Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea was irate with the SEC officiating crew during Saturdayβs college football rivalry game against Tennessee. His quarterback was hung out to dry on back-to-back plays, which sparked a bench-clearing brawl and led to an angry tirade.
The whole thing went down when the Commodores had the ball just before halftime.
Sophomore signal-caller A.J. Swann took a nasty hit on what was ultimately ruled a dead play. Vanderbilt was called for a false start. Swann appeared to pull up when the flag was thrown.
Officials should have stopped the game as soon as the penalty occurred. They did not, so the Volunteers got a free shot at the quarterback.
That did not go over well with the visitors, who cleared the sideline after the following play.
Multiple punches were thrown during the brawl. A few helmets were tossed into the air. There was a lot of pushing and shoving.
Here is how it looked on the SEC Network broadcast:
Things eventually settled down and play resumed. However, the SEC officials did it again.
The Commodores committed a delay of game penalty that, once again, negated the down. It happened on the very next play which, once again, was not blown dead. Swann, once again, got crushed.
Lea lost his mindβ and rightfully so!
His quarterback took big hits on back-to-back plays that never should have occurred in the first place. He had every reason to go ballistic, so he did!
Multiple Vandy staffers and an armed security guard needed to hold him back. Lea looked like he was ready to swing on the field judge, like his players did on the Volunteers just moments prior.
There is a group of people that will point at Clark Lea, who was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct, and question the example that he is setting for his team. They are wrong.
Lea took matters into his own hands and stood up for his guys. Thatβs a great example.