Vanderbilt Commodores – Page 8

How could the SEC align its permanent rivals with the additions of Oklahoma and Texas?

If it went to a nine-game conference schedule, how could the permanent rivals line up for an expanded SEC.

The SEC is dealing with one of those good problems. As the conference prepares to expand to 16 schools with the addition of Oklahoma and Texas, SEC leadership is debating how to construct its schedule. In 2024 and most likely in 2025, the SEC will play eight conference games as they work out the details for what could come down the road.

Despite settling on eight games in the short term, the format that has received the most buzz has each team facing three permanent rivals each season as part of the nine-game conference schedule. The other six games would come from a rotation featuring the remaining 12 teams in the conference.

While there are some obvious permanent rivals for some teams, others aren’t so clear. It’s not an easy proposition, but it’s the one that would have each SEC team playing each other every two years.

This scheduling model is attractive because it sets up a school to play every other SEC program over a two-year cycle, with both home and away games against every other school over a four-year cycle. Year 1 will have a team’s three annual rivals plus six other SEC opponents. Those six are then rotated out for the rest of the conference in Year 2, allowing for games against all 15 conference foes. – Chip Patterson, CBS Sports

So, over a two-year span, Oklahoma will face every team in the conference. Over a four-year span, they will have hosted every team in the conference.

One of the complaints with the current format is the reality that an SEC may not play host to another for more than a decade. For example, Texas A&M hasn’t hosted Georgia despite being in the same conference for 10 seasons and only played the Bulldogs once in that time frame. The format getting the most consideration would fix that.

Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte spoke at a Longhorns town hall about the future of the SEC schedule. Del Conte mentioned that it’s a work in progress, but by 2026, the SEC could be at a nine-game conference schedule.

No format will leave everyone happy, but here’s a take on how the permanent rivals could align in the expanded SEC.

Everything Buzz Williams had to say after buzzer beating loss to Vanderbilt

Here’s what Texas A&M Head Coach Buzz Williams had to say after the road lost to Vanderbilt

Texas A&M (15-9, 6-5 SEC) fell to the Vanderbilt Commodores 74-73 on a last-second shot, ending their SEC win streak.

Winning on the road is hard, but when you consider yourself as one of the better teams in your conference there are some games you just have to win. The Aggies have been playing good ball over the past month and looked like a team that had finally gotten over the hump. Tuesday night proved that A&M still has some work to do if they plan on making the NCAA tournament at the conclusion of the season.

Coach Buzz Williams didn’t mince words and was candid about how Vanderbilt was just plain better than the Aggies on this night.

“They were more physical number two had 11 points and four rebounds in the paint in the first half. They made seven free throws in the first half just the things that we want to make more than the opponent attempts we want to shoot more balls by not turning it over by getting offensive rebounds none of those things

came to life and that’s a credit to them.”

Below, you can watch the full post-game presser with Coach Buzz.

Texas A&M with get a chance on Saturday afternoon to right the ship when they travel to face No. 15 Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

How to watch: Texas A&M vs. Vanderbilt basketball game

Texas A&M has a golden opportunity to extend their winning streak to four and gain some ground in the conference standings Tuesday night against Vanderbilt

Texas A&M (15-8, 6-4 SEC) will be back on the road to face Vanderbilt (6-17, 1-9 SEC) on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. CT.

The Aggies are playing like a team on a mission and have been rolling for the past few weeks. It was capped off by a beatdown of No. 6 ranked Tennessee where they held the Vols under 70 points and kept All-SEC guard Dalton Knecht frustrated all night long. Aggie fans have witnessed the defense and rebounding prowess throughout the season but closed their eyes every time someone not named Wade Taylor shot the ball.

The re-emergence of Tyrece “Boots” Radford and with the trio of Jace Carter, Andersson Garcia, and Solomon Washington playing the role of the “lunch pail kids” they have turned the Aggies into one of the hottest teams in the nation. They will look to keep on that pace as they hit the road to face the Commodores.

Vanderbilt is a well-coached team with a few players who can shoot the three-pointer at a high level but has been stuck on the struggle bus since entering conference play. It will be no easy task against a surging A&M team, but they have to make it a point to slow the game down and be extremely efficient.

The A&M SEC opponents are hosting Kentucky, Florida, and Tennessee at Reed Arena to highlight the home slate. The Aggies’ road foes include Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Vanderbilt.

Texas A&M players Henry Coleman III and Jace Carter speak ahead of Texas A&M vs. Vanderbilt

Here’s what Texas A&M players Coleman and Carter had to say ahead of the game against Vanderbilt.

Texas A&M (15-8, 6-4 SEC) will return on the road to face Vanderbilt (6-17, 1-9 SEC) on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. CT.

In the last few weeks, we’ve seen some really good basketball from the Aggies. It took a little while for them to find their footing, and if they can continue to shoot well, they will be a hard team to beat. Henry Coleman and Jace Carter spoke on how all the work they have been putting together is starting to show up.

