Retirement gives Caldwell 1st head coaching job

NCAA Football Betting Lines

07/15/2010 -

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -Robbie Caldwell has a thick drawl thanks to his South Carolina hometown, a place he notes had a population of 1,500 counting cats and dogs.

There were so few people he used to hunt dove out of his backdoor.

But Caldwell says he has always wanted to be a head football coach.

Now he's getting his shot in arguably the toughest job in the mighty Southeastern Conference - at Vanderbilt, the smallest school in the SEC and the league's only private institution.

And to make his task even tougher, Caldwell is replacing his old friend Bobby Johnson just seven weeks before the season opener.

Johnson, who first coached with Caldwell as graduate assistants at Furman in 1976, says ``Robbie ... tries to give you that little hayseed act a little bit.''

``He is a really smart guy, and he'll do a great job.''

Caldwell was introduced Wednesday as Vanderbilt's interim head coach following Johnson's retirement from college football. Caldwell, 56, went from dressed in shorts to line a football field for practice to promotion from assistant head coach to the top job all within a couple hours. He needed a quick shower before meeting reporters.

Now he has only a week to prepare for an even bigger introduction at the SEC's annual media days in Birmingham, Ala., where Caldwell will face hundreds of reporters. Vanderbilt officials scrambled to reflect the change in the team's media guide, and the clock just keeps ticking. Fall practice opens in about three weeks, and the opener is Sept. 4 against Northwestern.

Whether he keeps this job past the season finale Nov. 27 against Wake Forest remains to be seen. Vice chancellor David Williams is giving Caldwell the chance to earn the job, but winning and how the Commodores play will be a big part of the decision at a program that has had just one winning season since 1982.

Caldwell said he isn't feeling any pressure - yet.

``Well, I haven't had time to think about it, but there's pressure every week. We put pressure on ourselves more than other people, so we're kind of used to that,'' Caldwell said.

Caldwell has been a head coach only once before in 1977 when he coached the Hanahan High School baseball team to a 14-2 record. But Caldwell said he was the one who wanted to be a head football coach, not Johnson, when the men first started working together.

A Furman graduate and native of Pageland, S.C., Caldwell returned to Furman in 1978 and coached there through 1985. He moved to North Carolina State in 1986, a place he stayed through 1999 coaching the offensive line. He was named assistant head coach for his final three seasons, then moved to North Carolina for 2000 and 2001.

Then Johnson came calling, asking Caldwell to join him after being hired in December 2001 as Vanderbilt's head coach. Caldwell quickly said yes. He has coached the Commodores' offensive line since 2002 and was promoted to Vandy's assistant head coach a couple years ago.

``We've come a long way from selling radio ads to supplement our salary to this point here,'' Caldwell said.

``But again, I just thank Vanderbilt for the opportunity. And quite frankly when I came here people thought I was crazy. I left a major institution. We were doing well. ... We saw and we believed. We still believe. We think we should get it done and continue to do so. That's our goal.''

Folksy charm aside, Caldwell helped turn Chris Williams from an undersized project into the 14th pick overall in the 2008 NFL Draft. He has had seven players drafted by the NFL in his coaching career.

Center Joey Bailey has worked with Caldwell the past five years, and he thinks Caldwell is ready for the pressure of coaching in the SEC. He sees a coach so committed to his players that men he hasn't taught in 20 years still call or drop by to talk with Caldwell, yet a man so competitive he can't wait to get back onto the field after a loss.

``He knows football in and out. He works hard as anybody I think in the nation making sure we're prepared. He knows everything the defense is going to do before they do it. He knows everything our offense should do. Without a doubt, he's ready,'' Bailey said.

``He might not like to admit it. He's a very humble man. But without a doubt, he's ready to do it.''

Johnson did his best to prepare the program for his departure with all the schedules and plans in place for this fall.

But this is a program that went 2-10 in 2009, finishing the season on an eight-game skid. The Commodores must improve an offense that ranked 110th nationally, averaging a mere 16.3 points per game in a number that was much worse against SEC competition.

Caldwell may tweak Vanderbilt a bit here or there. But the coach groomed by the same men who taught Johnson doesn't have the time to make wholesale changes.

``I'm who I am. I've been coaching for a long time. Some say I've gotten too soft in my old age, but I look forward to the challenge,'' he said.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite.  Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight.  With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites.  As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).

Midwest

#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler

The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April.  Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT.  After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games.  Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season.  As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers.  Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS).  Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field.  With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.

#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV

As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year.  If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season.  As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well.  This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons.  Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late.  There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games.  It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.

East

#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown

“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season.  Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU.  They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games.  With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field.  Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense.  Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc.  The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range.  Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.

#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC

The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country.  Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times.  Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter.  UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen.  UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS.  An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games.  This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS.  USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types.  An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough.  USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS.  They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12.  When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.

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