Good morning.
So, after yesterday’s gauntlet thrown in the form of, well, this, Vanderbilt interim Athletic Director Candice Storey Lee (who’s not behaving like a caretaker Athletic Director — take that for what you will) went on George Plaster’s show yesterday afternoon, where she reiterated that the Strategic Plan is coming this week.
Check out Hour 1 of @ThePlasterShow, presented by @BartDurhamLaw, as @georgeplastertn, Watson and @terrymc13 as they talk with Interim @VandyAD Candice Storey-Lee as they talk @vucommodores on https://t.co/MskrrN84t6. https://t.co/FQsdF9a1Ou
— WNSR - Nashville Sports Radio (@NashSportsRadio) February 24, 2020
Now, you can listen to the segment somewhere in the above link, but what I think stands out most in here is that Candice Storey Lee emphasized the student-athlete experience. Given the tone of some of the booster comments in Chris Lee’s article yesterday, I’m reading between the lines and figuring out what’s probably the real source of disagreement.
Vanderbilt wants to put the emphasis of the strategic plan on the facilities that student-athletes use. There was a lot of talk in the article yesterday about the football stadium. (And, for some reason, Memorial Gym. There are a lot of Vanderbilt fans who think the football stadium should be replaced and approximately zero who think Memorial should ever be replaced. To reiterate: the benches remain under the baselines or we riot.)
Anyway. Of course, there’s no guarantee that the strategic plan will actually be funded, which is... well, that’s where the current battle comes in. Because if Vanderbilt’s boosters are at war with Vanderbilt, that’s not good for anyone involved. This story isn’t going anywhere, I’m afraid.
Meanwhile, if you subscribe to The Athletic, here’s an article on Candice Storey Lee.
And speaking of Plaster, he went on Chris Lee’s podcast yesterday, too. I guess that makes him the referee in all of this? Also podcasting: Max Herz on the weekend sweep of UIC.
All right! On we go to actual sports news. Baseball hosts Evansville today at 4:30 PM CT on the SEC Network+, the sixth of an eleven-game homestand that’s off to a 5-0 start. We can only assume Jack Leiter is getting the start again today, and yesterday he was named the SEC Co-Freshman of the Week, and the only travesty here is the “Co-” in there.
Also, freshman Mikela McCauley is the AAC Freshman of the Week. (Your reminder that lacrosse competes in the AAC because that’s apparently too much of a Yankee sport for the SEC to sponsor.) Lacrosse hosts Louisville today at 3:00 PM CT.
Meanwhile, did you know that spring football practice starts today? It doesn’t seem to be getting a ton of fanfare, which isn’t terribly surprising given the circumstances. But it’s open to the public this year. Why practices were not open last year, we’ll never know, but there’s a sort of interesting quarterback competition going on this time around, with two of the four competitors (JUCO transfer Jeremy Moussa and true freshman Ken Seals) in for spring.
Bad Gambling Advice
Ole Miss at Auburn (6:00 PM CT, SEC Network): Auburn -8.5, Over 138.5
Kentucky at Texas A&M (6:00 PM CT, ESPN): Texas A&M +6.5, Under 128.5
Alabama at Mississippi State (8:00 PM CT, SEC Network): Alabama +3.5, Over 157.5
Scoreboard
SEC Baseball: Texas A&M-CC 5, Missouri 2.
NBA: 76ers 129, Hawks 112 ... Bucks 137, Wizards 134 ... Magic 115, Nets 113 ... Cavaliers 125, Heat 119 ... Rockets 123, Knicks 112 ... Mavericks 139, Timberwolves 123 ... Suns 131, Jazz 111 ... Clippers 124, Grizzlies 97.