All 14 SEC teams showed out at SEC Media Days this week to explain why they are the team to beat in the conference this season. Alabama and Georgia made their case as the early playoff favorites. Arkansas and Texas A&M also showed they are not to be taken lightly.
Vanderbilt Commodores second-year head coach Clark Lea said he is more than confident that his team is on the right path. Lea opened up his press conference on Tuesday by stating, "We know in time Vanderbilt football will be the best program in the country."
This was a bold statement to make considering his Commodores finished last season with an overall record of 2-10 (0-8 in SEC play). Lea had the tough task of taking over the worst team in college football and make them into a winning program.
Former head coach Derek Mason tried to keep the Commodores on the winning path after James Franklin left to be head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions after the 2013 season. Franklin turned Vanderbilt into a football program that could go to postseason bowl games and create winning seasons during his time as head coach from 2011 to 2013. Vanderbilt went 24-15 in the three seasons under Franklin.
The program has only had three winning seasons (above .500%) since 1982. Under Mason, the Commodores accounted for an overall record of 27-55, including a 10-47 record in SEC play. The program remains unable to get out of last place in recruiting rankings after National Signing Day. The fact that Vanderbilt University is a private school makes it difficult to acquire some of the best talent in high school athletes.
The most shocking part of Vanderbilt's pre-season performance, however, was not what coach Lea said in his opening press conference. The Georgia Bulldogs received 172 of the 181 eligible preseason first-place votes for the SEC East. The Kentucky Wildcats received four first-place votes, the South Carolina Gamecocks received three first-place votes and the Tennessee Volunteers received one first-place vote. The other vote did not go to the Florida Gators or the Missouri Tigers – it went to Vanderbilt.
It was not known Friday afternoon which media outlet voted Vanderbilt as the best team in the preseason over the reigning National Champions in the Georgia Bulldogs.
It is not going to be an easy season for the Commodores. They are currently on a 21-game SEC losing streak. They also have the worst roster in the SEC, according to Athlon Sports. The only position group where Athlon Sports does not rank Vanderbilt last is at the running back group, with only Missouri right behind them. They have one player who was named to an Athlon Sports preseason All-SEC team: linebacker Anfernee Orji was named preseason third-team All-SEC.
Lea has the Commodores believing they can contend for the SEC East. That faith has spread to the fans and the media, unless the vote was a troll vote. Regardless, this weird vote will likely have many talking about Vanderbilt during the 2022 season.