Vanderbilt hosted another nonconference matchup against Utah State on Sept. 27, emerging victorious, 55-35. With momentum flowing from their 70-21 victory against Georgia State on Sept. 20, the Commodores sailed to a smooth victory over the Aggies.
Vanderbilt’s offense did not spark until the second quarter, as the Aggies played a close game through the first 15 minutes. The ‘Dores failed to convert on their first drive and struggled to move the ball downfield in their first few possessions. However, quarterback Diego Pavia and the offense were able to move the chains in the second quarter, scoring 24 points to take a comfortable lead at halftime. The Commodores took over the game in the second half, utilizing mostly backups by the time the clock hit triple zeroes. With Vanderbilt’s last nonconference game in the rearview mirror, let’s look at some of the crucial stats that allowed Vanderbilt to take down the Aggies.
Passin’ Pavia
Pavia had a lot of success in the air on Saturday afternoon. It was his first game in a Vanderbilt jersey in which he threw for 300+ yards or more. He also finished the game with a pass completion percentage of 76.5%, threw for 5 touchdowns (career high) and had a 92.9 QBR.
Pavia had his most passing attempts of the season (34) and most completions (26) against the Aggies. Heading into Vanderbilt’s game against Alabama, the graduate quarterback has already reached 92 completions through just five games, more than half of what he had last year (177 completions). One thing is certain: he seems to feel more comfortable passing the ball in 2025.
Pavia was able to make plays with his legs, too. He rushed for multiple first downs when nobody was open downfield. The New Mexico native ended the game with 79 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. Pavia has proven himself to be a true dual-threat quarterback, and Vanderbilt’s offense has clearly benefited.
Sherrill strikes
Wide receiver Junior Sherrill had a standout performance against the Aggies. He was consistently finding open space, finishing the game with 91 yards and 3 touchdowns — both career highs. He has been a key component of Vanderbilt’s offense this year. The junior already has 17 receptions and 5 TDs throughout the season, emerging as one of Pavia’s favorite targets. Along with Pavia’s pinpoint passing, there were multiple times where Sherrill was in the right place at the right time to catch the ball. With big touchdowns on fourth down against both Alabama and Texas last year, Sherrill seems poised to continue his offensive success against strong conference opponents.
About the pass defense….
Despite Vanderbilt’s offense seeing a lot of success against Utah State, its defense struggled to stop the Aggies’ receivers. Utah State tight end Broc Lane (#87) was untouched on multiple occasions; he had 98 receiving yards on 7 receptions. Vanderbilt allowed multiple passing touchdowns in the red zone, and its secondary had a difficult time tracking down the Aggies’ receivers.
Vanderbilt must address this problem ahead of its matchup with Alabama. The Crimson Tide — with some of the best receivers in the nation in Ryan Williams and Germie Bernard — will target Vanderbilt’s secondary to move the ball. The Commodores’ pass defense statistics prove this vulnerability; the ‘Dores have allowed the 2nd highest pass completion percentage (65.5%) and number of completions (110) in the SEC. If Vanderbilt doesn’t sure up its secondary, Alabama’s receivers will make it pay.
Penalty parade
Vanderbilt racked up several costly penalties in its game against Utah State, which could be a deciding factor against Alabama if repeated. Two of these costly mistakes came from Vanderbilt’s special teams unit. The first one was a hold and the second was roughing the kicker, both as the Aggies were punting the ball away. Mistakes like these help the other team gain momentum quickly, highlighted by the Aggies scoring on the drive that was kept alive from the roughing the kicker penalty. Vanderbilt’s defense needs to remain disciplined and limit penalties this weekend against Alabama.
