Randon Fontenette describes how the vibe at Vanderbilt has changed

In just one season, the vibes around the Vanderbilt football program have completely changed.

Heading into last season, the Commodores had compiled a pitiful 9-36 (2-31) record over the prior four seasons. The 2024 campaign served as a breakthrough campaign for head coach Clark Lea and his ‘Dores however, as Vanderbilt won at least seven games for the first time since 2013 and upset No. 1 Alabama on Oct. 5.

Along with a winning football team, quarterback Diego Pavia emerged as one of the most exciting personalities in the sport. Pavia, who transferred from New Mexico State and was named the 2024 SEC Newcomer of the Year, returns this season for the most highly anticipated campaign in recent Vanderbilt history.

Commodore linebacker Randon Fontenette discussed the vibe change at Vanderbilt at last week’s SEC Media Days event in Atlanta. Fontenette, who transferred from TCU prior to last season, recorded 73 tackles, 3.5 sacks and eight TFL last season.

“Especially with [Diego] Pavia coming back, everybody knows him so it’s a lot more interactions with students walking around the campus with outsiders,” he said. “Anywhere we go with Pavia, somebody is gonna ask for a picture. It’s definitely a change in Nashville.”

Clark Lea and Diego Pavia have changed vibe at Vanderbilt in just one season

Their magical 2024 season was capped off with a 35-27 win over Georgia Tech in the Birmingham Bowl, marking Vanderbilt‘s first bowl victory since 2013. To say it’s been a long time coming would be an understatement, as there is finally excitement in Nashville (amongst college football fans) once again.

“Vanderbilt football is a chip-on-the-shoulder operation,” head coach Clark Lea said at SEC Media Days. “It’s young. It’s home to a young, hungry, scrappy team that begins each day with something to prove. We want to make life miserable for the teams we play against because of how we play the game, the energy we bring every time we step on the field.

“This is what makes us special. Not our buildings or banners. It’s our people. Our collective heartbeat relatedness is our edge. We must pay attention to the attitude of the team. We must cultivate the right mindset, and we’ve got to silence any narrative that suggests an arrival or assurance of progress. Anything that steals our attention from the present will keep us from playing to our identity and executing our strategy every time out.”

The Commodores open their highly anticipated 2025 season at home on August 30 against Charleston Southern.