After finishing this past season 23-10 and making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2014, the expectations for Vanderbilt seem like they would be elevated in Shea Ralph’s fourth year as head coach.

However, the increase in expectations didn’t seem to represent itself in the SEC Preseason Media Poll, as the Commodores, despite finishing sixth in the conference this past season, have been picked to finish in 10th in the SEC for the 2024-25 season.

Some may argue that the Commodores’ lower ranking in the poll is impacted by the additions of Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC, who are both ranked ahead of Vanderbilt and are projected to be two of the conference’s best teams. Even if the newcomers were removed from the poll, Vanderbilt would be ranked eighth, two spots lower than their finish from last season.

Vanderbilt is also sitting behind two teams with new head coaches, Tennessee and Kentucky, as well as Florida, which missed last season's NCAA tournament.

All of this may have come as a surprise for some, as Vanderbilt finished last season as one of the SEC’s top teams and returns the vast majority of its production from that group, as the Commodores return over 77% of their minutes played from last season.

Additionally, the Commodores retained an All-SEC Second-Team selection from last season in Iyana Moore, who did not make the cut for Preseason All-SEC. They also added in multiple impact players to their roster in former Penn State guard Leilani Kapinus, who was named to the Big-Ten All Defensive team in each of the last two seasons and five-star freshman guard Mikayla Blakes, who Shea Ralph has raved about heading into the season.

Considering this, along with the likely development of multiple returning players from last season, it would only make sense that this Vanderbilt team would see some improvement in their performance; despite what the polls may think.

While some may view this as a sign of disrespect, it can be seen as motivation or as bulletin board material when a team is predicted to take a step back from the season before. However for Vanderbilt, this is a situation that they are plenty familiar with, and recent history would suggest that this actually plays into the Commodores’ advantage.

Going back to last season, Ralph and the Commodores were projected to finish last in the SEC after an injury-riddled 2022-23 season that saw the team limp to a 12-20 record.

Not many people outside of West End believed in last year’s team, but they did by season’s end, as Vanderbilt finished as one of the surprises of the conference by finishing sixth and qualified for the NCAA tournament, even winning a game in the First Four.

Exceeding expectations, both internally and externally, has become an appreciated staple of this Vanderbilt program under Shea Ralph. This is familiar territory for this group and they thrived on it a year ago. They’re comfortable being slept on, and you could argue that they may even relish in it.