Within the midst of a historic season for Vanderbilt, the college agreed to a brand new contract with coach Clark Lea with the intention of conserving Vanderbilt aggressive with the highest of the SEC.
Per ESPN sources, Lea has a brand new six-year deal to stay the Commodores coach. This comes amid a busy teaching cycle the place Lea drew curiosity from a number of high-end suitors with open jobs.
Lea and Vanderbilt agreed to the deal this week, and it features a vital wage improve for Lea. It additionally contains quite a few belongings to proceed this system’s upward pattern, together with further assets for each employees and services.
Lea has led No. 14 Vanderbilt on a outstanding ascent the previous two seasons. This yr, he is led Vanderbilt to a 9-2 file and a 5-2 mark within the SEC, as Vanderbilt is a part of the School Soccer Playoff dialog with an opportunity to get to 10-2 at No. 19 Tennessee this weekend.
Final season, Vanderbilt rattled off a collection of firsts in program historical past, together with a first-ever win over a No. 1 staff after they toppled Alabama. It marked the primary time since 1955 that Vanderbilt beat Alabama and Auburn in the identical season.
Vanderbilt’s turnaround got here in sync with a employees overhaul after a 2023 season that noticed the staff go winless within the SEC. That included the hiring of New Mexico State offensive coordinator Tim Beck in the identical function and New Mexico State head coach Jerry Kill in a chief consulting function.
That led to the switch of dynamic quarterback Diego Pavia, who has spearheaded the tradition change on the sector for the Commodores.
Following Lea’s extension, sources advised ESPN’s Eli Lederman that Vanderbilt is predicted to accentuate its efforts to flip five-star Georgia quarterback commit Jared Curtis earlier than the early signing interval opens subsequent week.
Curtis, ESPN’s No. 1 pocket passer within the 2026 class, is from Nashville and will have the chance to compete to start out from Day 1 with the Commodores subsequent fall. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound passer has been the top-ranked member of Georgia’s incoming recruiting class since Might.
Lea is a longtime profitable defensive coach, who took over in Vanderbilt in 2021 after the Commodores went winless in 2020. He got here from Notre Dame, the place he labored underneath Brian Kelly. Lea is a protegee of Texas A&M coach Mike Elko, who he labored underneath at each Wake Forest and Notre Dame when Elko coordinated at these stops.
The robust monetary dedication to Lea, his employees and facility upgrades is consistent with Vanderbilt’s latest newfound dedication to high-end athletics underneath Candice Lee, as the college is pushing by means of greater than $300 million in athletic facility upgrades on campus.
Lee is a Vanderbilt alum, and the college has labored exhausting to channel assets to remain aggressive within the SEC.
Vanderbilt continues its season of uncommon air this weekend, as its solely two losses are at Alabama and at Texas. The Commodores have wins over South Carolina, Missouri and LSU, which had been all ranked on the time.
Lea is a Nashville native and Vanderbilt graduate.