A year ago Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia playing for New Mexico State in games that were rarely televised to a national audience. But today, he’s etched his name into the SEC history books and could very well get a statue in the city of Nashville someday.
Pavia led the Commodores to an historic win over No. 1 Alabama today, completing 80-percent of his passes in a 40-35 win. It marked the first time in Vanderbilt’s history that they defeated the No. 1 team in the nation – or any AP top-five team for that matter.
After kneeling down to end the game and seal arguably the biggest upset in the history of SEC football, Pavia was interviewed by SEC Network reporter Alyssa Lang. Pavia could hardly contain himself, dropping an f-bomb and some other expletives while talking about what an incredible experience it was.
“It’s literally all God’s timing. Literally from the jump. God gave me a vision when I was a little kid…It’s God’s timeline. I’m super thankful for guys like Eli Stowers. Man, that kid’s incredible. The rest of our team. Look at this. Look at this. VANDY WE’RE (expletive) TURNT.
“(Expletive). Games like this change your life. You know what I mean? It’s all about hype nowadays. I don’t like it like that. It’s a reality of NIL and all that stuff. Just stay grounded. Be where my feet are every single day. Tomorrow I gotta worry about Kentucky.”
“GAMES LIKE THIS CHANGE YOUR LIFE!”
DIEGO PAVIA AFTER UPSETTING NO. 1 ALABAMA 😤 @VandyFootball pic.twitter.com/IclRKTOjzw
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) October 5, 2024
Pavia was 16 of 20 for 252 yards and two touchdowns with 57 rushing yards in the win over Alabama. He led them to scores on six of the Commodores’ first eight drives and meticulously led them down the field on the final drive to get just enough yards to kneel it down for the win.
After the game, he took to X to express his love for the football program:
VANDY STUDENTS, VANDY FANS I LOVE YALL ❤️🤞
— Diego Pavia (@diegopavia02) October 6, 2024
An absolutely incredible day for Pavia and the entire Vanderbilt football program.
Related: Vanderbilt Shocks No. 1 Alabama In Historic College Football Upset