First, Twitter was abuzz over the opening of Oregon's new basketball facility, Matthew Knight Arena, last night. The majority of the talk centered around the Ducks' unique court.
My thoughts? Different is good, and Oregon is the best when it comes to that category.
Also, give the New York Post credit for their front page cover previewing the Jets' playoff game with arch-rival New England. Too bad Darth Vader will reign supreme.
Check out the first edition of The Williams Report.
Thanks to your fan questions, Vice Chancellor David Williams hits on a bunch of hot topics like stadium renovations, football scheduling, parking and more.
"I'm extremely pleased to make this announcement today," Franklin said. "All of these coaches want to be part of something really special. When I called, many of them said yes without even talking about money and titles. They simply want to help turn this program into a success."
COMMODORES AROUND THE WEB
Football: Commodores' football staff has 'chemistry' (Tennessean)
Men's Basketball: Commodores are set at center (Tennessean)
Men's Basketball: VU has little concern for Vols' current struggles (City Paper)
Men's Basketball: Jenkins 'a tough cover' from 3-point arc (Knoxville News-Sentinel)
"You better make (Jenkins) put it on the floor. Because if you're late you're gonna get nailed," UT coach Bruce Pearl said. "But Vanderbilt's offense does not allow you to take one guy and just put him on (Jenkins). Their offense is too good.''
"I'm probably not the first quarterback that hasn't been to the playoffs in the first five years," Cutler said, "and I probably won't be the last. We're in a good situation now. We've just got to take advantage of it."
"I think we were ready tonight," Head Coach Melanie Balcomb said. "We had paid the price before on the road and didn't want that to happen again, and I felt like this was the right timing for us to get our first SEC win on the road."
VIDEO OF THE DAY
Coach Franklin introduces his offensive staff - Watch Video
Taylor's highlight-reel moment didn't go unnoticed. It was selected as the No. 1 Play of the Day on ESPN's SportsCenter.
"Whenever you have an electrifying play like that, it kind of gets everybody going," Taylor said. "It's what the crowd wants. It's kind of a crowd pleaser and it definitely pumps your own teammates up, so it's a good thing."
Vanderbilt photographer Joe Howell captured the jam in the image below. You can also watch the play in our game highlights on YouTube at the 1:08 mark.
Men's Basketball: Dores bounce back with 73-66 win (VUcommodores.com)
"We're hungry, we're still mad about that (South Carolina) game," center Festus Ezeli said. "We still have a bad taste about that one because we didn't play to our abilities."
"I think we will be more focused this time (on the road)," guard Jasmine Lister said. "I felt like we were playing like we didn't want to lose instead of winning on the road. Now, we are going to focus on winning.
"The Commodores will have one of the nation's better weekend rotations this season with Sonny Gray and others leading the way. Gray has had a fruitful campaign at Vandy and is expected to parlay a solid junior season into an even better first-round draft status."
"I probably know him better than y'all do," RB Matt Forte said. "I will tell you that he is probably the opposite of what you guys portray him to be. Jay is a good guy, and he comes to work every day to work hard."
NFL: Cutler says loser tag didn't irk him (Chicago Tribune)
"The only thing I will honestly say about (my time at Vanderbilt) and this is hard to believe, but its true," Fogler said. "I'm not sure why I left Vanderbilt. I really don't know. Now that sounds like bull, but why would I give you bull 17 years after the fact? I honestly do not know exactly what happened. Obviously, something went awry. I just decided to go to South Carolina."
WEDNESDAY'S SEC RESULTS Vanderbilt 73, Georgia 66 NASHVILLE (AP) - John Jenkins and Festus Ezeli scored 18 points apiece and Vanderbilt beat No. 24 Georgia 73-66 on Wednesday night to snap the Bulldogs' nine-game winning streak and ruin their first game back in the Top 25 since the end of the 2003 season. Read More
Alabama 57, South Carolina 47 TUSCALOOSA (AP) -- JaMychal Green scored 20 points, grabbed nine rebounds and blocked three shots to lead Alabama to a 57-47 victory over South Carolina on Wednesday night. Read More
LSU 56, Arkansas 53 BATON ROUGE (AP) -- LSU made just enough foul shots in the final minute
for a 56-53 victory against Arkansas in a Southeastern Conference game
Wednesday night. Read More
THURSDAY'S SEC SCHEDULE Mississippi State (8-7, 0-1) at Ole Miss (12-4, 0-1), 8 p.m. CT, ESPN2
SEC EAST STANDINGS Florida 2-0
Vanderbilt 1-1 Kentucky 1-1
Georgia 1-1
South Carolina 1-1
Tennessee 0-2
*Vanderbilt football head coach James Franklin is expected to officially announce his offensive coaching staff Thursday afternoon. The press conference is scheduled to start at 2:45 p.m. CT on campus. Stay with VUcommodores.com for complete coverage of the event.
*Also scheduled for Thursday-- Franklin will make his first appearance on Nashville's top-ranked afternoon sports talk show. Franklin will spend the 4 o'clock hour with 104.5 Sports Zone co-hosts George Plaster and Willy Daunic. You can listen to the interview live online at 1045thezone.com.
*Finally, mark your calendar. Franklin will be introduced to Commodore fans during the men's basketball game against Ole Miss next Wednesday, January 19.
Football: Franklin takes scenic route to top coaching job (Bucks County Courier)
"I've recruited the West," Franklin said. "I've been to BCS bowl games, I've coached in the South, I've coached in the NFL, I have a master's degree, so there's nothing that could be on my resume that somebody could say, 'Oh we're an academic school, we need someone with a master's degree.' Well, I have that. I took opportunities and ran with them."
COMMODORES AROUND THE WEB
Men's Basketball: Dores prepare to face Georgia (The Tennessean)
"It's not panic time at all. If we do that, we're going to be in bad shape," John Jenkins said.
Men's Basketball: Vandy players size up Georgia (The Tennessean)
"It's going to be a good game for us," Festus Ezeli said. "From a toughÂness aspect, they rebound very well and their big men are pretty good. So it's going to be a good inside-outside matchup for us."
Men's Basketball: VU's athleticism faces stern test (The City Paper)
"(Georgia's) pretty athletic," Lance Goulbourne said. "Travis Leslie is obviously a highlight reel. People know who he is. Trey Thompkins is a real good player. He was the preseason SEC player of the year. We are just looking forward to a challenge, getting back on the winning track and doing our best and coming out fighting."
"Coach (Franklin) truly knows the position, and really taught me how to be a college quarterback and what it meant to have that role," Maryland QB Danny O'Brien said. "Everything from watching film the proper way and leading our team to how I should carry myself, on and off the field."
Check out the first edition of The Williams Report.
*Vanderbilt football head coach James Franklin is expected to officially announce his offensive coaching staff Thursday afternoon. The press conference is scheduled to start at 2:45 p.m. CT on campus. Stay with VUcommodores.com for complete coverage of the event.
