Well, no one can accuse Vanderbilt of not taking its sports seriously any longer. An ambitious fundraising effort, the Vandy United Fund, boasts a $300 million investment, much of it toward athletic facilities, including an upgrade of the current on-campus Vanderbilt Stadium. Another purpose might be to convince the SEC that the Commodores are not content to continue being gridiron doormats, while reminding the league that the school is doing its part to keep pace, just in case the conference (or media rights holders) might be considering some other alternatives the next time the league's TV contract comes up for renewal.

There's hope around town that the Commodores are poised to make a big turnaround for alum and third-year head coach Clark Lea, who stewarded a three-win improvement last fall to the cusp of bowl eligibility. But there have been Vandy false alarms before in Music City, and we wonder if this might be more of the same...

Bruce Marshall's full breakdown of Vanderbilt's 2023 outlook, which includes how he's playing their win total, can be found below as part of SportsLine's preview of the SEC season.

SEC preview: Conference winner | Alabama | Arkansas | Auburn | Florida | Georgia | Kentucky | LSU | Mississippi State | Missouri | Ole Miss | South Carolina | Tennessee | Texas A&M | Vanderbilt

2023 Vanderbilt at a glance

• Last Year: 5-7 SU, 5-7 ATS, 6-6 O/U
  
• Returning Starters: Offense 8; Defense 7
• Win Total: 3.5 (Over -170, Under +140)
  

What do you need to know about Vanderbilt before locking in your SEC futures bets? And which side of their win total makes for the best play? ... Join SportsLine right now to see SEC futures betting strategy from a veteran college football expert!