Who is the Vandy whistler — 'worst person in the world' to SEC baseball fans? There are 2 of them

The Vandy whistler says he has been warned by ESPN, sucker-punched in the stadium parking lot and drawn rage from opposing fans on Twitter.

An LSU fan recently tweeted, “Somebody shoot the Vandy whistler please.” South Carolina fans posted that the whistler should be “executed” and “go right to hell," while another called him the "worst person in the world."

An Arkansas fan pleaded for someone to shoot a tranquilizer dart at the Vandy whistler. And a Tennessee fan on Facebook offered to buy the whistler a black and gold muzzle.

But opposing fans also pose for selfie photos with the Vandy whistler at SEC baseball games as if they’d stumbled upon a celebrity.

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So the Vandy whistler keeps whistling support for his beloved Commodores during Vanderbilt baseball games. Or, more accurately, they keep whistling.

You see, despite a common misconception in college baseball, there are two Vandy whistlers. That chirping sound that instantly identifies Vanderbilt baseball games on national TV and fuels hatred for the Commodores on Twitter every season actually comes from two men, not one.

Jeff Pack and Preacher Franklin are the Vandy whistlers. And to the surprise of their detractors, both say they mostly whistle to support their team rather than antagonize the opponents.

“I do it totally to support the team. No other reason,” Pack said. “I also try to rattle the other team’s pitcher, but that’s in helping our team.”

Vandy whistlers differ on their notoriety

The Vandy whistlers are quite different for two men sharing the same not-so-secret identity.

Pack is a 63-year-old living in Hermitage, and Franklin is a 71-year-old from Smyrna. Both are lifelong Vanderbilt fans with a propensity for whistling at sporting events, but that’s mostly a coincidence.

Franklin relishes his half of the Vandy whistler limelight. His custom-made Commodores van is emblazoned with “Whistler” on the driver’s side door. He wears a jersey with “Whistler” across the back. And he even has a pet schnauzer named “Whistler” who carries a small whistle around his neck.

Franklin has appeared in previous stories about his whistling in The Tennessean. But it took four years of arm-twisting for Pack to agree to an interview.

“Jeff doesn’t want the attention, and I understand that,” Franklin said. “But I am proud of what I’m doing because I think I’m helping our team.”

Listen closely — you can tell Vandy whistlers apart

Their whistles are distinct to the trained ear of a Vanderbilt baseball fan.

Franklin is a rapid-fire whistler, always letting loose in three quick shrieks — chirp, chirp, chirp. And his whistles are delivered throughout the game and independent of other ballpark noises.

Pack’s whistles are more structured and situational. He often uses them to lead Vanderbilt cheers when the Commodores have runners in scoring position or have two strikes on an opposing batter, and there are a few variations.

Chirp, chirp, chirp, clap, clap, clap, chirp, chirp, chirp.

At Vanderbilt home games, Pack will whistle from halfway up the grandstand behind the batter’s box, filling the infield with his chirps. Franklin sits at the far end of the Vanderbilt dugout down the third-base line, projecting his whistles into the outfield.

It creates a surround-sound effect that feels like dozens of whistlers are scattered throughout the stadium.

Whistlers say they've been threatened by ESPN, fans

Tracking down the Vandy whistlers isn’t easy. Many opposing fans think they are one person, so they’re perplexed and incensed when whistles come from different directions.

A few years ago, Pack said he was assaulted from behind by a Mississippi State fan in the parking lot outside Hawkins Field after the final game of a series. That fan, Pack later learned via Twitter, had been looking for him all weekend.

But who knows if the fan’s ears were bleeding from the chirps of Pack or Franklin?

The most publicized incident involving the whistlers occurred at the 2014 College World Series in Omaha, Neb., during Vanderbilt’s national championship win.

Pack and Franklin were whistling constantly during the game, and the ESPN microphones hanging overhead picked up every shrieking sound during the broadcast. They both say a security guard and an ESPN staff member threatened to toss them out of the ballpark if they continued whistling. An ESPN spokesperson denied that claim at the time.

At last year’s SEC baseball tournament in Hoover, Ala., a female Ole Miss fan marched over to the Vanderbilt side of the stands and told Pack that her friends back home watching the TV broadcast demanded that he stop whistling.

He replied, “Well, I want the (Mississippi State) cowbells to stop,” and kept whistling. She smacked him on the shoulder and returned to her seat. The incident gained traction immediately on social media, as nearby fans took up for the angry woman and the whistler.

At a Vanderbilt-Mississippi State game in Starkville in March, Franklin said a fan got face-to-face with him and grunted, “I’m about to knock you out.” That fan ultimately was ejected, according to Franklin.

Added Pack: “Not everybody likes the whistling. Like in Omaha (at the College World Series), 15 people wanted their picture taken with me and three wanted to punch me.”

Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin supports whistling

Some Vanderbilt fans hate the whistling. Social media, comments to Vanderbilt stadium ushers and emails to The Tennessean over the years confirm that.

But others applaud the whistlers’ vigor in uniquely cheering on their team. Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin is among them.

“As far as I’m concerned, there are a lot of things that happen at different ballparks around the country — whether it’s (cowbells ringing at) Mississippi State or (rowdy fans at) LSU or whatever — and that’s just personal to them,” Corbin said. “Anyone who has the passion and energy to sustain that type of noise throughout a game, more power to them.”

Players haven’t been polled on their thoughts about the whistling. But over the years, many have said they don’t even notice it during the game.

Rhett Wiseman, a former All-American outfielder at Vanderbilt, said he endorsed the whistling because opponents hated it so much.

“I didn’t know about the whistling until I saw (opponents’) fans tweeting and causing a scene over it,” Wiseman said. “I love that. Anytime you can upset the other team’s fans, it’s a beautiful thing.”

Pack and Franklin, both Vanderbilt fans for decades, feel like they’ve earned their voice — no matter how high-pitched it is. Franklin comes to virtually every game, home and away, and hangs around to personally congratulate players. Pack, likewise, has accompanied the Commodores from Nashville to Omaha, and he’s voluntarily prepared food at the team’s annual cookout.

“I’m a true fan. I love Vanderbilt,” Pack said. “If Coach Corbin and the players told me they didn’t want me to whistle, I’d quit it today.”

So hate it or tolerate it, the chirping will continue.

Reach Adam Sparks at asparks@tennessean.com and on Twitter @AdamSparks.

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