The Tennessean reports that Rice contacted him about their position. He declined to interview or pursue it. I don't see coach leaving unless a team in a major conference who is at least traditionally in the middle of the pack in that conference came calling. Maybe someone like Missouri or a Arizona State or somewhere that he could conceivably have very good sucess. Otherwise, I have a hard time seeing him leave Belmont for a lower tier major conference team like Rice, TCU, and the like.

Thoughts?

Byrd seems extremely committed to the University and happy in Nashville. If Stallings ever left Vandy, do you think he would be interested in that position?

Bucfaithful Wrote:Byrd seems extremely committed to the University and happy in Nashville. If Stallings ever left Vandy, do you think he would be interested in that position?

I am a VU fan as well (Belmont Alum though), and this is something that I've discussed with Vandy fans in the past. When Van Breda Kolff was let go nearly 10 years ago, I was talking up Byrd quite a bit. I knew what everyone in the NAIA knew (everyone seems to know it now), Coach Byrd is the real deal.

The thing was, most Vandy fans scoffed at the idea of bringing Byrd on. Afterall, Byrd didn't coach in the big time. He coached at little old Belmont, which was half the size it is now at that time. How could he recruit in the SEC? Lots of questions.

I think that the last 7 years or so and especially this year, would change the minds of some Vandy fans. However, many of these folks have been around for many years. They knew Belmont when they had 1000 students. They know follow pro football, pro hockey, and SEC sports. Many still have a hard time seeing how far both Belmont and Lipscomb have come, thus both teams getting less local support than they should...crowded and jaded sports marketplace.

So my short answer is that Byrd would jump at it. It would be a great way to stay local, pad his pocket, and take his shot at high D1. The Vandy fans would probably be 50% supportive and 50% skeptical, which frankly wouldn't do Byrd any favors in terms of a honeymoon. I think most would think Vandy should get a higher profile coach.

I doubt Byrd would leave for Vandy. Not really his game. Besides, I would think Vandy would go for a more high profile coach since they have been consistently stepping up their SEC game over the past three years. Why give a mid-major coach a job where he has never been before? They would need someone who could come in and not miss a beat. Don't get me wrong, Byrd could do it. But I think Vandy would look else where.