“I think we have had great habits all year, coming into the gym being connected as a team, lifting each other up, playing for the person right beside you and I think that’s you know that’s what we’ve done the last couple weeks we’ve done that essentially the whole year, but I think now just you know seeing what the true Texas A&M team is.” – Coleman

“I think it just comes back to the way we work on it every day and um, we have so many good people around us, and so many great managers that want to rebound for us so many people that are willing to help us that you know we put money into the ATM all the time and we work on it every day. So, I don’t think there’s anything that’s surprising or anything that’s like oh we figured it out it’s just we work on it every day and it’s about time they start to fall” – Carter

Below, you can watch the full presser Q&A with Henry Coleman & Jace Carter

Aggies HC Buzz Williams speaks ahead of Texas A&M vs. Vanderbilt

Here’s what Texas A&M Head Coach Buzz Williams had to say ahead of the game against Vanderbilt

Texas A&M (15-8, 6-4 SEC) will return on the road to face Vanderbilt (6-17, 1-9 SEC) on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. CT.

The Aggies are on a roll right now and are one of the hottest teams in the SEC. They are playing good team ball right now and Buzz Williams has been able to coach to his full potential the past few weeks due to his players ironing out the kinks. They finally look like a top team in the country, as everyone expected them to be when the season started.

After convincingly handling the Volunteers, some might tend to look past a struggling Vanderbilt team; however, Buzz is not built like that, and he won’t let his squad think like that, either.

“They have the most dense playbook in division one history….”Coach Stackhouse’s offensive skill, how he utilizes all 12 players will play, he will mix and match the groups you can tell he watches an enormous amount of film because he attacks what he believes your weak spot is and or your defensive philosophy. I enjoy watching them, but I don’t enjoy playing against them because their playbook is so dense”

Below, you can watch the full presser Q&A with Coach Buzz Williams.

Where do the ‘Palace on the Prairie’ and Darrell K. Royal rank among SEC Stadium Capacities?

The Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns have stadium capacities that will fit right in with the SEC.

Part of the allure of college football is the environment in which it’s played. A college football team’s stadium can bring as much to the sport as what happens on the field. You can’t think of Oklahoma Sooners football without hearing the great Toby Rowland’s voice booming the “Palace on the Prairie” in a pre-game hype video.

If there’s one thing that stands out about the Southeastern Conference, it’s the grandeur that comes with a Saturday in the SEC. The University of Oklahoma and the Texas Longhorns can match the environments that the SEC puts on display every Saturday, but nothing else in the Big 12 comes close to the atmosphere that’s created at an SEC School.

From a capacity perspective, they’ve got some of the biggest stadiums in the world and several venues that dwarf many of the Big 12 schools. The Big 12’s current members have an average capacity of 61,536.5. If you were to take Oklahoma’s Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium and Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium out of the equation, the conference’s average capacity drops to 53,651. No other school carries a capacity more than Iowa State’s 61,500 at Jack Trice Stadium.

The SEC’s current members boast an average capacity of 80,262. They have four schools with more than 100,000 seat stadiums led by Texas A&M’s Kyle Field. 11 of the 14 SEC schools have a stadium capacity greater than everyone other than OU and Texas in the Big 12. And while Vanderbilt Stadium’s 40,350-seat capacity would rank last in the Big 12, 13 of the 14 SEC stadiums have a higher capacity than every other school not named Oklahoma, Texas, and Iowa State.

As far as stadium size, the Oklahoma Sooners and the Texas Longhorns are a much better fit in the SEC than the Big 12.

While size isn’t everything, with it, the SEC brings some of the cooler stadium nicknames in all of college football. From Florida’s “The Swamp” in Gainesville to “Between the Hedges” in Athens to Death Valley in Baton Rouge, the SEC venues are just awesome.

While some of those Big 12 matchups will be missed, namely Bedlam, the Longhorns and the Sooners appear to be a better fit as two of college football’s “blue bloods.” The traditions, atmospheres, and stadium capacities you find in Norman and Austin will fit right in among the SEC’s hallowed football stadiums.

Let’s take a look at where Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial and Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial stadiums fit in the SEC capacity rankings.

Kim Mulkey liked LSU women’s basketball’s strong start in win over Vanderbilt

The Tigers have benefitted from hot starts in each of their last two wins.

The LSU women’s basketball team has struggled to close out games, which has led to several of its four losses so far this season.

But it’s harder to struggle down the stretch if you spot yourself a big early lead, and that’s exactly what the Tigers have managed to do in both of the last two games. A 40-point win over Florida on Sunday was never in doubt, and LSU had similar success in an 85-62 win over Vanderbilt on Thursday night.

Though the Tigers had some offensive issues early, they still jumped out to a 22-7 lead in the first quarter and led 39-20 at the half. [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] was pleased to see another fast start from her team.

“I saw the same thing tonight that I saw in the Florida game,” she said, per On3. “We executed some plays we haven’t executed all year. I always tell them to start the game like you’re ten behind when you tip the ball on the road. That’s what you have to do on the road. You have to set the tone. I was really pleased. I was upset Angel picked up her second foul because I thought Angel was a force to be reckoned with in there early, which allowed everybody else to eat.”

