COLUMBIA, S.C. — Graduate quarterback Diego Pavia produced another multi-touchdown game while the Commodore defense delivered a third-straight lockdown performance as Vanderbilt football knocked off No. 11 South Carolina 31-7 in front of a sold-out crowd at Williams-Brice Stadium on Saturday night.
The win is the first for Vanderbilt (3-0, 1-0 SEC) in a conference opener since 2011 against Ole Miss. It also snaps a 16-game skid against South Carolina (2-1, 0-1 SEC) while the 24-point margin of victory is Vandy’s largest in series history. The Dores’ last road win against an AP-ranked opponent came against none other than the Gamecocks, a 17-6 victory over No. 6 South Carolina in 2007. Head coach Clark Lea has led his team to three-straight wins of 20 points or more to open the season, the first time the program has accomplished that feat since 1930.
Pavia finished with two touchdowns and 177 yards on 18 of 25 passing, becoming the first Vanderbilt quarterback since Jordan Rodgers in 2012 to have four consecutive games with multiple passing touchdowns. Junior running back Sedrick Alexander added two touchdowns of his own, his second consecutive season scoring in each of the three opening games. On the opposite side of the ball, Vandy forced multiple turnovers for the fourth time in five games. The four total turnovers on Saturday are the most generated by the Commodores since securing four against Missouri in 2022.
Vanderbilt quieted the crowd on its opening drive, marching 73 yards in nine plays, capped off with an 18-yard pass from Pavia to Alexander. South Carolina quickly evened the score moments later on a seven-yard rush from Rahsul Faison. It was South Carolina’s lone score of the night, as Vanderbilt’s defense stifled the Gamecocks for the final 50:58 of game time.
The Commodores pushed the lead to 14-7 going into halftime after Pavia connected with junior wideout Junior Sherrill on a five-yard out route. Vanderbilt went ahead 21-7 to open the second half after a 44-yard breakaway run from sophomore Jamezell Lassiter. Lassiter now has two rushes this season, both of which have been for at least 35 yards and have resulted in touchdowns.
With 9:31 to go in the fourth, junior kicker Brock Taylor drilled a 51-yarder to make the score 24-7. It is Taylor’s 14th consecutive make, tied for the third-longest streak in FBS. Alexander added another touchdown with 5:29 remaining to finish off the scoring, his second game this season scoring multiple times.
Sophomore CJ Heard collected a season-high 12 tackles to lead the Vandy defense. Senior Nick Rinaldi paced the Dores with 2.5 tackles for a loss, including his eighth career sack, while junior Randon Fontenette added two stops behind the line of his own. Multiple defensemen set milestones against South Carolina: graduate Zaylin Wood nabbed his first interception as a Commodore, senior Bryce Cowan forced his first career fumble and senior Miles Capers and junior Jordan Matthews both had their first career fumble recoveries. Vandy held South Carolina to just 86 rushing yards, a season-low for the Gamecocks.
Vanderbilt moves to 3-0 for the first time since 2017. The Commodores return home to host Georgia State next Saturday with kickoff set for 6:30 p.m. and coverage on ESPNU.
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