Derek Mason: The Impact of Winning One

One.  Three Dog Night liked to call it the loneliest number.

One.  Highlander taught us there could be only one.

One.  The least amount of something you can have and still have something.

Why is that number so important?  It has, at least for Derek Mason and the Vanderbilt Commodores, assured that this marriage of former defensive coordinator and historic SEC cellar dweller will continue for at least one more

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season.

After a 2014 campaign that saw Vanderbilt go 3-9 (0-8) SEC, many felt like 2015 would be more of the same.  When the Commodores opened the 2015 season with a (albeit close) loss to Western Kentucky, the naysayers came out in full.

Vandy continued to trudge through 2015 for the next few weeks.  It appeared that their season highlight would be having played respectable games against SEC powerhouses Georgia and Ole Miss.  There did not seem to be any hope of the Commodores winning an SEC game, adding to an already embarrassing run of losses in the conference.

Then a light began to shine on the Vanerbilt program.  Steve Spurrier resigned mere days before his Gamecocks would take on Vandy.   Surely this would be the opportunity Mason needed to provide an SEC win to a starved fan base.

Yeah.  About that.  Vandy went into South Carolina and still lost.

All these troubles are not uncharacteristic of Vanderbilt.  The problems were mangified, though, after James Franklin had come into the program and put together back-to-back 9 win seasons.  While he may have arguably left the cupboard bare of talent, he had also taken the excuse of being at Vandy with him.   He may not have raised expectations to an SEC Championship level, but fans were starting to think of Vanderbilt as a serious football school.  Mason had to come up with something.

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Thankfully, for Mason, Missouri came in to save the day.  With their starting quarterback suspended and his backup under performing, Vanderbilt was able to knock off an SEC opponent in 2015.  While a single SEC win may not seem like much to you, it means a job to Derek Mason.  Having been able to match his season win total from a year ago, though he is unlikely to add to it, and bring down an SEC opponent in the process all but ensures that Mason will be back for a third year.   The positive impact also spreads to recruiting, as players know that Mason will be back for at least one more season.  After all, this is still Vanderbilt.  Franklin may have removed some excuses, but Vandy will still give their coaches ample time to prove they can’t win there.

So cheers, Derek Mason.  Here’s to seeing your bow ties back at SEC Media days in 2016.