the field.  It wasn’t the first time Grantham had shown a little too much emotion.  And it wouldn’t be be the last time in 2011 that Franklin would stir up some controversy with an opposing coach or fanbase.

Grantham and Franklin are fiery characters.  UGA head coach Mark Richt on the other hand is as cool as the proverbial cucumber.  Which is why he says his team will be “ready” for this weekend’s rematch with Vandy in Athens, but he claims that he won’t try to use the postgame kerfuffle as a motivator for this squad:

“I think the big thing is to make sure we just concentrate on playing football and not on the extra-curricular. Because those things turn into penalties. … I don’t want anything to take focus  off of executing [or] take  focus off of doing the right things fundamentally and knowing your job and taking care of your responsibility. So that’s what we’re going to focus on.”

I don’t think Richt will have to say Word One to his players regarding the end of last year’s game.  They’ll remember it.  So will Vanderbilt’s players.  Saturday could see a real slobberknocker between the hedges.

Last weekend, Buffalo quarterback Alex Zordich completed 14 of 24 passes for 148 yards and a touchdown against Georgia.  But when the Dawgs’ pass rush got to him, he also managed to shake free for an additional 83 yards on 14 carries and one more score.

UGA still won the game 45-23.

This week, Georgia’s defense will face a stiffer test from an even better dual-threat quarterback in Missouri’s James Franklin.  Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham says he knows what last week’s issues were and how to correct them:

“Any time you have split-safety coverage and you’re rushing four guys, there are six gaps for four guys, so it’s critical that you collapse those pockets.  When you collapse the pocket outside in, you constrict that area.  But if you create a seam in there, a guy can get out and make some yards, because you’ve got vertical separation between the rush going one way and the receivers moving down the field.

We’ve addressed it with the players as far as what they need to do, and we will continue to work to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Allowing Franklin to scamper free when rushers leave an open seam could mean the difference in tomorrow’s contest.  For the sake of Grantham and Georgia, he’d better hope his players were paying attention in the film room this week.