No hype is necessary for Saturday’s showdown between No. 10 Alabama and unbeaten No. 16 Vanderbilt, but a week’s worth of hot takes from players on both sides has the college football world salivating for this rejuvenated Southeastern Conference rivalry.
The buildup for Saturday’s clash in Tuscaloosa dates to last season when the Commodores notched a stunning 40-35 victory over then-No. 1 Alabama in Nashville, their first-ever win over a top-ranked foe. Afterward, jubilant Vandy fans stormed the field, tore down a goalpost and tossed it in the Cumberland River 2 miles away.
Following last week’s 55-35 home win against surprisingly tough Utah State, the Commodores – 5-0 for the first time since 2008 and 1-0 in the SEC – say they are looking forward to the challenging road trip.
“Tuscaloosa will be a good, fun time. I’ve never played there, but this is what you come to the SEC for, for big games like this,” says Vandy graduate quarterback Diego Pavia, who threw for career highs of 321 yards and five touchdowns while also running for another score against Utah State.
“There’s a lot more out there for us. And so, we’re super excited to go down to Tuscaloosa. Everyone is just on the same page and we’re just already excited. We’re going take it one game at a time, one practice at a time. So, you know, we’ll celebrate tonight and then get ready to go tomorrow.”
Unexpected slugfest
A few hours later, the Crimson Tide knocked off No. 5 host Georgia 24-21 to improve to 3-1 and 1-0. Afterward, Bama players stopped shy of calling Vandy a “revenge game” but told reporters they’re looking for a little payback against the Commodores.
“We’re not done yet. We have to go get Vanderbilt. That’s a really, really good team. We know what happened last year,” Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson says. “We have to get our minds right. … We just need to keep on trucking and make sure we don’t lose intensity. It’s playing with a chip on our shoulder. Alabama against the world. Us against the world.”
Alabama left tackle Kadyn Proctor calls Vanderbilt a worthy opponent that his team can’t overlook again.
“Vanderbilt’s a great team and they showed that last year versus us and they’re still doing their thing now. So like I said, prepare to the best of our ability. It’s all about us and what we do and not about the opponent,” he says. “We’ve got to keep it rolling.”
Second-year Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer echoes his players’ sentiments, comparing the win over Georgia to a heavyweight slugfest.
“We’ve got to make sure that we don’t forget what that chip on the shoulder was that kind of got this momentum going,” he says.
Commodore junior wide receiver Junior Sherrill, who prepped at Lipscomb Academy, and graduate safety Marlen Sewell, both say they are looking forward to traveling to Tuscaloosa and downplay how last year’s game might impact this one.
“It really doesn’t affect my confidence. You just treat it like any other game. But we’re really excited to go down there to Tuscaloosa and play a really good team,” says Sherrill, who hauled in three first-half touchdown passes from Pavia and finished with a career-high six catch for a personal-best 91 yards.
“We like to stay in a moment as long as we can. I don’t want to forecast anything because each week is a different week and we’re going to focus on taking things like that.”
Sewell predicts Vandy’s win last year won’t be a factor Saturday and that the Commodores view every opponent the same.
“I don’t think it’s any different than any other game we play on our schedule,” says Sewell, who had a team-high seven tackles against Utah State. “We don’t look at opponents, we don’t vary opponents, based on what we did in the past.
“I mean, we’re going to come in and have a fresh mindset, a next-opponent mentality. No matter who it is, we plan to dominate each and every game. So I don’t really care that it’s Alabama. It’s just another opponent on the schedule that we’re going to dominate.”
Backing up his words
Pavia, who raised preseason eyebrows for saying the Commodores’ goal is to win the national championship, is now drawing attention as a legitimate contender to win the Heisman Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top college player.
Already this season, he has put his name in the record books in multiple categories. Among the ones achieved against Utah State:
• He’s the first Vandy QB to account for four touchdowns in a half versus an FBS team since at least 1996 and his six total touchdowns tied for the most touchdowns by a Vanderbilt quarterback in a game since at least 1996, matching Mike Wright Jr. (versus Elon in 2022).
• He compiled exactly 400 yards of total offense with 321 passing yards and 79 rushing yards, marking the first time a Vandy quarterback has done that since Kyle Shurmur had 405 total yards against Tennessee in 2016.
Fifth-year coach Clark Lea says Pavia’s improvement this season has been boosted by improvements on the offensive line and the depth of his receiving corps.
“That starts with them. And then the other part of it, too, is he has the ability. And we have multiple weapons for him. The number of tools that are around him right now make him a better player, too,” says Lea, who in December led the Commodores to a 35-27 Birmingham Bowl victory over Georgia Tech, the program’s first postseason triumph since 2018.
But he doesn’t minimize Pavia’s impact on the beleaguered program’s revival that began with last year’s win over Alabama.
“He is a wild man out there in the best of ways,” Lea says. “So that’s just who he is. I love who he is.”
Lea wasn’t happy with his team’s performance against Utah State and knows it will have to play better against the Tide in Tuscaloosa.
“Look, do we need to play perfectly? No. That’s not what this team is anymore, but do we need to play clean enough to win? You know, that’s the key,” Lea says. “We’ll focus on playing better football. I mean, there’s a lot to learn from today. We know the task at hand, but we’re excited for it. This group has positioned us to be undefeated heading down there and that means a lot.”
So far, it’s been a war of words. Whoever can back those words will come out on top of another SEC slugfest.