It’s Opening Day in college baseball as Tennessee begins a new era under head coach Josh Elander. On the dawn of a new era, former Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello joined SportsTalk with John Wilkerson and Vince Ferrara.
Vitello discussed Elander stepping into a new role, if it feel strange not coaching in a game today and much more. Here’s everything Vitello said.
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On not being part of college baseball’s opening weekend for the first time in a long time
“Fortunately or unfortunately, a lot of years have gone by, and they’ve gone by fast. It’s been remarkable how many people have helped me get to a position that maybe is envious of others, or at least we could call it a good position. It’s kind of a good example of teammate is not just applied to where we’re in the same jersey. It could be in a company, it could be in a family, it could be a lot of different settings, and then within a team, too. I’ve said this to you before, and I said in sincerity, like, having a good teammate in your role with the team is so important. And you know, having Woody (Jeff Wood) be the trainer that he is and doing his thing, and really being a part of the thing in a positive way, it matters a ton. So maybe I get older and maybe I’m experienced, like ole Ron (Washington), I can maybe give back to some people the way that it’s been given to me, but pretty blessed, and probably some more pinch me moments coming because of it.”
On what it is like to have Josh Elander fill out the lineup card in the renovated Lindsey Nelson Stadium after Vitello and Elander talked about building towards this moment for years
“Yeah, I think it’s important because, you know — not literally, but figuratively — somewhere he had a hammer and he put all kinds of building blocks down the left-field line, right-field line. Maybe it was behind home plate. However it is in our cartoon. Evan Russell, you know, certainly had a lot to do with the brick and mortar in left field. There’s a group of people that helped build that. And of course, you know, the fans and Danny (White) got to lead the charge with all that, too. I mean, in order to have great facilities, you got to have great support. But I think the need for the facility came out of a lot of people’s efforts, including Josh sweating on the road and coaching third base and grinding it out in the cage. He probably had that hammer and nails more days and had more impact than maybe some others, but it was truly a group effort that will need to be commemorated on that special day. And Frank (Anderson) says those guys will pitch well, and Frank’s not very positive.”
On this Tennessee team having the best semester GPA in program history despite all the distractions that came with Vitello leaving for the San Francisco Giants
“Yeah, in times of adversity, you really figure out who somebody is, and at no point — I know I was asked to and then at times I did it on my own, remove myself, to not be a distraction. Or, you know, they had to deal with certain conversations. Those guys were never in selfish mode. They were never in woe is me mode. They were never in what about this or that? They just wanted to be together as a group. They knew who they wanted their leaders to be for this spring, they knew what type of team they are, what they’re capable of, and I never saw them waver. I never got any texts or had phone calls about them wavering. And I think they have an opportunity to rally around their new home and their new stadium under a special set of circumstances.
“And you know that GPA thing is just one more thing that I think is an earmark for their character, but it also reflects how important leadership is with Meghan Anderson. If we ever need an academic quarter coordinator in Major League Baseball, there’s going to be a massive bidding war between at least the Giants and the Vols, maybe some others. But she is a very unique person. College and pro sports, the one thing that stinks about them is, Nick Saban’s a pretty good coach, but there had to be some other people behind the scenes doing some crazy good work. And actually, those guys are now winning football games as head coaches, so I guess we are seeing that a little bit. But so many good people behind the scenes, a couple of them I mentioned here that have helped make Vol baseball great, and I think it’ll be another great season for them.”
On what he would go back and tell himself when he first got the Tennessee baseball job
“Yeah, it might be calm down. I don’t know if I would have listened to that or not, and I hate to recycle an answer, but in all sincerity, what I think it would be is to enjoy things a little bit more. It’s always the next thing. And maybe you get in your car to go recruiting, but there was a kid in the parking lot, you know, Nate Sneed is there after he had a nice win, maybe a couple more sentences to show appreciation, or just to get to know the guy better, as opposed to being the hustle and bustle, always on to the next thing.
“We had some pretty remarkable wins there. Some of them, may be over celebrated, but more times than not, again, to kind of repeat the Coach Barnes thing. I think as coaches, we have a tendency to go a little too fast and be a little too quick on to the next thing instead of enjoying those small steps up the mountain that you maybe hit and then likewise, when you get punched in the mouth, like we did in Arizona a couple years ago when we had that opening weekend tournament out here and there were so many tumultuous things going on at the time with that team and with myself. I had a broken jaw. I think it’s a deal where you got to always realize with baseball, the sun’s going to come up the next day. Football, it ain’t going to come up for six or seven days. But with baseball, the sun will come up the next day. And even at Lindsey Nelson Stadium, even if it doesn’t come up and it’s raining, we got that turf, baby. So we’ll playing baseball.”
On if he’s worried about driving to Stanford to watch a game because he has an itch on college baseball opening day
“*Laughs. Possibly, I’ll tell you what I keep saying. I’m going to go over to Arizona State’s practice. They’ve got a transfer portal guy from Tennessee (Derek Schaefer), and I know those coaches and get my fix, but it’s tough with our schedule. And you know, where you really get your fix is with these young guys. I mean, Maui (Ahuna), Gavin Kilen is around, every now and then floating over to those minor league guys is a lot of fun. You get your college fix. But no, I think there’s enough on the plate where I’ll type in the right address on the GPS for now, but it is a quirky feeling this weekend, for sure.”
On if Blade Tidwell is in Arizona, what it’s like working with him again
“Yeah, Blade looks great. I was trying to tease him and get a laugh out of him during PFP today, but he was in game mode, for sure. He’s been throwing the ball well, he’s got an opportunity to make the club from day one. If not, I think he’ll be in a position where we’re trying to build him up for a specific role, or make sure he’s in a great position to come on up. But he’s in a group that’s pretty competitive. There’s a couple solidified starters and other guys that kind of have solidified roles, but the pitching staff is a very jumbled up, for lack of better way to say it, competitive group and he’s right in the thick of it. But he looks good, and I think there’s a little bit of an x-factor there where he’s got some familiarity with a couple of these new coaches.”
Offering good luck as spring training gets revved up
“Yeah, but please do keep in touch because it’s been a nice bridge that’s been available through some people and being in Tennessee, because I do miss it, for sure. And the one thing I’d like to steal your stage and say to people is I’m excited. I’m as excited as you are. There’s a big group that say they’re going to come out for spring training or maybe do a game in San Francisco, and just the fact that people are supportive of it is phenomenal, and it’s made the transition better. And, again, it’s kind of kept that bridge. And hey, loyalty is my biggest word. And you could argue, I stepped out of the situation I shouldn’t of, or I’m no longer a part of the team, and I’m cut off. I get that too. I think that that perspective is completely rational. But for those that have been so supportive and are going to come support in person, there’s no way to say thank you enough, maybe with some free gear would probably help, so I’ll work on that, but thank you to all those because it truly makes a difference, and I appreciate it.”
