First off, great crowd but not sure how much credit we get for that. Memphis had a ton of fans and they were vocal all night. It was a fun atmosphere that if we had ever turned it into a game would have been explosive. Kudos to those that went.

Students - best student turnout in a long long long time. It’s a shame we squandered it because I don’t think we’ll get that big of a crowd again this season. Whatever Vanderbilt did to motivate students to come last night, I hope they do it again.

Upperclassmen - as has been said, what an absolute no show. Stute is so one dimensional that when he starts 1-5 from 3, we might as well be playing 4 on 5. Wright was the biggest no show. He’s going to have to embrace a leadership role or Stack is going to have to bench him. We are so deep that I think the freshmen will push the upperclassmen into performing or riding pine.

Transfers - Ezra “Filet” Manjon is fast and has elite on ball defensive skills. He didn’t play well offensively but I’m confident he will. Ansong is basically James Siakam 2.0, electric energy guy and elite offensive rebounder. He’s going to be impossible to keep off the court.

Freshmen - Smith and Dia are dudes. They’re probably big bodied 2 guards first and foremost but those big bodies should allow their games to grow. Hard not to be optimistic about both of them. Paul Lewis is silky smooth, I had no idea he was a player. Dort is just an ox, he will not impact games too much this year due to lack of skill but he will play. Shelby still hurt?

Stackhouse - I’m bummed he wasn’t able to find the right buttons to push to motivate his players to perform and if that continues, we’re in huge trouble. I put the performance more on the players who no showed but Stack will get some blame there too.

Memphis has to be the best team we will play this preseason (total guess and haven’t even looked at the schedule). They are 1 shooter away from being an Elite 8 type team. As it stands, they appear to be a top 25 team. They have an elite point guard, an elite big and length 1-5 plus some depth. They played 9 and all 9 minus their 1 and 2 looked the same (long and athletic).

I took my son and we had a lot of fun despite the loss. I hope to get to go to more games this year. I’m not at the point of buying season tickets yet but if we start winning, I could see myself attending a decent amount of games.

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I'll try to run this Saturday morning.

Willie Fritz and Sonny Dykes!!! Let’s go get ‘em!!

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Vanderbilt's Kevin Ingram joins the show as he and Chris Lee talk about some developments on the offensive line, what we saw in Monday's hoops loss to Memphis and more.

Would expect that to go to -18 1/2 or so by game time.

Free if anyone wants them. Go dores. Thanks!

Did anyone see yesterday‘s media availability with CCL? It was up on the site and now it’s gone.

It was odd because he didn’t really talk about the Kentucky game at all. It sounded like a video from early fall camp.

Just wondered if anyone else saw that and wondered what was going on.

It’s not been the easiest year (or two… or three… ha!) but I have made a lot of great friendships through the site and so many of you have been so kind to me, and those are things I value and appreciate. It has been a tough time for the whole community and I do hope there will be better times soon, I know the fan base certainly deserves for good things to happen.

Pretty weird how things work in college basketball, huh?

We played and lost to Memphis and ex-commit Alex Lomax (10 points and 10 assists) Monday, and now Friday night we play Southern Miss. and ex-commit Austin Crowley tomorrow night. I hope we fair better against him. We at least have played him before, while he was at Ole Miss.

the odds of either party ever voting in term limits seem very low to me. And a Constitutional Amendment would need to flow through those same people at some point so that seems out as well. I had a thought earlier about a possible way to circumvent it but I have no idea if its feasible (lawyers speak up)....but from what little I know elections are handled on the state/local level even if its for a federal office. It looks like 18 states (2 appear impossible to actually implement though) allow for voter initiated constitutional amendments of their state constitution meaning get enough signatures and the proposed state amendment goes on the ballot for the people to decide....so my thought was what if you came up with a proposed amendment to the constitution in _____ state that simply was worded something like "no person can appear on a ballot in the state of _____ after having won that same office X times for terms lasting Y years, nor can they appear on a ballot in the state of _____ after having won that same office X times for terms lasting Z years" (the X, Y, Z would need to be determined to be reasonably close so that the different term limits * winning = similar lengths in office).

Obviously the tricky part would be the language to basically be a term limit without being a term limit, it would simple affect the ability to appear on the ballot. If they were appointed by the governor in cases of death or special circumstances to that office it would obviously work around this and if the person moved states and ran for office it would work around this as well. anyway I dont know much about politics or laws regarding elections so I thought i would bring my water cooler "hack" to you nerdz.

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Brainerd (Tenn.) 2025 defensive back and wide receiver Martels Carter Jr., who picked up an SEC offer from Vanderbilt this past March, is coming off a recent gameday visit at West End, catching the Commodores in action against South Carolina.

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The 6-foot-0, 175-pound ATH out of Chattanooga, Tennessee spoke with VandySportsDotCom about his gameday experience at Vanderbilt and detailed his interest in the Commodores' football program.

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Carter said that he enjoyed being on campus last weekend and was enjoying the gameday atmosphere.

"It was great scenery," Carter said. "The hospitality was good and the fans were also good."

Carter said that it meant a lot to him that Vanderbilt offered him because it was one of his first offers. He said that the Commodores' coaching staff are still consistently contacting him.

"It means a lot," Carter said. "They were one of my first offers and the fact that they still communicate with me means a lot."

The Commodores aren't the only SEC program interested in Carter's talents as he's also collected opportunities from Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.

I guess this guy is a PWO??

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O'Keefe is a Nashville native that plays at IMG Academy now. Vandy offered in June after he had a big EYBL stop in Louisville. Can shoot and score at every level.

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It's wasn't the offensive coordinator debacle before he had coached Game #1.

It's not the hiring of coordinators who have had little to mid-success at prior stops.

It wasn't the humiliating man-handling we received at the hands of FCS juggernaut ETSU.

