Vanderbilt was 0-60 all-time in matchups against Top 5 teams. The Vanderbilt Commodores haven’t defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide since 1984.
That’s no longer the case. On Saturday evening, Vanderbilt upset Alabama 40-35.
Alabama scored with just under three minutes remaining in the game. They fought back, but Vanderbilt stood tall and protected their victory.
Throughout the game, Alabama was just unable to keep Vanderbilt off the field. Quarterback Diego Pavia was 16-20 passing for 252 yards and two touchdowns. With under two minutes remaining, Pavia scrambled for a first down that put Vanderbilt in the driver’s seat to cap off their victory. The New Mexico State transfer has breathed life into Vanderbilt football when they needed it most.
Vanderbilt football has belief. They beat Virginia Tech earlier this season, and now they’ve pulled off a massive upset against the No. 1 team in college football. Just last week, they took No. 9-ranked Missouri to overtime. The Commodores are demanding respect, especially against ranked opponents.
New head coach Clark Lea is turning the program around in front of our eyes just five weeks into the season.
The Commodores went 0-8 in SEC games last year. This year, they just proved that there’s no slouches in the SEC, and if you find yourself asleep at the wheel, you are liable to be upset.
“I think specifically it’s speaking to just being able to reconnect with the passion I have for teaching and coaching. I’m a teacher first, competitor second,” Lea said before the season. “So feeling like I have direct responsibilities over the play and the performance on the field, building trust with players through teaching them and helping them to play the game at a higher level. All those things are energizing to me.”
This victory will undoubtedly knock the Crimson Tide out of their No. 1 spot in college football. At 4-1, Alabama is still very likely to make the College Football Playoffs despite the embarrassing loss. The same is not exactly true for Vanderbilt. They already have two losses in the young season and would need to be perfect to be named a Top 12 team in the nation by the end of the season. Lea even admitted after the thrilling victory against Alabama that this isn’t the end goal, but it’s certainly the turning point.
But honestly? Playoffs are beside the point right now. Any way you spin it, this is a massive win for a Vanderbilt program on the rise. Knocking off Alabama is never easy, but the retooling Commodores did the unthinkable against the No. 1 team in the nation.
Put a bit of respect on the Vanderbilt Commodores. They just pulled off the biggest victory in the history of their football program.
