July 11, 2016
Media Days Central | Quotes | Season Ticket Information | @VandyFootball
Mason | Burks | Cunningham | Webb
Dawson: Webb Takes Leadership Role at SEC Media Days
Vanderbilt’s 2016 visit to SEC Media Days is in the books. A long day that began with a 9 a.m. departure from campus for the Hyatt Regency Birmingham put Vanderbilt’s representatives through a bevy of interviews before finally concluding around 5:30 p.m.
The Commodores were represented at SEC Media Days by Derek Mason, Oren Burks, Zach Cunningham and Ralph Webb. The quartet took part in a number of local radio interviews during the trek to Birmingham, and then hit radio row at the hotel before beginning the scheduled 11-stop media day rotation with the likes of ESPN, CBS and regional and national writers.
On the ride down, the student-athletes answered questions from fans on Twitter via @VandyFootball. After a short nap, the group made a stop at Chick-fil-A for lunch to hold themselves over for the long day of interviews that awaited.
Once at the hotel, the guys changed into their suits. Webb, the veteran media day representative of the group making his second straight appearance, went with the bow tie for the second year in a row to complement his blue suit. Cunningham flaunted a gray suit with a blue shirt and yellow pocket square which matched his tie. Burks wore a navy blue suit with white shirt and red tie. For Burks, it was his second time in Birmingham in the last 48 hours after representing Vanderbilt at the SEC SAAC meetings over the weekend.
The players were well dressed, but it was Mason who stole the show. Working with his tailor, Mason had the inside of his sport coat customized with an image of a Vanderbilt football player. The jacket was the talk of the first day of media days from a fashion standpoint.
Beyond his fashion statement, Mason also made a mark in the main media ballroom, which was carried live on SEC Network. Touching on a number of topics, Mason quoted JFK and said that he “believes the winds of change are coming” to Vanderbilt and that people “come to Vanderbilt to be great, not good.”
Mason’s comments drew many positive comments from regional and national writers. It wasn’t the first time a Vanderbilt representative was praised at SEC Media Days Monday. To open the event, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey addressed reporters and referenced Oren Burks as an example of the tremendous student-athletes in the conference. Burks and Sankey got to spend time together over the weekend at the league’s SAAC meetings in Birmingham. Sankey had told Burks in advance that he was going to use him as an example during his opening address to the media.
“It was a nice honor to hear the commissioner use me as an example,” Burks said.
Overall, it was a successful trip to Birmingham for the Commodores. To conclude the trip, the group made a stop at Full Moon Bar-B-Que before beginning the drive back to Nashville.
