Nichols: Drew Gilbert Has Delivered Before — Now Vols Must Do the Same Without Him

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — In the biggest moments, Drew Gilbert has consistently delivered.

Wright State walk-off last season? Check. Campbell home run for the lead last weekend? Check again. Emotional leadership, coveted confidence and a swagger that has spread across a Tennessee baseball team that is equal parts beloved and hated, depending on who you ask? 

24/7, 365, day-in, day-out — you know it.

He’s that dude on the field, the one with eyeblack smeared at an angle that’s just so, the one chirping from the outfield and the batter’s box whenever he disagrees with a call (or even just when he gets excited), and the one providing the greatest inspiration to marker-wearing, sunglass-rocking mini-Gilbert’s around Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

But he’s also one (of several Vols) who visits children’s hospitals, one who chats politely with fans after games, and one who — when not zeroed in on the task at hand — embodies the Midwestern kindness made famous in his native Minnesota.

He is, in a phrase, a baseball-playing dichotomy.

And on Friday, the on-field aspect of that went too far.

Too far in terms of Gilbert’s reaction to the fifth-inning strike call in question? Not necessarily, since that interpretation can be left up to each person to decide for him- or herself (so long as you watch the video and read the umpire statement below).

But too far, certainly, for Tennessee to feel fully comfortable going into Saturday’s win-or-stay-home Super Regional matchup against a Notre Dame team that rocked the Vols 8-6 — via a home run in each of the first four innings — in Game 1 on Friday.

The Vols will also be missing pitching coach Frank Anderson, who was ejected in the same sequence as Gilbert — and who will be out three games since he was ejected earlier this year, too — when he leapt from the dugout in Gilbert’s defense.

And with Chase Dollander — who noted last week Anderson’s expertise as a main reason for his coming to Tennessee — on the mound, UT will certainly miss the primary architect of this finely-tuned bullpen machine.

But even more so, the Vols will miss Gilbert: the on-field embodiment of their head coach, at least in competitive nature.

Several times, Vitello has made comparisons between himself and Gilbert in terms of persona and competitive outlook.

When asked about Vitello after the SEC Tournament championship and what attracted him to Tennessee in the first place, Gilbert responded in kind: “He’s as competitive as anyone I’ve ever met in my life. I’m really competitive too, and I know he really wants to win. I think the plan was to win right away.”

Tennessee has, from Vitello’s 2017 hiring until now, with a 10-game win streak leading into Friday night’s loss against the Irish.

Then, after being asked about Gilbert in a far different circumstance than what he’s likely accustomed to, Vitello offered similar comments as before — with a bit of an addendum this time around.

“Certainly pretty well-documented across the country that the kid likes to win,” Vitello said. “Plays with a lot of passion. At times, it’s hard to control him. I joked at Georgia Southern last year to the umpire that I don’t have control over him. I can’t be on the field with him. I wish I could. I’d kill to play with that kid.

But he let it spill over a little bit there, and that’s at their discretion what is and what isn’t. I sure enjoyed competing with him and would like to do it again. But can’t take it back.”

The only thing Tennessee can take back? Every ounce of dugout energy the Vols can scrounge to chuck toward Notre Dame ace John Bertrand, who will enter Saturday’s matchup (2 p.m. ET, ESPN) looking to simultaneously clinch his team’s third ever trip to Omaha while spoiling what was supposed to be the Vols’ first return trip to the College World Series in program history.

In such a back-against-the-wall situation, top-seeded Tennessee could sure use its centerfield spark plug.

Instead, after delivering so many times before, Gilbert will be forced to watch from home — and hope that the still-talented, still-exuberant, just-not-quite-as-feisty Vols can come through without him. 

Cover photo: Jake Nichols