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Even a Vandy grad can’t win there. Frost had a successful HC run at UCF before bombing at Neb.

I think the SEC is no place for an unproven young DC to start out as a HC. Plus, none of us know how he would handle the CEO aspects of a HC job. He should go MAC or American etc and learn to lead a program.

On the other hand, if Vandy comes up with big $$ it may be hard to refuse. I just don’t believe Vandy has the commitment to football many other, lesser conference schools do.

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I read another article pointing out that Vandy is coming off a failed experiment with hiring a DC as HC (Mason), so maybe they’ll want HC experience. Assuming Beamer goes to SCar as speculated, I think the guy from Coastal Carolina, Chadwell, makes sense for Vandy too. I guess we’ll see. Vandy hired a coordinator in Franklin a few years back, and he only stayed 3 years, using it as a spring board to Penn State. If Vandy is willing to go with a coordinator again, Lea makes perfect sense. And I have to believe Lea would take it. I’m betting on Chadwell right now, but could see it either way. Would hate to lose Lea. ND should open up the check book and offer any perks available. It is just a matter of time, of course . . . but I hope ND can get another year or two from him. Guess we’ll see.

Bandy ties may be enough for him...

He's not going to get a top program job as HC coming off of fairly recent acclaim as a DC. So Vandy can be two things for him: a HC job at a school with connections, but also a potential springboard to something bigger. I didn't even consider the notion that Lea might pass. My issue was whether Vandy would offer. Assuming Beamer goes to SCar like people are speculating, I could see Vandy plucking Chadwell out of Coastal. Lea makes sense for Vandy in a lot of ways, but as I read in an article about the job search there is a "we just belly flopped after hiring a DC without HC experience" at Vanderbilt right now. I guess we'll see. Agree that Lea will have options, and he likely won't be at ND long-term. I'm hoping to get past recruiting, and maybe squeeze out one more season.

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considered for the ND job when BK throws in the towel. Vandy would be a HUGE mistake.

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Real teams will make him offers.

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Although it might be good for ND to stash him at there until Kelly retires.

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He went from coordinator to HC at Vandy.

But then there is always my classmate Gerry!

It's not like a top-tier program is going to be offering a HC job to a rising DC that few knew about just a couple of years ago. He's not going to get a plum job after the season if he passes on Vandy. Diaco, as has been mentioned, parlayed his success at ND into UCONN. Most years, a MAC job would be the next step for someone like Lea, or a Cincinnati level school possibly. He's brought up in connection with Vandy specifically because of the ties between him and the University. So Vandy as a first head coaching job makes sense for him, even if he dreams bigger down the road. What "better" job is Lea going to get if he holds out? I don't see it. I don't think there is a doubt that he'd take the Vandy job if offered. I think there is a question whether Vandy will offer. Mason kind of poisoned the well for "respected DC" coming in as coach there a bit. I guess we'll see. My only real point about Franklin is that if Lea is thinking beyond his first HC gig, and he should be, Vandy isn't going to hold him back if he's got the goods.

You're making a huge amount of assumptions to support your view. That is fine. I just don't buy them as being valid.

It all depends on what Lea wants. If he aspires to something beyond Vanderbilt then he shouldn't take the job. It is more likely to be a career killer than the opposite.

Agree it is Lea’s choice if offered. Obviously.

If Vandy is personally desirable for him, that's fine. But it is hard to make a case that Vandy is a "desirable" job from a football perspective. Its history of coaching searches and ensuing selections would argue with that.

He is well regarded and well-paid at ND and is the DC for ND. That is a high profile job where he is unlikely to fall off the radar for any length of time. He isn't under any pressure to do the next thing. Taking a bad job just because it is there doesn't make much sense especially when he is a very very good situation at ND. If he isn't happy at ND and is ready to move, that is one thing.

Otherwise, good jobs -- jobs much better than Vandy and that list is long -- pop open all the time. Iowa State, Cincinnati, UCF, to mention a few, all have highly regarded coaches who are going to get better jobs soon. Also, since he already has high level Power 5 experience, when he choses to be Head Coach it doesn't have to be a a Power 5 school. In fact, amid COVID, he might be better served not to move now. While the overall situation should get better, there is no reason to assume that 2021 will be a normal football year.

