Why Clark Lea extension included Vanderbilt football experience center

On Nov. 21, the day before Vanderbilt football took on Kentucky, the athletic department announced it had greenlit a project for a new football experience center.

The facility was a key request of Vanderbilt football coach Clark Lea, at the time deep in contract extension negotiations with the school. Lea's extension was officially announced a week later on Nov. 28.

According to athletic director Candice Lee, this project is an extension of the football operations center the university planned on building in 2021. She said it would include an indoor practice field, access to outdoor practice fields, a weight room, sports science center, a locker room and new offices, as well as some "added elements" that would connect the university with the community.

Vanderbilt does not currently have a football-only indoor practice facility. Its indoor practice field is adjacent to the rec center and is encircled by an indoor track. The Commodores also do not currently have a football players' lounge.

"It's an indicator of alignment," Lea said of the project. "I've talked a lot about certain ways we have caught up, and there are other ways that we still lag behind. Facilities don't get built overnight. ... Until then, it's about how we invest in this building to make it at a level of quality that supports an SEC football team and a playoff football team. Every day is performance."

Lea said he believed ground would break on the new facility about a year from now while the facility would be complete within the next three years.

In September, Lea called for urgency in building a new football operations facility.

Lea on reaction to extension with Vanderbilt football

When Lea's extension was announced, the Commodores put out a video showing a raucous reaction from players.

Lea choked up when talking about the emotional reaction.

"These are people that are called into a level of investment and sacrifice and suffering that most people would back away from," Lea said. " ... The two months leading up to that moment weren't always straightforward. Weren't always easy. As the leader of the program, I had to practice compartmentalizing the work that was so important to be done in terms of keeping a team and a staff focused on the mission and also understanding that there were factors that might take me elsewhere.

" ... Ultimately, through that process, the thing I settled on is that everyone wants what we have here at Vanderbilt. This is what makes this place special, is the people, is the heart."

Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at [email protected] or on X @aria_gerson.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Vanderbilt's Clark Lea contract extension included football experience center