[autotag]Angel Reese[/autotag] has found herself in foul trouble before, and it’s proved to be a limiting factor for this LSU team. On Thursday, however, it wasn’t.

“I love the way we started. I love the way we handled Angel being in foul trouble in the second quarter,” Mulkey said. “We didn’t lose the lead and even extended the lead. In the second half I was pleased we took a deep breath and responded when they made their push and Angel got to rest then and Aalyah got big minutes. I always love that we have five players averaging in double figures.”

LSU now sits at 20-4 on the season and 7-3 in SEC play. While it’s likely no longer in contention for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, it can still close out the regular season strong and enter the postseason with some momentum as it looks to defend its national title.

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

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Instant Analysis: LSU women’s basketball has no issue taking down Vanderbilt on the road

The Tigers have now won two games in a row and will return home to face Alabama on Sunday.

The No. 13 LSU women’s basketball team kept its momentum going from a big win on Sunday, taking down a potential NCAA Tournament team on the road with an 85-62 win over Vanderbilt in Nashville.

With the win, the Tigers move to 20-4 on the season and 7-3 in SEC play.

LSU started the game with the momentum, jumping out to an early 16-2 lead in the first quarter. The Commodores hit just 2 of 16 shots overall in that frame, and the Tigers held a 22-5 lead after 10 minutes.

They shot below 40% in the second quarter but still managed to expand their lead in large part thanks to some dominant play on the boards. LSU won the first-half rebounding battle 30-19, and that resulted in 19 second chance points — equivalent to the 39-20 advantage it took to the locker room.

Vanderbilt managed to flip the momentum a bit in the third quarter. LSU had some offensive issues, missing eight shots in a row, and the Commodores managed to cut the lead down to just 12. However, the Tigers stretched it back out to an 18-point lead by the end of the quarter.

LSU hit 10 of 16 shots in the final quarter as it closed out the game. [autotag]Flau’Jae Johnson[/autotag] led the team in scoring with 17 points, and [autotag]Angel Reese[/autotag] (15 points, 16 rebounds) and [autotag]Aneesah Morrow[/autotag] (13 points, 10 rebounds) each recorded double-doubles.

The Tigers ultimately won the rebounding battle 57-35, leading to a final second-chance points difference of 32 to Vanderbilt’s 11.

After a rough stretch, LSU is getting back on track and will look to extend its win streak to three when it returns home to face Alabama on Sunday.

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

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How to watch No. 13 LSU women’s basketball face Vanderbilt on the road Thursday night

The Tigers will hope they’ve turned a corner after a 40-point win over Florida.

Fresh off a decisive, 40-point win over Florida at home, LSU women’s basketball is looking to build on that performance as it hits the road to take on a tougher Vanderbilt squad on Thursday night.

The Commodores enter with a strong 17-6 record on the year, but conference play hasn’t been as kind. They’re just 4-5 in SEC games this season but are looking for what would be a massive resume-building win on their home floor.

LSU’s win over the Gators ended a stretch in which the Tigers lost two in a row and three out of five. They’ll hope they’ve turned a corner as they look to beat a likely tournament team on the road.

Here’s what you need to know to watch it.

Oklahoma Sooners in the top 5 of Josh Pate’s SEC Power Ratings

The Oklahoma Sooners are considered a top five program in the SEC according to Josh Pate.

The Oklahoma Sooners are heading into a new era of college football. Now, there are two mega conferences in college football with the additions the [autotag]SEC[/autotag] and Big 10 are making in 2024.

The Sooners elected to join the SEC, which sort of started this new wave of conference realignment. Much has been made about whether Oklahoma is “SEC ready”? Even after a 10-3 season, that question still looms over the program.

The program is heading in the right direction. They may not be ready to compete for an SEC championship in 2024, but you can tell with how they are recruiting, especially on the defensive side of the ball, they have a vision of what it’ll take to make this team ready for the week in, week out grind of the SEC.

While Oklahoma will be competitive in their inaugural season in 2024, 2025 is the year they’ll be serious title contenders. They’re still a young team and by 2025 a lot of this young talent will be seasoned.

But what about next season? How well can the Sooners do in Year 1? CBSSports’ and the Late Kick Show’s Josh Pate shared his SEC Power Ratings heading into the 2024 season Sunday night. In it, he values a rolling three-year snapshot of on-field performance, talent acquisition, and stability resource pool. Given all of that, he feels the Sooners are the fifth-best SEC program heading into 2024.

That means Oklahoma is probably around an 8-4 or 9-3 team in 2024, which is what I would have them at. And with the 12-team playoff incoming, there’s a possibility that puts them in the College Football Playoff in 2024.

I do think the LSU Tigers are a little overvalued because last year they were so bad defensively and were carried by their offense. Well, gone is Heisman winner Jayden Daniels and their star receiver Malik Nabors. Both are first round picks in 2024.

Here’s a look at how the SEC stacks up, according to Josh Pate.