Middle Tennessee Vol Fans: 5 Reasons You Should Make the Switch

Middle Tennessee Vol fans, I come in peace. This is not a parody, it’s serious business. I know most of you may scoff at the below, however, some of you might find this information very enlightening. You’ve been through hell and back the last 10 or so years. At some point you have to escape from that hell. We, the Vandy Nation, feel your pain and we invite you to put away the Orange and White and put on the Black and Gold. Here are five reasons you should make the switch to Vanderbilt.

By Don Yates

1. It’s a long drive to Knoxville. Gas is getting more and more expensive. Plus driving to K-town is pretty time consuming depending on where you live in Middle Tennessee. Vandy is closer. The longer you drive the more likely you’ll be involved in an accident. Being a Vandy fan will save you money on gas and car wear and tear along with keeping you and your family safer.

2. Gameday atmosphere. Face it, you spend more time sitting in traffic than you do having fun and tailgating. Then you probably spend 15 minutes walking to the stadium after you park. Most of it is up hill. Come over to Vandy and avoid the rush.

3. You can help build a winning SEC program in Middle Tennessee. Vanderbilt was a major power in South from the 1900s to 1930s. Gradually, because of neglect from the administration, the program fell on hard times. Back then many Vandy fans in Middle Tennessee made the switch to UT. Yes, it made sense then. Now the pendulum has swung back towards Vanderbilt. The Vandy leadership is better supporting athletics. Come on home to Vandy and help build a strong program right in your own neck of the woods. It just makes sense to make the switch again.

4. Ticket prices. Tennessee has gouged its fans for cash over the years, claiming that the additional revenue was needed to keep the program be competitive. However, have they delivered on the field? You deserve better from your hard earned money. Come to Vandy and you can get season tickets for much less, often without an additional donation required.

5. The outlook. Regardless of what you hear from the talking heads on TV and the radio, the future doesn’t look bright for Tennessee. Yes, Jeremy Pruitt is a good guy who can coach football. However, keep in mind of what he’s up against every year:  Kirby Smart and his stable of running backs. Dan Mullen who is probably the best X’s and O’s coach in the SEC and he’s got a swamp of great football players in Florida that want to play for him. Yes, UT did well in beating Kentucky this season but Mark Stoops is a super recruiter and the Wildcats will be bouncing off the walls for UT in Lexington next season. Then there is Nick Saban who isn’t going anywhere for at least five years. Finally, there’s Derek Mason who is the winningest Vanderbilt coach win wise versus Tennessee since 1930s.

Conclusion. Give it some thought. Maybe you can start with a split of team support in 2019. Go to three Vandy games and three UT games. After the season you can decide on the three sets of games in which you endured the least stress and had the most fun attending. Then get season tickets in 2020 for the team whose games you most enjoyed. Or maybe you’ll just go all out for Vanderbilt from here on. You want to be a Dore and are fed up with the root canal and expense of supporting the Vols. Vanderbilt will appreciate you as a fan and be thrilled to have you on board.

Here are three steps for becoming a Dore fan:

1) Renounce your UT fan-hood publicly on Facebook or other social media.

2) Load up with Vanderbilt fan gear. You can pass your UT gear along to fans who want to continue living in misery or do a good deed by donating to Goodwill Industries.

3) Check out Vanderbilt ticketing information. You can hook up with current Vandy fans in our forums to setup tailgating opportunities.  You’ll have more time to enjoy activities like those.

Now you are officially a Commodore and better autumn days are ahead!

NOTE: VandyMania.com is an independent pro-Commodore online publication. It is not affiliated with any college team or conference.