Derek Mason is in Year 6 of his tenure at Vanderbilt. At this point, the team is made up of his players running his scheme.

While Vanderbilt is not a perennial power in the SEC East, Commodores fans still expect to see a competitive team every year. Mason, however, said Saturday night that success at VU comes in “waves and cycles.”

“I think, collectively, there’s a lot of talent here. Vanderbilt is always going to go on waves. It just is,” Mason told reporters. “There’s going to be cycles of bowl teams and opportunities. It’s not going to be an every year opportunity unless these guys get it young and we hit it hot. I mean, there’s going to be waves and cycles in this deal, and I’m just in a wave right now, just a wave and cycle where we’re not where we wanna be. We’ve just got to continue to keep pushing.”

The comment is not sitting well with some fans.

If Commodores fans get their wish, Mason will soon have a lot more free time on his hands. Perhaps he can go catch some waves.

Mason’s full press conference can be viewed below. (The “waves and cycles” comments come after 5:55.)