Vanderbilt might have a bigger problem on their hands than trying to continue to make history this season. Despite a College Football Playoff appearance and potential Heisman win on the line over the next few weeks, the Commodores could be on the hunt for a new football coach at the end of this season. Former Alabama coach and reformed Vanderbilt supporter Nick Saban hinted as much on College GameDay on Saturday morning, saying that Vandy is going to have to go deep in the bag to keep Clark Lea in Nashville.
CAA/Jimmy Sexton client Nick Saban tells the GameDay crowd that Vanderbilt “better do something to keep (CAA/Sexton client) Clark Lea here cause he’s gonna go someplace.”
— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) October 25, 2025
Regardless of how true those rumors or even that statement is, Saban is kind of onto something here. Lea has had more success in two seasons with Vanderbilt than most of the coaches in the school’s history combined. With the amount of jobs coming open now, and potentially more opening before the season is over, the Commodores will have to cough up quite a bit of money to keep Lea in the Music City.
If you look at what happened with Curt Cignetti at Indiana earlier this year, that’s the type of love Vanderbilt is going to have to show Lea if they want to keep him around. Maybe not quite to that extent, but they will need to make Lea feel appreciated — or their championship window will slam shut.
How Curt Cignetti’s extension could force Vanderbilt into uncomfortable reality
Cignetti got a lucrative contract extension to stay in Bloomington, and Lane Kiffin is allegedly in talks to stay in Ole Miss amid rumors that he could leave for Gainesville. Those are just the most prominent examples of teams understanding they can’t afford to let their coaches leave. Vanderbilt is in that same situation.
Jared Curtis, a five-star quarterback recruit from Nashville, is visiting during Vandy’s game against Missouri on Saturday, and things are looking up for the Commodores. They can’t squander all this momentum by losing Lea. If they lose him, they probably miss out on Curtis and even the full shift of this program turning things around.
Clark Lea may not have to leave Vanderbilt despite intriguing job offers
While it seems logical for a coach to go from a lower-rung power conference team to a big one, what incentive does Lea have to leave Vanderbilt? With the Commodores right now, Lea doesn’t have massive expectations to contend every year. All he has to do is keep Vanderbilt relevant and continue to be a team that punches above its weight
If he ends up at a school like Florida, Penn State or Wisconsin, he’d have to turn them around immediately and won’t be afforded any leeway. At Vanderbilt, as long as the Commodores are in the top half of the SEC standings, he’ll always have a job in Nashville. It’s also not likely he will leave as he’s a former Vandy player.
It would have to be the perfect situation, assuming Vandy isn’t that for him, to lure him away from Nashville. Money talks, but it may not be what makes him decide to stay or not. Lea has a lot to think about with Vandy’s success and other schools looking to bring him aboard. Whatever decision he makes, it won’t be an easy one.
With Vanderbilt, he’s in a comfortable position. If he leaves, he’ll have to start over again. Sure he’ll have more resources at his next stop, but it doesn’t mean it will lead to similar success. He leaned on Diego Pavia, a player nobody wanted, to turn this program around. He won’t have Pavia at his next stop. Granted, he won’t have him next season at Vandy either, but he’ll be able to lean on what he’s already built.
Vanderbilt is in a good spot and has a lot to build on. Anywhere else, he’ll have to start over once again, and he might not have the same luck he did in Nashville. The grass isn’t always greener at a bigger school. That’s the decision Lea will have to make.