There are only two SEC teams in the women’s college basketball top 25 — the South Carolina Gamecocks and the LSU Tigers.
South Carolina is undefeated and is on a collision course for their second national championship in three seasons.
The Tigers, meanwhile, are the defending national champions.
Those two programs are the most-talked about programs in women’s college basketball these days. While the Lady Vols are an afterthought nationally.
Tennessee hasn’t been at the forefront of the sport that the legendary Pat Summitt turned into one of the most recognizable brands in sports since the early 2010s.
And it’s far past time for that to change.
The Lady Vols have had two coaches since Summitt stepped down in 2012. Both of those coaches, Holly Warlick and UT’s current head coach, Kellie Harper, both played for Summitt. And neither have come close to recreating the magic that Summitt brought to Knoxville.
At this point, it feels like Tennessee knows what’s it going to get with Harper, who is in her fifth season leading the program. Harper has been a head coach at four different programs since 2004 and she’s never advanced past the Sweet 16. She’s a good coach, but she’s not the coach that’s going to bring the Lady Vols brand back to an elite level.