Vanderbilt finally commands respect in the SEC

Vanderbilt is 3-0 for the first time since 2017. They are ranked No. 20 in the AP Top 25 poll for the first time since the 2013 season when they were ranked 25 with a 5-2 record.

The Commodores beat the 11th-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks 31-7 in dominating fashion. LaNorris Sellers left early in the game after a targeting call against linebacker Langston Patterson. The score was only 14-7 but with Sellers out, it was downhill from there for SC's offense. 

Vanderbilt had its first winning season since the 2013 season when they finished 9-4 last season. That year, they won the BBVA Compass Bowl 41-24 against Houston. Last year, they finished the year 7-6 after they defeated Georgia Tech in the Birmingham Bowl 35-27. To add to that, they upset the top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide at home 40-35. Nick Saban choked on his comments earlier that week after saying Vanderbilt is the only place that’s not hard to play in the SEC. The Tide rolled home with a major loss.   

Clark Lea was hired as head coach in December 2020. Since being hired, the Vanderbilt alum has turned the program from a laughingstock to being a potential College Football Playoff contender.

Quarterback Diego Pavia, who transferred from New Mexico, has been the key piece to the start of a new beginning in Nashville. Pavia finished the season with 59.4% completion percentage, 2,293 yards with twenty touchdowns, four interceptions, and a 143.5 passer rating. Pavia had the second-highest passer rating in the SEC. He added 193 carries for 800 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns.