Vanderbilt defeats Florida in the three major sports for first time in 48 years

Vanderbilt is still alive in Hoover, advancing to the SEC Baseball Tournament championship game. The Commodores took down Florida in the semifinal on Saturday, being significant for multiple different reasons. In fact, history was made throughout the athletic department, ending a nearly 50-year drought.

With the baseball win, Vanderbilt defeated Florida in the three major sports — football, men’s basketball, and baseball — in the same year for the first time since the mid-1970s. The long-time SEC East rivals have been battling each other for years and for the first time in a long time, Nashville reigns supreme.

“For the first time since 1974-75, Vanderbilt has defeated Florida in football, men’s basketball and baseball in the same academic year,” the tweet said.

Of course, football was the first box checked, with Vanderbilt winning 34-21 at home. Head coach Clark Lea was able to secure his first win against the Gators and the program’s first since the 2013 season. A significant step forward.

Jerry Stackhouse did his part twice, sweeping Florida in men’s basketball. Both came in the month of February with margins of victory of eight (Gainesville) and 16 (Nashville). You have to go back to the 2016-2017 season to find the last time Vanderbilt took both games from Florida.

Baseball was the team who got the most head-to-head matchups against the Gators. A three-game series took place on the road but there was no luck. Florida swept the series in convincing fashion in the second to last weekend of the regular season.

Another opportunity presented itself early in the SEC Tournament but again, Vanderbilt was on the losing end. Thankfully for them, a fifth game was called upon in the semifinal and was obviously the most important matchup. The Vandy Boys were on the winning end and will now face Texas A&M in the championship.

For now, we are done seeing Florida and Vanderbilt compete against one another in those three sports. Baseball is the only possibility remaining but it would have to be in spectacular fashion. Depending on how the NCAA Tournament bracket shakes out, we could get a Gators-Commodores pt. 6.

Maybe it’s a Super Regional or maybe they meet up in Omaha. With how the SEC produces in the postseason, nothing is fully ever out of the conversation.

The result will surely matter but the Commodores have finally broken a long streak and can claim something over the Gators.