It's not the questionable (at best) game day management and game plans like snatching defeat from the jaws of victory at South Carolina last year.

It's not the fact that he clearly played the wrong QB when we had better options waiting in the wings.

For me, it's the least talked about issue that probably should be one of the most talked about--WE HAVE HAD NEARLY 40 PLAYERS TRANSFER OUT OVER THE LAST 2 YEARS. That is mind-boggling to me. That's like 20-25% of your roster ever year. Yet the Lea defenders will say he inherited no talent.

Tyler Steen anyone? Starts at Alabama.
Defensive line woes? Sure would be nice to have Rashaan Wilkins, Lorenza Surgers, Marcus Bradley, or Terion Sugick to rotate in so maybe we don't have to play a walk on.
Anyone think maybe, just maybe, Donovan Kaufman would help us in the secondary?
The list goes on and on.

So for those lamenting the fact we don't have a ton of SEC starters (which has been the case for most of my 50 years of being a VU fan), some of the few we have/had have transferred out. Lea HAS to do a better job closing the sieve of good players leaking out and getting good players in here (by his own admission). I am worried about losing more good ones after this season is over. Some of the roster issues are on Mason, but Lea has to shoulder a lot of the blame. I can be fair-minded and say they are both at fault although I am sure those with an agenda and a narrative to push will shift the blame 100% to one or the other.

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Vanderbilt loses a football game it had a shot to win with better play, and the Commodores also had to deal with off-field distractions, too. Chris Lee and Will Perdue digest that, the start of the basketball season and more.

I don't know if Lea is the answer yet or not, I see some good things and some bad things. The truth of the matter is that Mason (and Vanderbilt's administration) basically destroyed this football program, and its unfortunately going to take longer than 24 games to see if Lea is the right man for the job.

In year three, we should start getting some idea about whether or not Lea is who we need running this program. And, in order for that to happen, he needs to keep all of his young, productive players on the roster.

He absolutely cannot have Swann, McGowan, Quattra, Agu, Diakte, etc., leave in the transfer portal. You can't build a program if your good players leave for greener pastures.

In this day and age of the transfer portal and NIL, it's no small feat keeping these kids on West End.

Again, I'm not sold on Lea yet, but keeping these kids at VU would be a good start in swaying my opinion of him to the good, just like losing them will do the opposite.

It's going to be an interesting next few weeks........

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Vanderbilt announces the creation of the Ingram Center for Student-Athlete Success, to be funded with part of the lead gift to the Vandy United campaign made by longtime supporter and Board of Trust member John R. Ingram.

Housed within a central location in the McGugin Center, this initiative represents a restructured approach to how Vanderbilt Athletics will support academic, personal and career development.

“The Ingram Center for Student-Athlete Success symbolizes the continued promise of the Vandy United campaign to give our student-athletes every opportunity to succeed,” said Candice Lee, vice chancellor for athletics and university affairs and athletic director. “Thanks to John Ingram’s generosity, the Center will help today’s champions become tomorrow’s leaders. It’s fulfilling to see this vision come to fruition after lengthy and intensive planning, including significant time and energy personally invested by John.”

This past year, in addition to winning two conference championships, an individual national championship and competing in a world championship, Vanderbilt student-athletes were honored as SEC Community Service Award winners and CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, as well as a Fulbright Scholar and the recipient of the NCAA Ethnic Minority and Women’s Enhancement Graduate Scholarship. “Our student-athletes are incredible and deserve our very best. The Ingram Center is one tangible example of what ‘our very best’ looks like,” stated Lee.

All Vanderbilt student-athletes will benefit from the Center’s individualized planning and mentorship, and receive personalized support tailored to meet their specific needs. Examples include financial literacy, leadership training, domestic and international service-learning opportunities, internships, personal branding and name, image and likeness support, and entrepreneurship development. Under the direction of associate athletic director Alison Wenzel, the center will combine the efforts of current student services and student-athlete development staff in one entity.

“The Ingram Center for Student-Athlete Success is an innovative approach to providing a holistic experience for student-athlete,” said Wenzel. “We will walk alongside them though their journey at Vanderbilt and provide resources so they can explore their passions. Who are they, what drives them, and where will they find success after Vanderbilt -- all of these questions and more will be answered through the student-athlete support services provided by the Ingram Center.”

Additional staff will soon join Vanderbilt’s team, and the network of support will also include collaborations with alumni, campus partners and local community members.

“At its core, Vandy United reflects the university’s commitment to the lifelong growth and development of everyone in our Vanderbilt community,” Chancellor Daniel Diermeier said. “The Ingram Center for Student-Athlete Success fits this vision perfectly by harnessing the collaborative power of faculty, coaches, staff, alumni and the Nashville community to support student-athletes as they strive for excellence on and off the field.”

Honored earlier this year by the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame as its Tennessean of the Year, in part for his work bringing Major League Soccer and Geodis Park to the Nashville community, Ingram has been a longtime advocate for the transformative potential of the student-athlete experience at Vanderbilt. A member of Vanderbilt’s Board of Trust, he echoed the chancellor’s sentiments. “Vanderbilt student-athletes are exceptional young people with bold dreams,” he said. “It is our responsibility to invest in them and ensure that we deliver them to their next destination prepared to reach their potential. I am honored to support this initiative ”

Added Alex Sevilla, vice provost for career advancement and engagement: “We are elated to partner with our colleagues in Vanderbilt Athletics to deliver bold new engagement opportunities for Vanderbilt student-athletes. The Vanderbilt Career Center team is here to fuel career empowerment and discovery for every Vanderbilt student and supporting the unique needs of the student-athlete community is vitally important to our mission.”

Class of 2023, from Bowling Green. Plays in the Nashville Stars program run by Ro Coleman.

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