It is almost fitting and proper that Vanderbilt’s home is Nashville, Tennessee, where everyone sings like they are the next big country music star. Nashville is also home to the Music City Bowl, where the Vanderbilt Commodores came of age New Year’s Eve (12-31-08) faster than Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys’ birth of bluegrass in the Deep South.
Vanderbilt came into the Music City Bowl as an underdog facing the Boston College Eagles, who were ranked 6th in the nation in least yards allowed and tops in the country in turnovers. The Commodores, despite being held to 200 yards and only 1 conversion in 15 third-down attempts, left the stadium with a 16-14 victory.
While far short of the heroics and early triumphs of the Confederacy in the Civil War, Vanderbilt’s Southern contingent of players made some important history of their own.
1) They used a 45-yard-field goal by Bryant Hahnfeldt with 3:26 left in the 4th quarter to win a bowl game for the first time in 53 years, bringing to mind Vanderbilt’s 25-13 victory over Auburn in the 1955 Gator Bowl.
2) They got the monkey off of their back, a 28-year drought-the SEC’s longest-since they last played in a bowl game.
3) They logged their first winning season (7-6) since the start of the drought 28 years ago.
4) They broke Boston College’s 8-game winning streak in bowl play, the longest in the nation.
5) They cost Boston College a chance at finishing with at least 10 wins for a 3rd-straight season. The Eagles were playing in a bowl game for the 10th consecutive year. The Eagle, which flew straight and true for 8 consecutive bowl victories, now has a broken wing, thanks to the Commodores.
Now they can legitimately take umbrage when their competitors, the media and fans refer to them as “cellar dwellers” and “the worst team in the SEC”. Let’s see now, which SEC teams lost bowl games this year? Oh yes, it was Alabama and South Carolina. Hail to the Commodores! This is America, we love underdogs who rise to the top, who, by the sweat of their brow, lift themselves up by their bootstraps, and win.
How did they do it? With special teams play. Junior Brett Upson averaged 42+ yards on 9 punts with a long punt of 58 yards; he was named the game’s Most Valuable Player. Senior Bryant Hahnfeldt aced field goals from 28 and 42 yards before his game-winning kick of 45 yards and a lifetime of glory (what a way to end a college playing career).
Freshman defensive back Sean Richardson accounted for Vanderbilt’s only touchdown when he fell on a punt that bounced off the left knee of Boston College’s Paul Anderson in the 3rd quarter. Officials ruled it a touchdown and the replay review validated the call. For Sean Richardson is was all about being in the right place at the right time (also sometimes known as luck).
After the game, Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson was gushing: “I guess everybody can figure out we’re pretty happy. We’re thrilled to win the Music City Bowl right here in Nashville in our hometown. We kept our composure and made some big plays when we had to. It may not have been the prettiest victory in the world, but it is for us now.”
Well said, Bobby. It is refreshing to find someone in sports today with a little sense of gratitude. We currently have too many self-important superstars with more money and ego than humility and gratitude for their good fortune.
The Commodores finished their winning season at 7-6 while Boston College had to settle for a 9-5 record.
Copyright © 2009 Ed Bagley
