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5 candidates for Vanderbilt football coach if Derek Mason is fired

By Brad Berreman

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 09: Head coach Derek Mason of the Vanderbilt Commodores watches the action during the game against the Florida Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on November 09, 2019 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 09: Head coach Derek Mason of the Vanderbilt Commodores watches the action during the game against the Florida Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on November 09, 2019 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) /
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Vanderbilt Derek Mason
COLUMBIA, SC – NOVEMBER 02: Head coach Derek Mason of the Vanderbilt Commodores during their game against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Williams-Brice Stadium on November 2, 2019 in Columbia, South Carolina. (Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images) /

With Saturday’s loss to Florida dropping them to 2-7 this season, here are five candidates to replace Derek Mason as head coach at Vanderbilt.

It would’ve been a huge upset if Vanderbilt had beaten No. 10 Florida on Saturday. But the Commodores were simply dominated, losing 56-0 as they had just 128 yards of offense. If Derek Mason’s status as head coach wasn’t in doubt before, it definitely is now.

Now into his sixth season at Vanderbilt, Mason has a 26-45 record (10-36 in SEC play) with two bowl trips but no seasons at or above .500. Even reasonable and realistic expectations, however, elevated after the success James Franklin had (nine wins twice in three seasons) have not been reached.

Vanderbilt has to know who they are as a football program, which is to say they are not an upper-tier SEC team and winning may have to come by bucking traditional formulas. New athletic director Malcolm Turner went outside the box by hiring Jerry Stackhouse as the new men’s basketball coach, and it’s fair to assume he’ll willingly step outside convention in a looming search for a new football coach.

With Mason’s dismissal all but certain at this point, here are some candidates to be Vanderbilt’s next football coach.

5. Jason Simpson, UT-Martin head coach

In his 14th season as head coach at UT-Martin in the FCS, Simpson is on track to lead the Skyhawks to a record at or above .500 for the 10th time this year (5-2 right now). Overall, he has an 85-70 record.

As Vanderbilt searches for a new coach, they won’t have their pick of premium candidates in what is shaping up to be a shallow pool right now. Simpson has been mentioned as a candidate, along with East Tennessee State head coach Randy Sanders. Sanders is just his second season at ETSU, but he was a long-time assistant at Tennessee (1989-2005) before serving as quarterbacks coach (2006-2008) then offensive coordinator (2009-2012) at Kentucky and co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at Florida State (2013-2017). Simpson has no Power 5 coaching experience.

A dive into the FCS ranks for a new coach can work out well, as shown at Wyoming (Craig Bohl) and Kansas State (Chris Klieman, albeit less than one season in). Vanderbilt has to have all options open, so Simpson and Sanders have been on the radar. Right now, I’m leaning toward Simpson among the two.

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