Coaching Carousel Swinging By Nashville?

   Bobby Johnson has a substantial head start as SEC Coach of the Year. He is a South Carolina native and a Clemson alum who once coached there. It's only natural that his name would bubble up in speculation about the Tigers replacing Tommy Bowden.

   Vanderbilt is the po' boy of big-time southern football, with resources limited by the Ivy League-ish school and the nature of eclectic Nashville. Johnson might be the sort of coach who welcomes the low-pressure atmosphere, where a bid to any bowl is cause for celebration. 

  Still, if Clemson knocks, wouldn't he have to open the door for a listen?

   At Auburn, Tommy Tuberville is battening down the hatches to keep incoming recruits from backing out. If possible, he should name an offensive coordinator (beyond an interim tag) to signal the high schoolers on whether he intends to stick with the spread offense. Words to that effect don't mean much; only action will.

   Should Auburn be concerned about holding onto its recruiting class?

   And aren't you looking forward to the next gathering of the Bowden boys? Former Auburn coach Terry wrote that brother Tommy deserved to be fired at Clemson. Hey, Bobby, you better sit them at the opposite ends of the table. 

   

What We Learned, No. 1: Vandy Is A Dandy

   A few years back, these eyes watched in Athens as undermanned Vanderbilt ambushed Georgia with a clever game plan from coach Bobby Johnson. Dude can coach, as evidenced by the Commodores' 5-0 record and, more significantly, 3-0 standing in the SEC.

   No, Vandy isn't the nation's 13th best team, as the AP poll would have you believe. The Commodores, after all, have trailed in every game.

  But they deserve to be rated. Besides, who can blame the voter who bumps them up a notch or two on his ballot because they are the feel-good story of the season? This is the school that folded its athletics department into the university administration (in part so it couldn't get away with stuff, as football heavyweights are wont to do.)

   Where is Vandy on your ballot?

   Johnson has even figured out how to juggle two quarterbacks, Chris Nickson and Auburn-beater Mackenzi Adams.

   Go ahead and ship that Coach of the Year Trophy to Nashville. 

   Who, at this stage of the season, can beat him out?