"Vanderbilt football will be the best program in the country."
""Things were bleak," Simmons said. "And Clark was pissed.""
""My greatest fears were being realized," Lea said. "We were going to be a developmental program for our conference.""
"If Bama and Georgia could spend big on their third-stringers, couldn't Vandy pay those same guys to be starters?"
In July 2022 Clark Lea proclaimed Vanderbilt football would be the best program in the country. Vanderbilt had not had a winning season in nine years and had not finished a season in the AP top 20 since 1948. Lea planned to recruit underdeveloped players nationwide, develop them over three to four years, and build a unique culture. By December 2023 that plan had collapsed as top players entered the transfer portal and SEC opponents' depth proved superior. Lea and his staff confronted the risk of becoming a developmental program and considered paying experienced players to start.
Read at ESPN.com
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