Vanderbilt honored late Tennessee beat writer Wes Rucker before its SEC battle on Saturday afternoon against the rival Volunteers, leaving a spot in the Memorial Gym press box where Rucker would’ve sat for the showdown in Nashville.
It was a big-time touch of class by Vanderbilt before its 2 p.m. ET tipoff with Tennessee, which is a key February game among programs that despise each other. But amid the rivalry, there was sorrow in the state of Tennessee, and the Commodores basketball program wanted to pay tribute to Rucker, who passed away in a car crash in Knoxville on Thursday.
Rucker was killed on Thursday night in a multi-car crash on I-40 West in Knoxville. He was only 43 years old, had a son, Hank, and was expecting another child later this year.
Vanderbilt left flowers in what would’ve been Rucker’s spot in the press box on Saturday, along with a heartfelt written message about the longtime Volunteers beat writer.
Rucker was a staple of Tennessee basketball and football, covering the Vols for WBIR Channel 10. He had been a presence at Tennessee since 2000. Rucker got into the podcast world, too, talking about the school he became synonymous with.
Another Vanderbilt-Tennessee grudge match played on at Memorial Gym, a rivalry that Rucker covered many times, and the Commodores wanted to make sure Rucker’s presence was felt on Saturday.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
