Brandon Miller Comments, Chris Beard Potential Hiring The Talk Of Nashville At SEC Tournament

NASHVILLE, TN- The talk of the SEC tournament has been the ongoing situation regarding Ole Miss potentially hiring Chris Beard and the Brandon Miller saga. It's hard to not find somebody talking about the pair of stories that have taken over the Tournament's Nashville home.

Alabama took preventive measures on Wednesday in allowing Brandon Miller to speak for the first time to local media. The school wanted to make it known that he was only going to say a few things, and not getting into details of the tragic incident.

Alabama Gets Out Ahead Of Brandon Miller Talk

I give Alabama credit, they actually did something smart in the communications department.

For the past month, Nate Oats has taken the microphone and made things difficult for the school. Whether this was his first press conference regarding the Brandon Miller situation or having to discuss the pregame introduction that sent social media into a frenzy. Now comes the hard part, which is continuing to not talk about something that isn't going away.

Brandon Miller #24 of the Alabama Crimson Tide (Photo by Brandon Sumrall/Getty Images)

Most likely, we'll get the same answer that Brandon Miller presented in Tuscaloosa on Wednesday. But don't expect anything else from the school or the star freshman. This is a homecoming for Miller, who will be playing in-front of numerous family members on Friday in Nashville. If the school can do anything to keep the pressure off Miller, it will. Which again is exactly why the school let him speak yesterday.

Now, Miller can focus on the tournament, while being able to give the same answer to reporters in Nashville, if he speaks. Again, this was tactically smart by Alabama, finally doing something right from a communications standpoint. Sure, questions are going to be asked, but they'll be shot down in a hurry.

Chris Beard To Ole Miss Chatter Has Taken Over Nashville

Not only was Ole Miss playing on Thursday, the future of its basketball program was taking center-stage, with only rumored reports to discuss. The overall sentiment is that the Rebels will have their next basketball coach very soon, with multiple outlets reporting a deal is nearly done. If so, this is smart from the Rebels side to keep this quiet until they're eliminated.

Even if it's not Chris Beard, the time is coming for a decision to be made about the future. Every person I've spoken with has a somewhat different take. Some think Beard will be good for the SEC and have the Rebels in tournament contention in the very near future. On the opposite side, there are a number of folks who think Chris Beard brings too much baggage with him.

It's hard to look past what transpired in December with his fiancé, after Beard was arrested on a domestic violence charge. Even with the charges being dropped, the police report is still available, which details what happened that night, even if Beard's fiancé Randi Trew claims police got it wrong. The DA did not pursue charges, in-part because Trew decided she did not want the process to continue.

If Ole Miss can look past that, while doing their own vetting of Beard and his exit from Texas, then this will ultimately land on them. There are numerous ways this could turn out, maybe without Beard being announced as head coach at Ole Miss.

But right not, all of the chatter in Nashville centers around the SEC adding a new coach very soon. We'll see if it comes to fruition.

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