When ESPN’s “College GameDay” announced last week that its destination would be Vanderbilt, I almost fell out of my chair. Who didn’t?

It wasn’t that Vandy didn’t deserve the national attention that the show brings; they beat then-No. 13 Auburn, 14-13, to remain undefeated.

But, the Commodores and attention have never really been mentioned in the same sentence.

As a close follower of the SEC, I’ve always looked down on Vandy a little bit. It’s nothing personal, but the numbers tell why.

The Commodores haven’t been to a bowl game since 1982. Before 2008, they’ve had 25 consecutive losing seasons and a total of 12 SEC wins in the last 12 years. And South Carolina fans think they have it bad.

It’s been said that an SEC team should never lose to a school that doesn’t even have an athletic program.

Remember the look on Steve Spurrier’s face when the ranked Gamecocks were upset at home last year by the Commodores? If not, it was the same look he had a month ago when Vandy knocked off his again ranked team for only the second time in Spurrier’s SEC coaching career.

So how in the world is Vanderbilt 5-0 and ranked No. 13 in the nation? Well, at first glance, it’s hard to pinpoint. The Commodores rank last in the SEC and 116th out of 119 teams nationally in pass offense. They’re 10th in the league and 47th nationally in total defense.

Vandy is, however, protecting the football on offense and getting to the quarterback on defense.

And that’s because of coaching, which is also why Vanderbilt is garnering the attention and racking up the victories.

Coach Bobby Johnson, a former Clemson assistant and South Carolina native, arrived at Vandy in 2002 after a solid run at Football Championship Subdivision Furman.

It’s been said before this year that Johnson is one of those coaches who is a really good guy and terrific at preparing a team, but he was part of a legacy of Vandy coaches who stop by for a few years, collect a bigger paycheck than what they were making and are eventually shown the door when the losing becomes too much.

Not this time.

Johnson has battled through tough academic standards, little history, sub-par facilities and a small fan base to give Vanderbilt what it’s always lacked: passion and belief.

While losing close games in the past has shown that Vandy can be competitive, winning them now is showing what kind of coach Johnson is.

It’s hard to say how good this Vandy team really is or how far Johnson will take them this year, but the spotlight is well deserved for a coach and program that’s proving everyone, including me, wrong.

As for the future of Johnson, who knows?

The state’s native son could return home one day to take over another school in the area.