I've been asked several questions in several threads that I haven't responded to of late, and so I thought I'd take some time to address some of those things here in one place while giving you a short preview of what's coming in the next few days.
- I've been asked a lot of questions about the 'Dore Report piece and I think the best way to answer them is this: Any time a season goes bad, you get a lot of (often unsolicited) insight and opinion as to what's going on and that's been going on throughout the season. When you're going through a miserable season where a lot of the issues and criticisms are easily identifiable then the reactions are predictable and (and this is no shot at the guys at the 'Dore Report) most of that falls under the category of "water is wet and the sky is blue." I always thought the Raih hire was a huge risk and obviously that blew up much faster than anyone anticipated. The fact they replaced their OC during fall camp was an awful sign of where this was headed.
- When seasons go horribly wrong, the story almost always goes further than just what's on the field. While I do think the coaching issues have contributed to that (and Clark Lea gets paid a lot of money to get that part right and I don't absolve him of that), the last two years have given me a front-row seat to the teeth of the machine at Vanderbilt that you can't understand until you've seen it. There is no way that any coach could anticipate what he's walking into, and up against, at Vanderbilt, and I'd bet money he's finding out new layers every week. Here is my point: Some of the decisions and rookie mistakes Clark made would have consequences at any school would have a negative affect, but they only go so far. At Vanderbilt, every bad decision gets carried to a numerical power because there's no margin for error and morale inside the program has been awful for years.
In other words, I don't think the problem is just talent or the environment he walked into, or just coaching, it's both. I think it's fair to criticize some of the decisions and expect the head coach to fix them, but you also have to acknowledge that the mistakes you make at Vanderbilt carry more consequences than they do other places.
- As a writer and podcaster, this is a really challenging time. I did the math on this recently, the football and the men's basketball teams have combined to win 9.9% of their SEC games the last three years and baseball aside (and remember, we lost a year of that to the pandemic) t's just been a brutal stretch to cover Vanderbilt sports I don't have a desire to pile on, and especially not for players who've already been through a lot, and endured a situation I'm sure they never dreamed when they signed an LOI. Again, that's not to say you don't criticize because that's just not doing your job honestly, but I think in these situations there's wisdom in saying enough to make your point and little more.
- Again, none of this occurred in a vacuum. I think context is important and they come against the backdrop is the same patters that have existed at the same school for 60 years. Until some things change, Vanderbilt football borders on a pointless existence if any level of meaningful wining is a goal. Again, I'm not in this to beat a dead horse but there are still things that pop up in conversations that add context to why things are what they are. And the "why" (and to some extent, the "what") is still the story here, and to that, I think I've found a little original material that I'll be sharing in the coming weeks. Nothing that's necessarily a bombshell, nothing that hasn't been discussed before, but adding some "why's" and "what's" that explain Vanderbilt athletics in ways they've not been discussed.
- Finally, I'm boarding a plane for Denver this afternoon; as most of you know I have a nephew who' walked on at Wyoming, earned a scholarship, and is now a starting receiver playing his last year of college football. Family is really important to us and I relish every chance I get to watch Ayden play, especially if it's in person. So Southwest Airlines being willing (say a prayer for me there!) I'll be in Laramie watching Wyoming-Fresno State which, unfortunately, kicks off within 30 minutes of Vandy-South Carolina. I will attempt to watch the game and probably will follow it from my phone, but not enough that I can credibly offer much insight this weekend. So Sean Williams will be filling in for me there, and Bruno will be handling the postgame in some form.
- I'll try to have a 3-2-1 up today and a mailbag at some point tomorrow. The timing of that is going to depend on Internet access on my flight and if things go according to plan, I'll be posting the 3-2-1 sometime tonight from 30-something-thousand feet above the Midwest.
- Thanks again for your support. We can't do anything we do without you.
- I've been asked a lot of questions about the 'Dore Report piece and I think the best way to answer them is this: Any time a season goes bad, you get a lot of (often unsolicited) insight and opinion as to what's going on and that's been going on throughout the season. When you're going through a miserable season where a lot of the issues and criticisms are easily identifiable then the reactions are predictable and (and this is no shot at the guys at the 'Dore Report) most of that falls under the category of "water is wet and the sky is blue." I always thought the Raih hire was a huge risk and obviously that blew up much faster than anyone anticipated. The fact they replaced their OC during fall camp was an awful sign of where this was headed.
- When seasons go horribly wrong, the story almost always goes further than just what's on the field. While I do think the coaching issues have contributed to that (and Clark Lea gets paid a lot of money to get that part right and I don't absolve him of that), the last two years have given me a front-row seat to the teeth of the machine at Vanderbilt that you can't understand until you've seen it. There is no way that any coach could anticipate what he's walking into, and up against, at Vanderbilt, and I'd bet money he's finding out new layers every week. Here is my point: Some of the decisions and rookie mistakes Clark made would have consequences at any school would have a negative affect, but they only go so far. At Vanderbilt, every bad decision gets carried to a numerical power because there's no margin for error and morale inside the program has been awful for years.
In other words, I don't think the problem is just talent or the environment he walked into, or just coaching, it's both. I think it's fair to criticize some of the decisions and expect the head coach to fix them, but you also have to acknowledge that the mistakes you make at Vanderbilt carry more consequences than they do other places.
- As a writer and podcaster, this is a really challenging time. I did the math on this recently, the football and the men's basketball teams have combined to win 9.9% of their SEC games the last three years and baseball aside (and remember, we lost a year of that to the pandemic) t's just been a brutal stretch to cover Vanderbilt sports I don't have a desire to pile on, and especially not for players who've already been through a lot, and endured a situation I'm sure they never dreamed when they signed an LOI. Again, that's not to say you don't criticize because that's just not doing your job honestly, but I think in these situations there's wisdom in saying enough to make your point and little more.
- Again, none of this occurred in a vacuum. I think context is important and they come against the backdrop is the same patters that have existed at the same school for 60 years. Until some things change, Vanderbilt football borders on a pointless existence if any level of meaningful wining is a goal. Again, I'm not in this to beat a dead horse but there are still things that pop up in conversations that add context to why things are what they are. And the "why" (and to some extent, the "what") is still the story here, and to that, I think I've found a little original material that I'll be sharing in the coming weeks. Nothing that's necessarily a bombshell, nothing that hasn't been discussed before, but adding some "why's" and "what's" that explain Vanderbilt athletics in ways they've not been discussed.
- Finally, I'm boarding a plane for Denver this afternoon; as most of you know I have a nephew who' walked on at Wyoming, earned a scholarship, and is now a starting receiver playing his last year of college football. Family is really important to us and I relish every chance I get to watch Ayden play, especially if it's in person. So Southwest Airlines being willing (say a prayer for me there!) I'll be in Laramie watching Wyoming-Fresno State which, unfortunately, kicks off within 30 minutes of Vandy-South Carolina. I will attempt to watch the game and probably will follow it from my phone, but not enough that I can credibly offer much insight this weekend. So Sean Williams will be filling in for me there, and Bruno will be handling the postgame in some form.
- I'll try to have a 3-2-1 up today and a mailbag at some point tomorrow. The timing of that is going to depend on Internet access on my flight and if things go according to plan, I'll be posting the 3-2-1 sometime tonight from 30-something-thousand feet above the Midwest.
- Thanks again for your support. We can't do anything we do without you.
