College Corner: MTSU Football, Vandy Volleyball, Belmont’s Kenny Sidwell

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MTSU Beats San Diego 25-23 At 2022 Hawaii Bowl

Photo: Courtesy of Middle Tennessee Athletics

Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) football pulled off a major comeback at the EasyPost Hawai’i Bowl. The team secured a 25-23 win over over San Diego State off of Zeke Rankin‘s 37-yard field goal at the Clarence T.C. Ching Complex on Dec. 24.

Trailing 14-0 after the first quarter, MTSU caught a spark on defense, taking advantage of two SDSU turnovers to regain momentum. Decorian Patterson secured his seventh interception of the season and Christian Dixon ripped the ball right out of Jalen Mayden’s hands to set up MTSU’s first touchdown of the game, a 8-yard strike from Chase Cunningham to Jordan Ferguson. Rankin added two field goals to take MTSU into the locker room down just one point, 14-13.

The teams traded field goals in the third quarter to push the score to 17-16, and the Blue Raider defense came up big again, with Ferguson securing an interception. Two fourth quarter Jack Browning field goals, the final of which coming from 52-yards out, would give SDSU the 23-22 lead with 5:43 to play.

But Rankin’s clutch boot from 37-yards out with 2:09 to play retook the lead for MTSU, 25-22. A big sack from Zaylin Wood pushed SDSU into a 4th and 24, and Teldrick Ross picked up the fumble of the hook and ladder to secure the win.

 

 

Vanderbilt Names Anders Nelson As Volleyball Coach

Anders Nelson. Photo: Tommy Quarles for University of Kentucky Athletics

Vanderbilt has named Anders Nelson as the head coach of its newly announced volleyball team. Nelson has been rising through the ranks and led Kentucky to a NCAA national championship, being the first SEC volleyball program to win a national championship.

This past April, Vanderbilt announced the addition of volleyball as its 17th varsity sport. The program was originally discontinued after the 1979-80 academic year.

“It is a unique honor to join the Vanderbilt family as the first head volleyball coach of this new era,” Nelson says. “From the beginning of my lifelong relationship with volleyball, I learned to value not only the thrill of competition but the opportunity to influence how young people see themselves and the world around them.” He continues, “Challenging and supporting student-athletes to be their best on the court unlocks their potential off the court. To build an SEC program on those principles, in a vibrant and dynamic city, at a world-class university like Vanderbilt is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I’m grateful to Chancellor Daniel Diermeier and Candice Lee for entrusting it to me.  There is so much to do before 2025, and I can’t wait to get started.”

As Kentucky’s head coach, Nelson not only led the Wildcat’s to a 2022 National Championship, but extended a streak of winning at least a share of six consecutive SEC championships. He will lead a Commodore program that begins play in the 2025-26 academic year.

Nelson, 35, spent the past 11 seasons at Kentucky, first as an assistant coach and as associate head coach for the past seven seasons. The Wildcats reached the NCAA tournament in each of his 11 seasons in Lexington, and progressed to at least the second round on all but one occasion. In his seven seasons as associate head coach, Kentucky compiled a 117-11 record in official SEC matches and won at least a share of six conference titles, including a perfect 18-0 record in 2018.

 

 

Former Belmont Coach & Administrator Kenny Sidwell Dies

Former Belmont University coach and administrator Kenneth “Kenny” Sidwell passed away on Sunday (Dec. 25) at the age of 86.

A Cave City, Kentucky native who was inducted into the Belmont Athletic Hall of Fame in 1993, Sidwell was a coach and administrator for the university for five decades. He arrived at Belmont in 1962 to be the head coach of the men’s basketball team. Sidwell also took on the duties as head baseball coach. After a five year stint at Tennessee Tech, he returned to Belmont in 1972 to serve as head basketball coach for a second time.

After two seasons, he gave up his coaching duties to become dean of students for the university under then president, Herbert Gabhart, a position he would hold for 15 years. In the early 1990s, Sidwell would become the first full-time Director of Athletics at Belmont, as he helped navigate the school’s move from NAIA to NCAA Division I in 1996. He later served as the school’s Director of Compliance before retiring in 2006.

Sidwell graduated from Tennessee Tech as the school’s all-time leading scorer, and he maintains dozens of Golden Eagle and OVC all-time records. He is a member of three Halls of Fame: the Belmont Athletic Hall of Fame, the Tennessee Tech Sports Hall of Fame, and the Kentucky High School Sports Hall of Fame.

Sidwell is survived by his wife Margaret, his son Tommy (Suzanne), and two grandchildren.

Steven Boero
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