Vandy Week:
As you know, Tennessee will be in Nashville this weekend as the Vols and Dores are set to butt heads Saturday morning in the Music City. The storylines are as we are accustomed. One Bowl eligible team faces one who’s looking for a new coach, although the roles have certainly been reversed. Vanderbilt will play its last two games with hopes of improving its bowl slot. Tennessee will sift through a list of potential candidates to be the next man entrusted to figure out how to fix what is broken.
Vol players insist that they will play with high emotion as they try to send their head coach out with two wins. Of course, it’s the same group of players who said they would win the last three to send their coach out in the right way. Can Tennessee figure out a way to play 60 complete minutes of football against a well-coached and intricately disciplined Commodore club?
Let’s set the stage. The environment will contain orange. However, black and gold will be more a pervasive hue than in year’s past. After all, Vandy fans have an opportunity to come see their beloved Commodores take on the dreaded team to the East knowing that they are already bowling for the first time since 1982. It’s a fan base that will celebrate a senior class who will play on Dudley Field for the last time, having been given credit for helping Vanderbilt get over the hump. Emotions will be running high alright, but on the home team’s sidelines.
Growing up within my family dynamic, I heard about how much this game means in great detail and to great extent. My great-grandfather, Nathan Dougherty, was Chairman of the University’s Athletics Council when General Neyland was hired and came to the Hill. I remember my grandfather, Ed Dougherty, talking about his Dad’s desire to find the Coach that could turn back Vanderbilt and reverse the series course against the Commodores. Their respect for Vanderbilt University was immense. The desire to beat the Commodores annually was an obsession. General Neyland was hired and Tennessee never looked back.
This game is a great Southern tradition that is more important than the combatant’s records. This year may be different, yet it is no different. Both programs have respect for the other. Both programs appreciate the history of this rivalry. There are different carrots on the string, but it’s still Tennessee/Vandy Saturday. And it will be great to see the orange and white tangling with the black and gold. Every time I watch these teams play, I look to the sky with a sense that the Dean and his son are looking down with an Orange shaker in hand reveling in their delight for great Southern college football regardless of record.
A Look Back To Last Week’s Picks:
Last week was one filled with success. Again, the disclaimer, I do not advocate using the information supplied in this column for anything other than food for thought, though last week was better than most for me. I was 4-1 overall and against the spread. For the year, I am 61-20 overall and
45-33 ATS.
This week:
The Citadel @ Florida: Gators by, get this, 55 points! Florida continues to mop up opponent after opponent. Since the loss to Ole Miss, Florida is winning games by an average score of 50-11. They are the best team in America!
The Pick: Florida 65
Citadel 3
Arkansas @ Mississippi St.: Arkansas is favored by 1 ½. The line has jumped from State being favored by a point to the other way. This kind of swing makes me hesitate, but I’ll go with my gut. Mississippi St. has played three SEC home games. These games have been decided by a total of one point; a three-point win against Vandy and two one-point losses to Kentucky and Auburn.
The Pick: Mississippi St. 13
Arkansas 12
Ole Miss @ LSU: Geaux Tigers by 3 ½. LSU has been disappointing. The Rebs have been surprising. The winner goes to 4-3 in conference play and jumps in to 2nd place in the SEC West. What an opportunity for Houston Nutt in year one at Ole Miss.
The Pick: Ole Miss 30
LSU 27
Tennessee at Vanderbilt: Commodores by 3 ½. This is the first year I can remember that Vandy is favored over UT. But it’s a different time. The Dores are Bowl eligible and Tennessee is looking for a coach. Can the black and gold get it done twice in four years?
The Pick: Vanderbilt 20
Tennessee 18
My Current Heisman List:
Things remain the same following a yawner week of college football. The list will undoubtedly change next week with Graham Harrell taking on Sam Bradford head to head.
1. Graham Harrell TX Tech QB
2. Tim Tebow Florida QB
3. Sam Bradford Oklahoma QB
4. Colt McCoy Texas QB
5. Michael Crabtree TX Tech WR
Thanks for reading. Please check out my new show on 104.5 The Zone in Nashville. I’m on weeknights on the radio or at 1045thezone.com.
-Brent Dougherty
Host of Overtime on 104.5 The Zone – Nashville