What's changed since Vanderbilt's Kevin Stallings era began
The sports world has changed a lot since the Kevin Stallings era began at Vanderbilt, and now it’s over.
Stallings coached his first basketball game at Vanderbilt on Nov. 23, 1999, a 72-55 win over Belmont. Vanderbilt had good reason to keep him around, as he earned 332 victories and seven NCAA Tournament appearances. But 17 seasons at one school is a long time.
Just how long has it been since Vanderbilt had a new basketball coach? Here are some fun facts about what the world – and especially the sports landscape – was like when Stallings took over the Commodores in November 1999.
Kevin Stallings leaves Vanderbilt for Pittsburgh
SEC basketball: There have been 33 SEC men’s basketball coaches since Stallings’ debut at Vanderbilt. When he started in 1999, the other SEC coaches included Alabama’s Mark Gottfried, Auburn’s Cliff Ellis, Ole Miss’ Rod Barnes, Mississippi State’s Rick Stansbury, South Carolina’s Eddie Fogler, LSU’s John Brady, Tennessee’s Jerry Green, Florida’s Billy Donovan, Arkansas’ Nolan Richardson, Georgia’s Jim Harrick and Kentucky’s Tubby Smith.
Who could replace Kevin Stallings at Vanderbilt?
History: The day before Stallings coached his first game, Cuban boy Elian Gonzalez was spotted off the coast of Florida by the U.S. Coast Guard. His custody battle became an international affair in 2000.
NBA: Former Duke star Elton Brand had just started his Co-Rookie of the Year season as the No. 1 pick of the Chicago Bulls. With the second-to-last pick of that 1999 draft, the Spurs picked a mostly unknown Argentinian guard named Manu Ginobili.
Pop music: Santana and Rob Thomas teamed up for “Smooth” atop the Billboard Hot 100. It supplanted other big hits that year like Britney Spears’ “Baby One More Time,” TLC’s “No Scrubs” and Ricky Martin’s “Livin’ la Vida Loca.”
Vandy football: Needing one win for bowl eligibility, Woody Widenhofer’s Vanderbilt squad lost its final three games against Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee that November.
POLL: Who should replace Kevin Stallings at Vanderbilt?
Trump Politics: The week before Vanderbilt’s Stallings era started, Donald Trump appeared on “Hardball with Chris Matthews,” and said, “I think a perfect run would be I do no campaigning. I run only on Election Day. I get at least 51 percent in a three-way race.”
Where were they then: Will Wade, the current VCU coach and possible candidate to replace Stallings, was three days shy of his 17th birthday when Stallings coached his first Vanderbilt game. Wade went to Franklin Road Academy in Nashville at the time.
Y2K: On the day of Stallings’ second win (87-64 over UT-Martin on Nov. 27), The New York Times ran a large diagram on its Technology section of New York City’s $13 million emergency management bunker for Year 2000 crisis control.
In Memoriam: Walter Payton, the NFL’s former all-time leading rusher, died in November 1999, at age 45 of primary sclerosing cholangitis.
Prep football: Three days before Stallings’ first season tipped off, Vanderbilt Stadium hosted the Clinic Bowl, where Montgomery Bell Academy, led by quarterback Ingle Martin, routed Christian Brothers 49-15 for the Division II-AA state title.
On the screen: Tim Burton’s “Sleepy Hollow” was a box office hit and and NBC’s “Freaks and Geeks” was a new hit show.
Titans: Coming off a 16-10 win over the Steelers, two days before Stallings’ first victory, the newly-named Tennessee Titans were well on their way to a 13-3 season and trip to Super Bowl XXXIV two months later.
Campus tragedy: Massive bonfire collapsed at Texas A&M, killing 12 and injuring 27.
MLB: A month earlier, the Yankees swept the Braves and National League MVP Chipper Jones in the 1999 World Series. Also that season, Mark McGwire hit a mere 65 home runs – not quite to his 70-homer performance the year before.
SEC football: On Nov. 20, Alabama beats Auburn 28-17 in the Iron Bowl behind Shaun Alexander’s 182 yards and three TDs.
Country music: Martina McBride’s “I Love You” was amid a five-week run atop the country music charts.
Reach Adam Sparks at 615-259-8010 and on Twitter @AdamSparks.