Pride is worth plenty
If you haven’t noticed, then you haven’t been paying attention. But…
The Tennessee baseball team is ranked fifth nationally, sits atop the SEC East and has a chance to make a deep run in the NCAA post-season.
Tony Vitello’s program has become a source of pride for Big Orange Country not just for their wins this year, but for the way they play in a culture that Vitello has built since his arrival. Everyone loves a winner. Everyone also loves a group of somewhat overachievers. Don’t get me wrong, the Vols aren’t the Bad News Bears, but they aren’t the most talented team in the SEC or the country either.
Then-athletic director John Currie tabbed Vitello as his baseball coach on June 7, 2017. The hire had a few diehard fans saying "Who?". And many said that Tennessee had gone cheap again hiring an assistant with no head coaching experience. In fact, Vitello’s hired move the needle so much that one of the questions at his introductory press conference revolved around his looks and the fact he was single.
Vol fans have moved beyond that.
Fast forward to now, the questions are about keeping Vitello and with good reason. Under Vitello, the Vols are 71-29 in their last 100 games. They have won 8 of their last 10 SEC series heading into this weekend set with South Carolina. Vitello’s 123 Vol wins is more than Dave Serrano had in 6 seasons.
Vitello has brought all "the feel good" to the Big Orange faithful at a time when they are starving for anything good. And the Diamond Vols are doing it in the best conference in the sport. In the latest poll five of the top 8 teams in the national polls are SEC programs including the Vols.
It’s an impressive feat. It’s one everyone who likes orange shade pms-151 has taken notice of especially this year.
It’s also a feat that athletic directors around the country are taking notice of, as well. Vitello will be a hot commodity at season’s end. Tennessee fans know it, too. Any baseball tweet by AD Danny White yields plenty of “Pay the Man” replies.
Tony Vitello is the Man of the Moment.
Vitello will make over $600k in 2021 (with no bonuses due to a “pandemic reduction period” which runs through June 30, 2021). But anyone you talk to who knows Vitello will tell you, he’s not about some money grab for himself.
It’s about raises for his staff, from pitching coach Frank Anderson, to strength/performance coach Quentin Eberhardt, who turned down a job in Major League Baseball last year to remain with Vitello.
It’s also about commitment when it comes to facilities. Rumor is Vitello has some donors already lined up to help with facility improvements. But to this point, because Vitello is working for his third AD since he was hired in 2017, facility improvements have been nothing more than just talk. And now there’s a new downtown ballpark proposed; Vitello wants to remain on campus.
It’s no secret that, at nearly 30 years old, Tennessee’s Lindsey Nelson Stadium is one of the worst facilities in the SEC.
Danny White knows all about SEC baseball facilities. He headed up the baseball stadium project at Ole Miss, a stadium that features premium club seats and draws really nice crowds.
“We can build it here. Knoxville is different than Oxford. I think we need to focus on what’s the best version of college baseball here on our campus and in Knoxville,” White said last week on The Swain Event show. “I can’t say that I have the answers to that. Obviously, I have just been here a couple of months, but I understand the sense of urgency because we have to take advantage of how hot this team is playing right now and what Tony is doing with this staff to make sure not just facility but in every way we support that program we are allowing it to continue to grow. I’m really excited about the future of our baseball program.”
The reality is that baseball is not a huge money-maker and the cost of doing business in the SEC is really high in the sport.
At the same time, pride doesn’t come cheap. Look at Lady Vols Basketball.
For decades Tennessee’s investment into women’s basketball was at a level unmatched and the results were historically good. I’m not saying Vitello is Pat Summit: it is ridiculous to suggest that. But an investment was made to a program that wasn’t generating a profit on the books, but the profits it yielded the University couldn't be measured on the books. Pat Summit's Lady Vols meant so much to everyone who loved UT.
Tennessee Baseball is eliciting that type of emotion for Vols everywhere in 2021.
White told Volquest in our sitdown interview two weeks ago that he was surprised at the health of his sports programs overall. His baseball program is arguably the healthiest despite below-average facilities and a coaching staff that’s paid middle-of-the-pack wages in the nation's best league. .
For Danny White, who’s looking for an early shot-in-the-arm, handling his baseball coach is really important.
White has a chance to show commitment and creativity that will show Volunteer fans a lot about him.