There are upsets in college football, and then there are upsets like the Vanderbilt Commodores taking down the Alabama Crimson Tide at home, no less.
Quarterback Diego Pavia and Vanderbilt put together the game of their lives on Saturday, defeating top-ranked Alabama 40-35. This incredible victory in Nashville, Tenn., was Vanderbilt’s first-ever win over Alabama. As the final seconds ticked off the game clock in the fourth quarter, Commodores head coach Clark Lea reveled in sideline hugs.
Let’s set up some historical benchmarks about this victory. Vanderbilt had not beaten Alabama in football in 40 years. What’s even more amazing is that the Commodores had lost their previous 60 games—that’s 6-0, fans—to Top Five teams.
Vanderbilt Commodores Make Key Plays
Lea now coaches his alma mater and Pavia joined him after they both were together at New Mexico State. Pavia happened to secure the Southeastern Conference Player of the Week award after his Week 1 effort. But Saturday, in front of a not-packed home stadium? The Vanderbilt Commodores just might build a statue in his honor.
“This is the dream, right here,” Lea said. “And for the next 12 hours, I’m going to enjoy the dream. We’ve got more ahead of us, but this is what Vanderbilt football needs to be about: Big wins on big stages. We’re going to go get some more.”
Vanderbilt now goes to 3-2 overall, 1-0 in SEC play. Alabama, who will now fall in The Associated Press Top 25 poll on Sunday, is now 4-1 overall, 0-1 in SEC play.
Vanderbilt has a 99.9% chance of beating Alabama as the two teams hit the two-minute timeout. pic.twitter.com/juU5EPMjYU
— Barrett Sallee 🇺🇸 (@BarrettSallee) October 5, 2024
Sedrick Alexander had two rushing touchdowns for Vanderbilt. Randon Fontenette pulled off a Pick-6 against Alabama starting quarterback Jalen Milroe, who was outplayed by Pavia. Vanderbilt scored the game’s first 13 points, The Associated Press reported. At one point, the Commodores led by 16 points, their largest lead over the nation’s No. 1-ranked team.
A Milroe touchdown put Alabama within 30-28, but Alabama proved to be too sloppy. This is DeBoer’s first season to be Alabama’s head coach after legendary coach Nick Saban stepped down. Crimson Tide fans are going to be upset about the way Saturday’s game went down at Vanderbilt.
Early Lead Helped Vanderbilt Get Jump
The Vanderbilt Commodores jumped out to a 23-7 lead. That was just the second time in 10 seasons that a No. 1 team happened to trail an unranked opponent by 16 or more points. Clemson trailed by 18 to Boston College in 2020 and won 30-28. But on this Saturday, Alabama did not rally and could not muster a comeback.
SCENES AT VANDY AS NO. 1 GOES DOWN!
VANDERBILT SHOCKS THE COLLEGE FOOTBALL WORLD WITH ITS FIRST WIN OVER BAMA IN 40 YEARS! pic.twitter.com/Rzumabs75E
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 5, 2024
Vanderbilt held the lead all the way through the game. The Vanderbilt Commodores kept the ball for more than 42 minutes, not giving Milroe and the Crimson Tide offense time to click. Yes, Alabama put together a 312-252 yardage advantage on offense. Still, Vanderbilt could look at Alabama at the end and point to the scoreboard.
“Games like this change your life,” Pavia said.
Look for Georgia, Ohio State, or Texas to be back in the No. 1 spot in the AP poll. Alabama has a lot of work to do when it comes to cleaning up its mistakes on offense and defense.
Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer speaks with the media following the Crimson Tide’s 40-35 loss to Vanderbilt. pic.twitter.com/2AgS7JxZ0E
— Alabama Crimson Tide | AL.com (@aldotcomTide) October 6, 2024
Speaking of Nick Saban, he had a rather interesting quote on Sept. 20. Saban makes a weekly appearance on The Pat McAfee Show ahead of when Saban, who is an ESPN analyst, and McAfee appear on ESPN’s GameDay show.
“The only place you play in the SEC that’s not hard to play is Vanderbilt,” Saban told McAfee. “When you play at Vanderbilt, you have more fans there than they have. That’s no disrespect to them. That’s just the truth.”
As time ticked off the clock, Vanderbilt played the Saban quote over the loud speaker. Commodores fans rushed the field, eventually pulling up the goal posts and removing them from FirstBank Stadium. Videos on social media showed those fans taking the goal posts onto a nearby busy street.
It’s going to be a wild Saturday night in Nashville for college football fans.
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