Can Chance Fitzgerald's return to Nashville be a catalyst for his breakout? I The Anchor

Originally posted on Vanderbilt Commodores on SI
By Joey Dwyer | Last updated Jul 2, 2025 12:01 AM ET

Perhaps looking at Vanderbilt receiver Chance Fitzgerald would’ve given away his transfer portal decision this winter.

The Vanderbilt receiver expresses his love for Nashville and his upbringing in middle Tennessee with a “615” tattoo on his left arm. So when Vanderbilt called, his recruitment might as well have been over.

“It means everything to me to be back home,” Fitzgerald–a Nolensville High School product–said in the spring. “Being back in the city is one goal I had in mind going into the portal. It just means the world to me, playing in front of my family.”

Fitzgerald ventured up north to Virginia Tech as a college freshman in hopes that he’d become a factor for the Hokies, but perhaps an opportunity to return home will be the one that finally allows him to become a factor at the college level.

Despite leaving high school as a player that evaluators pinned as a projected power-five starter, Fitzgerald didn’t record a catch in his two seasons at Virginia Tech. Now he’ll be relied upon to produce in an otherwise thin wide receiver room at Vanderbilt.

“I don’t really look at it as pressure,” Fitzgerald said. “I just look at it as an opportunity right now. I think it’s a good opportunity for me to have, just being from the city and I kind of like that.”