So the big game is over and football season is finally underway. Vandy fans spent all summer arguing whether or not the Michigan game was a good idea. While it’s easy to look back and decide otherwise, scheduling the season opener at the Big House was the right move.

            The double overtime loss at Florida and Cutler’s draft hype finally put our team on the College Football map. With the media finally realizing that Vanderbilt is in fact in the SEC, the athletic department was faced with an interesting situation. An away game against Middle Tennessee State served as the initial season opener until ESPN came to Vanderbilt with the Michigan idea. Impressive performances against Wake Forest and Florida on ESPN channels compelled the network to contact our team. The athletic department couldn’t turn down a nationally televised game against an elite program.

Without scheduling Michigan, our non-conference games would have been MTSU, Duke, Temple, and Tennessee State. Last season, Temple and Duke won a grand total of one game. TSU only managed two wins at the Division I-AA level in 2005. Our team could afford a ranked opponent to round out an already weak non-SEC schedule.

Despite the outcome, the game had several positives. Chris Nickson is unlike any Vanderbilt quarterback we’ve ever seen. He is a threat as a scrambler but can make all the throws as well. Jonathan Goff and Reshard Lankford proved that the Vanderbilt defense is in good hands. Other players were thrown into action for the first time, forcing them to mature quickly. Everyone expected Vandy to flop against the national powerhouse. That never happened. 

Vandy fans should be grateful that we had the opportunity to watch a season opener on ESPN. The football team could play a weak team any year but, after an exciting season, Vandy took the chance to gain exposure on a national level. In the end, Michigan was the right call. Besides, did we really want to go through another MTSU game'