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Commodore Notebook – 8/25 8/25/2005 Notes and Commentary See You in VandyvilleHave you heard about Vandyville? Vandyville is our new and vastly improved football pre-game party on Natchez Trace near the southwest entrance to Vanderbilt Stadium. I admit when I first heard about Vandyville I assumed it was going to be another well-intentioned attempt to add pre-game atmosphere by installing a few kid games and having a live band like we’ve seen before. I was wrong. Vandyville is better funded and will combine many activities into one big event. What’s different? For starters, Vandyville features a giant video screen that may act as the hub of activity. It will be showing college football so we can have fun tailgating and not miss a big game or the ESPN analysis of the day’s action. Another fun addition is a line of tents along Natchez Trace (this area of the busy street will be closed to car traffic). Four of these tents will be awarded to Vanderbilt tailgaters free of charge on a game-by-game basis. We are looking for robust black and gold parties, of course. Some of our best fans will be rallying here September 17 before the Ole Miss game, in addition to Kevin Stallings and our basketball team. To get your future party here, check for the sign-up information on this web site, vucommodores.com/vandyville or call the promotions office at 615-322-1012. Vandyville will also be bustling with upbeat music, plenty of good food, activities for kids (games, face-painting and so forth) and about 75 minutes before kickoff we all follow the Spirit of Gold Marching Band parade down Jess Neely Drive for the team’s “Star Walk” to the stadium. Fans can also expect to see other Commodore teams and coaches during the fall. Give Vandyville a try. We expect it will quickly grow into a tradition Commodore fans will enjoy. The party starts three hours before every home kickoff. Commodore fans hoping for a turn-around to our football fortunes were probably a bit disappointed earlier this month to read a local article in which many of the area sports reporters were pessimistic about our chances. And the surprising thing about this was… Nothing. What do we expect outsiders to say? That they have us pegged for the Sugar Bowl? The good news is that pre-season chatter goes up in smoke as soon as the season begins. The games are won and loss on the field during three hours on Saturday (or, as is the case next week, Thursday), not by barbershop talk during dog day afternoons. Until we actually win six or more games in a season, the outside world is going to sell us short. Expect it. But one of the misnomers with a predictions column is that each media representative is actually an “expert” on the ‘Dores. In fact, some of those polled haven’t watched us practice or play since last November so they are not making their forecasts based on first-hand observation or insider knowledge. Don’t shoot messengers! Another fallacy some of us have is that dire predictions mean the media is against us. Far from the truth. Most of the Nashville media would dearly love to see us in a bowl game. In fact, most people I know in the Southeastern Conference pull for us every week except the one they face us. You will soon be reading more about the very nice renovation of the McGugin Center ticket office. Although a lion’s share of the work has already been completed, visitors to McGugin Center can see remodeling is not yet complete. This project is the result of a large private gift in honor of a former, long-time department member. Details will be forthcoming soon. For the second year in a row, the National Commodore Club has exceeded its annual goal. The annual fund giving total for 2004-05 reached $2.5 million, thanks to good work by our NCC team and especially the loyalty and generosity of the best fans in college athletics. It would be wonderful to report that $2.5 million is all the dough we will ever need but, alas, that isn’t the case. To remain a vibrant member of the Southeastern Conference, where we are still near the bottom in annual giving, we are going to need to boost that total significantly in the years to come. The University and its Board of Trust have been subsidizing our department to the tune of millions of dollars a year; the administration has certainly done its fair share. We need to find new membership and creative ideas to generate revenue and we will. |
