Idiot Tennessee Fan Makes Disgusting Remarks To Vanderbilt’s Herb Hand

Nov 17, 2012; Nashville, TN, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores running back Zac Stacy (2) slips a tackle attempt by Tennessee Volunteers lineman Jordan Williams (54) during the second half at Vanderbilt Stadium. The Commodores beat the Volunteers 41-18. Mandatory credit: Don McPeak-US Presswire

SEC fans are passionate. They (myself included) love to trumpet the size of their stadiums and the corresponding attendance, and there’s certainly no denying that football is, in and of it self, a religion in the South. However, if we’re willing to tout ourselves as passionate, it’s important to note that we’re also very stupid.

Football is, after all, a game, and while it plays such an intricate role in the American way of life, basic human decency should always come first. Unfortunately, in the SEC that’s not always the case, as evidenced by a recent bit of buffoonery where a Tennessee Volunteers fan said some rather despicable things directed at Vanderbilt Commodores offensive line coach Herb Hand.

The Tennessee and Vanderbilt rivalry has taken on a new life in the James Franklin era, mostly because Vanderbilt isn’t a doormat anymore and Tennessee has faded from relevance in the past half-decade. Franklin has been rather brash towards Tennessee, and Derek Dooley made some belittling remarks in the locker room after Tennessee beat Vandy in 2011.

That contentiousness has obviously taken on a more hostile tone among fans. However, when a Tennessee fan made it his personal mission to insult Herb Hand’s wife and accuse her of some rather unwholesome behavior, boundaries were obviously crossed.

A lot of those same SEC fans (myself not included) like to pretend like this type of behavior is a one-off of insanity. And while it’s true that every fanbase in the country has their share of idiots, if you’re going to say the SEC cares more about football than anyone else, it only makes sense that the SEC has more people who care WAY TOO MUCH about football than anyone else, as well.

Harvey Updyke is the most famous recent case of SEC fandom gone wrong. Updyke’s story is well-documented, and the most infamous Alabama fan in the country is currently serving time on a three year sentence for poisoning a pair of famous oak trees (Toomer’s Corner) on the Auburn campus.

Updyke’s incarceration certainly highlights an extreme that hasn’t been paralleled, but the type of behavior exhibited by the aforementioned douche from Tennessee isn’t exactly random behavior. As a matter of fact, it’s nearly commonplace. Especially in the SEC.

This particular instance was probably exacerbated by Herb Hand responding to the idiocy. You always hope that the coaches are able to remain above the scum-slinging, but when family is involved that’s easier said than done. It’s hard to blame someone for getting a little riled up when someone says something nasty about your wife.

If Hand had declined comment, we wouldn’t even know who this guy was (I won’t mention his name or link his Twitter, but it’s not that hard to find him if you really want to). However, sometimes it’s nice to see these types of people stood up to.

Hand essentially told the guy that he’d be happy to have a “discussion” about his comments face to face. He also called on Tennessee head coach Butch Jones for reasons that don’t quite make sense to me, but Jones and Hand worked closely together at West Virginia and perhaps Jones will revoke this dude’s status as a fan or something.

Maybe Herb Hand’s reaction alone earns this clown the sort of disdain (from both fanbases) he truly deserves. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t count on it.

If we’ve learned anything, it’s that this sort of attention usually triggers a salmon run of idiots. If anything, we’ll probably see more idiots saying nasty things about opposing coaches’ wives hoping to get a rise out of them.

It’s been said that passion breeds success. However, in the SEC, it also breeds stupidity.