Dores-Vols Preview: "Oh, the Humanity"

Is Bobby Johnson on the verge of being right back where he started? This is Johnson's eighth season as head coach at Vanderbilt, and a matter of months ago it seemed as if he had all the pieces in place to turn the proverbial corner with Vanderbilt's football program. On New Year's Eve, the Dores won their first bowl game since 1955 and capped off the program's first winning season since 1982, with a freshman QB at the helm for the finale no less. We've all heard it before -- needless to say, things were looking up for Commodore football.

My what a difference three months of misery can make. Now there are plenty of excuses to be made and no shortage of explanatory storylines: losing highly touted transfer WR Terrance Jeffers-Harris to academic ineligibility; losing key players to injury; playing 12 straight weeks without a break; trying to implement a new style of offense with personnel who were not recruited to play that style of offense...I'm sure there is more I'm leaving out. No one would accuse CBJ of just completely misplaying a perfect hand of cards.

But one storyline that should have everyone's attention is the fact that we are on the precipice of going 0-fer in SEC games for the first time since CBJ's first season at the helm (2002). We've won at least one SEC game every season since 2003, the year we beat Kentucky at home, tore down both goalposts, and paraded them down West End Ave. Ah, memories. In 2004 we were awful but beat Mississippi State 31-13 and only lost to UK by 1 and UT by 5. In 2005 we went 5-6 with Cutler under center, posting a 3-5 SEC record. That year we beat UT in Knoxville 28-24 and "lost" due to a manifestly corrupt celebration penalty in double-OT to Florida. Beating UF or MTSU that season would've put us in a bowl. In 2006 it looked like we took a half-step backward, ending up 4-8 overall, but we spoiled Georgia's homecoming and oh how sweet it was. In 2007 we got back on track with a 5-7 finish, barely losing 20-17 to Georgia, 27-20 to Kentucky, and 25-24 to UT (again, any of which would have sent us to a bowl). I need not repeat what happened last year, but it included a 4-4 SEC record and when viewed in light of the previous seasons' progress, it appeared to be the natural culmination of a Johnson Era marked by continuous improvement and genuine competitiveness.

So where the hell are we now? 0-7 in the SEC, 2-9 overall, and riding a seven-game losing streak (including one to Army) since beating Rice on September 26. The CBJ success train appears to have been derailed, and this may sound weird, but part of me can't decide what's the better outcome tomorrow in terms of getting us back on track.

On the one hand, winning would keep the streak of SEC-win seasons alive and provide some semblance of satisfaction in potentially stifling rival UT's bowl chances. On the other hand, I would hate for Vandy fans and boosters to see it as a moral victory and a sign that all is well in Commie Country. The fact is, changes need to be made. We're getting good recruits and have played fairly consistently good defense the past several years (although we've GOT to get better against the run), but no one can deny that we've been absolutely abysmal on offense. CBJ is loyal to a fault to this coaching staff and I'm afraid that a win over UT might close an otherwise-open door for him to give the axe to Ted Cain, who clearly has no idea how to prepare an offense. This atrocity of an offense is not inevitable: look at Stanford, Northwestern, Wake Forest, and other schools with similar recruiting environments who are able to move the football. The continuation of the present state of affairs is not a viable option in my mind, and I believe that message needs to be conveyed to CBJ, with the utmost respect, win or lose against UT.

So obviously I want us to win tomorrow. With Myron Lewis and Pat Benoist out of the lineup, Fowler's planned blitz packages will need to be REALLY good for that to happen, because it's clear that even the bright spots of Warren Norman and Zac Stacy will not be enough to carry this woeful offense to victory. Nonetheless, UT is mediocre and criminal and Crompton is just a disastrous head case -- so I'll go ahead and predict a streak-saving win for us. I just hope a victory doesn't lessen the pressure to make some changes in the offseason. Is VSL Nation with me on this?

This has been a long and ranting post, so thank you to any of you that slogged through it with me. The question I will leave you with is this: At what point do we need to start worrying about CBJ, one of the most respected coaches in all of college football, throwing up his hands and heading for greener pastures (read: Clemson, UVA)? Some have opined that that should've happened already. Others have noted that if CBJ stayed on for 2010 he'd be the first head coach in SEC history to return for a 9th season after a losing record through 8 seasons. In any case, one can't help but wonder how long anything can go untouched before it starts to spoil. In the words of Newman the Postman, "Oh, the humanity."