Vanderbilt will appear on ESPN one more time this month when the Commodores open their promising football season Thursday night against No. 9 South Carolina in Nashville.
The Commodores have appeared on that and several other cable networks in recent days as second-year coach James Franklin continues to successfully market a program that hopes to make history this year by earning consecutive bowl trips. Yet no matter how many Nutty Buddy ice-cream cones Franklin can dish out around campus, nothing would ignite his Commodores more than a win over a top-10 foe.
“Nothing exists after South Carolina,” Franklin said. “Even our schedule posters just say ‘South Carolina.’ No other game exists. This is our Super Bowl. Next week we’ll get ready for the next opponent.”
Shock Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks, and who knows what Franklin will do for the cameras?
The 40-year-old Franklin pledged last year to do whatever it took to sell the Vanderbilt program, and he got off to a good start by posting a 6-6 regular season, earning an invitation to the Liberty Bowl and compiling a top-25 recruiting class this past February. He hasn’t stopped there.