I specifically named Cincy as the kind of job that someone like Lea (hot name/short-term coordinator) is sometimes in line for. I very much had Fickell in mind there. He was the first guy I thought of in considering all of this. He was a DC at a top program under Urban Meyer, who also had brief interim HC experience. He was in a strong position for a coordinator, and he landed the Cincy job: An AAC school that went 18-14 in conference under its prior coach. Fickell coming out of OSU is about where I see Lea right now. I guess because Fickell has done so well there that the Cincy HC spot is a higher profile. But it is still AAC, and I find the idea of it being a better job than an SEC opportunity a little sketchy. Ditto UCF. Iowa State? Was basically where Vandy is before Campbell came in, off his experience as a DC, and turned things around from the Rhodes era. I guess it is a “better job” now because Campbell elevated them. Something Lea might imagine himself doing at Vandy, like Franklin did there for a couple of seasons. I think a few posters here think Lea is going to be in line for a top-line power 5 HC job after the season, and that just isn’t realistic in my opinion.

That’s a long way for me to say that if the suggestion is that Lea should pass on his alma mater because UCF might open up, . . I really don’t get it. If he’s ready to take a HC job now, I have a hard time seeing him landing a much “better job” than Vanderbilt at this point. Maybe I’m wrong. At the end of the day, he’s been a very good DC at a top program for three years. Everything I’ve written is premised on the idea that Lea will be taking a job after this season, which seemed to be the nature of the thread. I agree that if he sticks at ND for some time longer, it could put him in a stronger position for better jobs — the Venables model. Which might be a better big picture path for him. I’d love that because I’d like to see him at ND as long as possible. I’m in line with the first 2 paragraphs of your most recent response. I can only guess if he will stay or go after this season.

Like I said, I guess we just disagree. Vandy isn't as bad a job as Illinois, Rutgers, or Kansas but it ain't far. (I'm sure living in Nashville trumps Champaign, New Jersey and Kansas.) And yes, ISU, UCF and Cincinnati among several others offer a much higher potential for football success which will be a key determinate if he wants a top tier job.

I don't pretend to know what Lea wants. If Lea views Vandy as a destination program for him, then it is a good job for him. From a football perspective, Lea taking the job because he is an alum is a bad reason to take a job. Dave Clawson at WF is a good example of a coach who could have a better job if he wanted one. But he appears happy there and that is really all that matters. If Lea views Vandy as a stepping stone, then it is a bad job because the chances of failure far outweigh the chances for success.

To get a top tier job, he needs to be a head coach first. Because Lea already has Power 5 experience at a high level, he doesn't need to take a head coach job at a Power 5 conference. It doesn't need to be a "high profile" job. It is more important to be successful than it is to have a bad job at a Power 5 level. "Success" can be hard to define but by any definition it will be harder to achieve that at Vandy than at literally dozens of other schools.

It all depends on what Lea wants and whether he thinks he can achieve that at Vandy.

Nothing wrong with disagreeing. You raise good points. Appreciate it.

The typed word can come across as a little less civil than good natured face-to-face discussions. I try to keep that in mind even if I miss the mark on occasion.

If Lea wants a major job is he better off going to Vandy and facing a high likelihood of failing or taking 4 to 5 years to turn it to a point wheee he gets a major offer.

Or stay at ND and have 2 or 3 more great years and then have a major program come calling like Pruitt, Smart, Jimbo, etc

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she can’t do both! “Play and Coach Like a Girl” merch will sell. Big time.

Have him talk to Bob Diaco about taking over a bad team.

Last I knew he was getting axed at Nebraska. Looks like he spent some time as a “defensive analyst,” but now is DC at Purdue. That UConn turn didn’t go too well for him.

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I don't think Clark Lea would jump at that job, not when better jobs will probably be available, and he could drive a harder bargain.

Hope you're right but he's a Vandy alum and from what I've heard really loves that school

And after Mason failed, why would Vandy g for another defensive coordinator? They would seem likely to seek an offensive-minded coach

The guy at Coastal Carolina. He has a lot of HC experience for a young guy. Coming off the Mason experience, I don’t know if Vandy wants to hire another DC with no HC on his resume. Lea does make sense, though, given the connections. Maybe they will go that way. With Lea it is just a matter of time. That job would be tough for him to pass up. It makes sense for him.

He's a Vandy alum and really likes that school

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