College baseball creates chaos, both on and off the field. For the Tennessee Volunteers, they’d been accustomed to consistency in recent seasons under Tony Vitello. With Vitello in the MLB now, all eyes are on Josh Elander.

Coming off a series sweep defeat to the Vanderbilt Commodores, vibes aren’t very high for the Vols under Josh Elander currently. Some fans are concerned, but a former star player is not.

Drew Beam urges patience with Josh Elander’s Vols team

College World Series champion Drew Beam is still supporting Elander, regardless of the Vols’ slower than expected start to this season. He pinpointed early season struggles in 2023 as a reason to think the season can be turned around in Knoxville this year.

“They also seem to forget in 2023 we lost 2-3 opening weekend. Then started SEC play 5-10, got swept by Missouri, lost back to back series to LSU and Florida, then swept by Arkansas. Twitter freaked out. Then the team got to Omaha. Winning ain’t easy in this game. There’s time.” — Beam via Twitter/X

They also seem to forget in 2023 we lost 2-3 opening weekend. Then started SEC play 5-10, got swept by Missouri, lost back to back series to LSU and Florida, then swept by Arkansas. Twitter freaked out. Then the team got to Omaha. Winning ain’t easy in this game. There’s time.

— Drew Beam (@drewbeam_) March 30, 2026

Baseball can be a game of momentum, so even a couple of big wins this weekend or a strong next couple of weeks can make a massive difference for this Vols squad who have showed flashes of major upside.

Beam also challenged Vols fans to show up in a major way this upcoming weekend. Tennessee will take on LSU in a matchup no one saw coming as one between two unranked reams entering the season.

Tennessee needs a home series win, and a sweep could truly be a leaping off point for Elander and instill confidence back into the fan base.

And while I’m at it, I think there’s no better weekend than this one to break the attendance record. Big ole beautiful stadium should be at max capacity. It’s understated how much the energy from Vol Nation affects the play on the field. No better time to show out than now. https://t.co/NG88Zov4NM

— Drew Beam (@drewbeam_) March 30, 2026

The former stud pitcher isn’t shying away from his alma mater’s new head coach, and he trusts him to continue building the Vols program on the diamond. We will see if he is proven correct in the long run.

Tennessee Volunteers News

Former Tennessee Vols baseball standout Andrew Fischer pulled off a feat that hasn’t been seen in MLB in 3 years

Former Tennessee Vols baseball infielder Andrew Fischer has had quite the spring. Fischer represented Italy in the World Baseball Classic, hitting .357 with a home run and five RBIs in four games. The former Vol has also had a solid spring training with the Milwaukee Brewers. Fischer, a first-round pick by the Brewers in 2025, […]

Zach Ragan March 22, 2026

<iframe id=”totalpoll-iframe-2140″ src=”https://atozsports.info/?post_type=poll&p=2140&embed=1″ frameborder=”0″ allowtransparency=”true” width=”100%” height=”600″></iframe>