Originally Posted by
zharkins
Vanderbilt paid Nevada $900K to play this year. The deal with Nevada was signed in 2017 (the same year the Tech/Vandy contract was signed), which was pretty last minute, with Nevada coming off a 5-7 campaign in 2016 and no season better than 7-6 since Colin Kaepernick was a senior in 2010. So I think if I’m the Vanderbilt AD, I’d be less willing to play Tech than a Nevada and would look for another opponent unless Tech reduced their payout demand. Vanderbilt has no other guarantee games on their future schedules.
This arrangement gives us a winnable road game against a P5, we can schedule an FCS at home instead of Vandy (who would draw no additional fans whatsoever) and net $500K in the process. It is evident that Tommy is trying to balance financials, winnability, and schedule strength. It sure beats home and homes against UNLV and Bowling Green and add $0 to the budget.