Dec. 19, 2007
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2007’s Top 10 Events
I always enjoy putting together my own Top 10 list for Vanderbilt’s best athletic events or moments over a given calendar year. It’s fun to revive good memories and probably foolhardy trying to put them into order.
One thing I’ve noticed is that it is getting more difficult to make our Top 10 list. Achievements that a few years ago would have ranked high are now down the ladder. My list attempts to consider high achievement with degree of difficulty, public interest and significance. I doubt anyone will agree with my order – I’m not even sure I’ll agree with my own rankings tomorrow. But here goes for today!
You can choose which event you think should top the list by voting in the poll at the bottom of this column. Also, click on each title to read more about that particular event.
1) Men’s basketball at the Big Dance
I put the Commodores’ great stretch run at the top of my 2007 list. For a team that began the year losing at home to Furman and finishing before a national audience in the NCAA Sweet 16, I thought it was an example of maxing out the possibilities. Along the way were two wins over Kentucky and a giant victory over national champion Florida. Kevin Stallings became SEC Coach of the Year in the process.
2) Baseball’s magical regular season
We’ve become a baseball power. The Commodores were rated No. 1 nationally for 15 weeks, ran away with the SEC regular season championship and scored a rare sweep by winning the SEC Tournament, too. Tim Corbin was the SEC Coach of the Year and the `Dores were the focal point of NCAA baseball. Had we not been upset in the Regional final, this would have been my No. 1 choice.
3) Bowling wins VU’s first NCAA title
When a team wins the first NCAA championship in school history and it is “only” the No. 3 event you know many good things were happening. Some may disagree putting bowling’s accomplishment so high on the list but winning a national title in anything is difficult. The team went to the White House in June; freshman Josie Earnest was the NCAA “MVP” and John Williamson was voted National Coach of the Year.
4) Price sweeps awards
The left-handed pitching whiz was the No. 1 pick in the Major League draft, he was just our second SEC Athlete of the Year and first since Will Perdue in 1988. He won every major collegiate baseball award, making him the most decorated baseball player in SEC history and best to ever wear our Black and Gold uniform.
5) Football wins in Columbia
Vanderbilt shocked Steve Spurrier’s No. 6 rated Gamecocks before a capacity crowd. It was the Commodores’ fourth major SEC road win in the past three years.
6) Attendance booms in all venues
We sold out of men’s basketball season tickets for 2007-08 for the first time since 1992-93; we sold our most football season tickets in a decade and women’s basketball ticket sales are up. Baseball currently has a wait list of 800 names for season tickets.
7) Women’s basketball wins SEC Tournament
Twenty win seasons and NCAA Tournament berths have become the standard for Coach Melanie Balcomb’s teams. These `Dores also seemed to maximize their potential with 28 victories before being upset in the second round of the Big Dance. Like baseball, had it fared better in the tournament I’d have slid this team’s season higher on my list.
8) Byars SEC Player of Year
Derrick Byars was not named on most pre-season Southeastern Conference honor teams but his outstanding performance not only led us deep into the NCAA Tournament but earned the Memphis product SEC “Player of the Year” honors in the process.
9) Women’s golf is Top 10
The Commodore women’s golfers had their second best NCAA finish ever with a sixth place showing at the national championship. Long-hitting sophomore Jacqui Concolino placed ninth individually.
10) Women’s tennis is Sweet 16 again
Geoff Macdonald has built this program into a perennial national powerhouse. This year’s edition started the year slowly, plagued by injuries and illness, but characteristically finished strong. It won at Tennessee during the regular season and shut out the Vols in the NCAA second round. The Sweet 16 berth was the program’s ninth straight.