Who knew a scribbled notepad would lead to cranes on opening day

This afternoon the reigning national champion baseball Vols, led by now the highest paid coach in college baseball Tony Vitello, opens the season amid cranes and construction at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. 

Tennessee athletics is pouring dollars into the baseball program at a rate higher than most because one, the program has long been behind in facilities and two, a scribbled legal pad and a late night phone call landed the University and the athletic department a home run no one expected.

“We sat down and I brought a piece of paper to John (Currie),” former baseball administrator Carmen Tegano recalled. “I had scribbled on a legal pad and I had looked at some of the very successful baseball coaches at that time. Tim Corbin, the coach at Virginia, LSU and Florida. What we realized is that a lot of schools went out and got a really young and aggressive assistant coach, who wasn’t afraid to go out and recruit and work hard on that side because baseball is a lot different than other sports because you can sign 20 great players and 10 of them go to the draft. 

“When you put that criteria down and John Currie agreed there was something to that. Maybe we need to go find a young, aggressive coach and stick behind him, letting him do his thing. That’s what we did. Tony fit the bill perfectly. It was really a no-brainer. Hiring him was a lot easier than we made it out to be.” 

Looking back on it, Vitello has more than fit the bill perfectly. His record speaks for itself. His popularity is higher than any coach on Rocky Top. A true moonshot on a guy with zero head coaching experience and a blank resume when it came to running a program.

“You are never going to be ready,” Vitello said. “The timing is never going to be good. You aren’t going to have the playbook mastered. You are going to have be thrown into the fire and figure it out as you go. There’s never going to be this magic moment where you are ready. That helped me to say whenever you get an opportunity you take it and run with it.” 

Run with it is an understatement. Under Vitello, the Vols have won 80 percent of the games played at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. They have been to a super regional four-straight years. They have been to the College World Series three of the last four years. Expectations are high again as the Vols return a bevy of talent and the a championship coaching staff. 

Expectations that Vitello is comfortable with and fans have grown accustomed to. Expectations that are greater than ever because of a philosophical shift in June of 2017 that created a marriage no Vol fan expected or knew they needed.

“I love this place,” said Vitello. “I love dang near everything about it. And I just want to make sure that I’m contributing in a way that I should. And I want to make sure our guys are playing in a way that Vol fans can say ‘I’m proud of that product on the field and I want to cheer for them, I got their back regardless of wins or losses.’

“So, you win, you lose, it’s part of the deal that we signed up for literally when you sign the contract. But I just want to make sure I’m doing my part and therefore the program is doing our part to make Vol fans proud and get to see what they deserve to see.” 

If Vitello has any questions about that, a quick scan of cranes and partially erected steel in a 100+ million dollar project his program has justified should erase any thought of doubt.