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Vanderbilt shocked the college football world with its Week 5 upset over top-ranked Alabama. Commodores quarterback Diego Pavia quickly went viral after the stunning win for his NSFW interview on the field. Less than a week later, Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea's halftime speech surfaced online, and it followed a similar tone.
“You're ready to close this game out. There's nothing extra here. It doesn't take anything extra. The game is yours, guys. You f***ing set it up on a tee. Now go take it,” Lea said. “You take it by being focused, being detailed, communicating, playing our game. Stop by stop, possession by possession. The challenge is this: [be] in the present every moment. I'm not worried about anything later or anything past. [Be] in the present every moment… Let's work together. That was the word, right? Let's work together and close this thing out. You’re f***ing ready, let's go get it.”
Pavia followed his head coach with his own words before they set off for the tunnel.
“Don't let this f***ing s**t slip!” he told his teammates. “One play at a time! Be focused in your detail! Let's go!”
“You’re f*cking ready, now go get this.” – Clark Lea halftime speech.
This and “the boats are burning” will forever live in Vandy history. pic.twitter.com/FyJGTbFCV3
— Nash™️ (@nashvegas__) October 10, 2024
After trailing 23-14 at the half, Alabama scored in five plays to open the third quarter, cutting the deficit to two. However, Vanderbilt responded, as Pavia threw two touchdown passes to maintain the lead and close out the Crimson Tide.
The student body shared Pavia's enthusiasm. After the win, they carried the goalpost out of the stadium, down the street and threw it in the Cumberland River.
Where does Vanderbilt's upset over Alabama rank all-time?
The Commodores entered the game as 23.5-point underdogs. Their win marks the 40th time in college football history that a No. 1 ranked team lost to an unranked opponent. Prior to last week, No. 1 ranked teams were 134-1 against unranked opponents over the last 15 seasons. The only other upset of a top-ranked squad by an unranked opponent during that space was Texas A&M's 41-38 win over Alabama in 2021.
Vanderbilt was close to another upset win in Week 4, losing 30-27 to No. 7 Missouri in double overtime. Lea's squad enters Week 6 with a 3-2 record, beating Virginia Tech and Alcorn State but losing to Georgia State.
Vanderbilt will look to build more momentum during a road matchup with Kentucky on Saturday.
