More excellence from the VU Athletics Marketing Ninjas.

It's difficult to accurately measure the impact James Franklin has had on Vanderbilt's athletics programs. This mostly has to do with the fact that it is an incalculable number (I would know, I majored in the maths). Whether it is "simply" changing the mental state of the entire football program or getting the Board of Trust to buy in to the fact that ponying up a boatload of money would not only benefit the football team, but the entire Vanderbilt community (from students to faculty to staff), James Franklin's impact at Vanderbilt has been sizable and diverse.

The least surprising area of improvement under Coach Franklin? Football recruiting. Improvement was immediate in 2011, just months after his hiring. The 2012 haul was even better. High profile recruits have shown a willingness to listen to Coach Franklin's offer and commit early. Experts and opposing fans alike never thought they'd stand by their word all the way through signing day. They were wrong.

James Franklin is doing the unthinkable. In what was once (and maybe still is) considered the hardest job in all of college football, he's thriving. He flipped the script; the "hinderances" that everyone listed when trying to portray the inherent difficulty in the job? Yeah, those are now strengths. Those high profile recruits that stood true to their word on signing day this past February? They're attracting other, higher profile recruits. It is a snowball effect.

Example? Leon McQuay III. Put simply, if LQ3 were to commit to the Commodores, he would most likely be the most highly rated commit in school history.

James Franklin, y'all.

Vanderbilt Commodore sharpshooter John Jenkins today announced his decision to forego his senior year and to enter the 2012 NBA Draft.

"This was a very difficult decision for my family and I to make, but I am ready to dedicate myself fully to achieving my dream of playing in the NBA," said Jenkins. "The last three years have been the time of my life, and I will always cherish my time at Vanderbilt and the relationships I have made along the way."

Head coach Kevin Stallings said: "I'm very happy for John as he has chosen this opportunity to pursue his professional career. This is something that he wants to do and has his family's blessing. My role has been to accumulate information on where he might be drafted. I have given that information to John and his parents, and this is the decision they have made."

Jenkins leaves the Commodores 10th all time in scoring. He became the first player since 1996 to lead the SEC in scoring in consecutive seasons.

"I also would like to thank Commodore fans. It has been a blessing to play at Memorial Gym for the last three years and those experiences will be ones that I will always remember. The fans that fill Memorial Gym every night really help make Vanderbilt a special place, and leaving them is the hardest part about this decision."

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Commodore fans have had the pleasure of watching Jeffery Taylor brutally assault the laws of physics for four years now, so nothing he does mid-flight is surprising. But starting a new meme? THAT'S SO SWEDISH EAGLE.

Remember this craze? The Leisure Dive was so popular, it spawned its own website.

via www.homorazzi.com

via www.miamicitysocial.com

via images.mix.com.au

Vanderbilt Commodore wing Jeffery Taylor proudly introduces the Leisure Dunk.

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Post your pregame, in-game, and post-game comments and thoughts below. STAT-KING!