The Alexander City Outlook

Vandy should accept being SEC’s doormat

Usually when an SEC head coach vacates his post, it makes national news. However, I am betting that many of you didn’t even notice that Vanderbilt’s Bobby Johnson abruptly retired last week. Even in the sports-dead summer months, a Vandy coach’s exit has all of the excitement of a C-SPAN marathon.

So what should the Commodores do now? Do they go after a controversial big name like Mike Leach? Terry Bowden? What about former Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer? The pundits that did pay attention to Johnson’s quitting have thrown out all of those names while assuming that now is the time for Vanderbilt to make a splash in the coaching world.

I am going to suggest a different route. Vandy should go quietly into the night and accept its position at the bottom of the SEC totem pole.

Look, the ‘Dores are what they are: The doormat of the league. Their status is not changing no matter who they hire. Their tradition is non-existent, their football facilities are Abu Ghraib-ish and the fan base barely lifts a pinky finger in support. Meanwhile, even as the SEC’s lap dog, the ‘Dores are sharing in all of the revenue. This means that Vandy got the same $17 million check that Alabama, Florida and LSU received after last year.

Why go pay a Mike Leach $2.5 million to not make a bowl game when you can hire NaJuan Givesarip for one-third the money and do just as poorly? Vanderbilt makes a bowl game once every 25 years whether they need to or not, so why not pay less money and get the same results? If Nick Saban was hired in Nashville and he brought a staff comprised of Urban Meyer, Jim Tressel and Joe Paterno, Vandy would still be picked last at the SEC Media Days later this week.

In the spirit of competition, you may think the SEC would want a member institution to hire the best possible candidate. However, I think Vandy’s place in the SEC is completely transparent. It’s a “you scratch my back and I scratch yours” scenario. The league gets their whipping boy and academic beacon while Vanderbilt cashes in on the other’s schools’ obsessions with all things pigskin.

In the meantime, the ‘Dores can use some of the league’s revenue to continue to do well in other sports. Vanderbilt may be a football pushover, but they certainly hold their own in basketball and baseball.

Vanderbilt is known for producing quality graduates who know the value of a dollar. Therefore, it makes sense that the Nashville based university would take advantage of a situation that allows them to get a lot of return on their minimal investment. Vandy should permanently hire a Joe Six-Pack, lose a few close ones, a lot of not-so-close ones and watch the checks with many commas continue to roll in from the SEC office.

Luke Robinson of the Sportz Blitz is a sports columnist for The Outlook.