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Predators Head Coach Helped Vanderbilt Students in Goalpost Parade

Everyone in Nashville celebrated Vanderbilts win over Alabama, including the Nashville Predators head coach.

Nick Horwat

Oct 5, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores fans tear down the goal post after a victory over the Alabama Crimson Tide at FirstBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images
Oct 5, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores fans tear down the goal post after a victory over the Alabama Crimson Tide at FirstBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images / Steve Roberts-Imagn Images
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While the entire college football world watched as Vanderbilt University’s goalposts were marched through Nashville to the Cumberland River, there was a little help from Nashville Predators head coach Andrew Brunette. After the Vanderbilt Commodore stunned Alabama in one of the biggest upsets in college football, students stormed the field and tore down the field goal posts.

Fans across the internet watched as the students paraded the posts through Nashville, down famed Broadway, and eventually ended up in the Cumberland River. It wasn’t just students, however, as Brunette found himself involved in the fun.

"I actually touched it," Brunette said. "It was coming right down Broadway, just outside the Apple store."

The Predators had just finished their final home preseason game against the Carolina Hurricanes. Much of the team was still in the area as the goalposts made their way through town.

Brunette stated that he helped the students keep the posts moving in their journey.

"The kids dropped it on to a car, so I kind of helped them lift it up," Brunette said. "So that was pretty cool, I at least got a little piece of it."

The shocking win was Vanderbilt’s first win over Alabama since 1984 and the first win over a No. 1 ranked school in the program’s history.

The goalposts didn’t stand a chance when Vanderbilt students rushed the field and the police escort down Broadway took over social media for a few hours. The students walked the posts nearly three miles from FirstBank Stadium to Cumberland River. Accompanied by a police escort, the trek took a little over an hour as hundreds of students, and an NHL coach, helped with an iconic celebration.

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Nick Horwat
NICK HORWAT

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