<p>With losses in its first nine games and only a road trip to face a top-10 Georgia team left on the schedule, Vanderbilt’s football season hasn’t provided much cause for celebration.</p><p>But even though the Commodores have struggled in what could be his last gridiron go-round, Cameron Tidd is still enjoying the ride.</p><p>"My experience as a whole at Vanderbilt, I’ve loved every minute of it," the Center Grove graduate said. "I don’t regret my decision at all. This year has obviously been very strange, a lot of — mostly downs and a little bit of ups, but I just focus on one day at a time and do what I have to do to push myself forward, because that’s really all I can control."</p><p>The fact that college football is even getting played at all was not always a sure thing, although the Southeastern Conference was always among the most likely to press forward despite rising COVID-19 numbers.</p>[sc:text-divider text-divider-title="Story continues below gallery" ]<p>Throughout the uncertainty, Tidd maintained the same viewpoint — don’t worry about the things outside of your control.</p><p>"I wasn’t really getting my hopes up either way or expecting anything; I just wanted to wait and see what actually happened," he said. "I was happy we decided to go forward with the season, especially versus playing in the spring or something. I hadn’t even really thought about if it got canceled completely."</p><p>In terms of overall results, Vanderbilt’s season hasn’t provided much in the way of feel-good stories; the lone winless team remaining in the SEC, the Commodores have been getting outscored by more than 20 points per game.</p><p>But the Commodores did find themselves under the media spotlight late last month when Sarah Fuller, the goalkeeper on the school’s SEC champion women’s soccer team, joined the football team as an emergency kicker and became the first woman to compete — and first to score points — in a Power 5 conference football game.</p><p>Despite the added attention that accompanied Fuller’s arrival, Tidd and his teammates have kept going about their business as usual.</p><p>"I haven’t really felt like a lot has changed," Tidd said. "Obviously, you noticed it, it’s different than normal, but we needed her because we had no kickers. And she came in and did exactly what we needed her to do, so I don’t think we really could have asked for anything else. I’m just happy for her that she was able to break barriers and be a role model for others."</p><p>This coming Saturday’s trip to Athens, Georgia, could end up being the last time that Tidd throws on a set of shoulder pads. A fifth-year senior, he could still theoretically come back in 2021, but he’s not sure yet whether or not he will.</p><p>Tidd holds an undergraduate degree in medicine, health and society, and he’s currently taking graduate courses in marketing. There will be opportunities, whether in football or otherwise, but those decisions can wait until after the season is over. </p><p>"People have been asking me; I don’t know," Tidd says of his short-term future plans. "Technically, I could play another year, because this year doesn’t count toward your eligibility. I could go pursue the NFL, could not play football at all. I haven’t really made up my mind in any direction. </p><p>"I could go either way (medicine or marketing), or a combination of both has been a thought. It’s still kind of up in the air, but I have a lot of options."</p><p>Graduating from one of the nation’s most prestigious universities might not have paid off big in the win column this year, but it should help guarantee Tidd a fair amount of victories once his playing days are over.</p>
