Vanderbilt football strolled into Austin ready to put a new stamp on its fast-rising season. A win over Texas would boost Vandy's ranking, and increase its College Football Playoff chances. But the Longhorns stunned Vanderbilt on Saturday.
Texas set the tone in torching the Commodores on a 75-yard touchdown for the opening points. The win now catapulted the Longhorns to No. 13 and will likely hear its early CFP ranking on Tuesday.
Vandy, however, is left picking up the destructive debris Texas caused to its Southeastern Conference title game and CFP pursuit.
Who earns the blame here? Time to dive into what went wrong for the Commodores down at Darnell K. Royal Stadium.
Big Vanderbilt star underwhelmed before late spark versus Texas
Diego Pavia walked in earning a new chance to cement his growing Heisman Trophy candidacy.
But Texas manhandled Pavia and his team out the gate, jumping to a 17-0 first quarter lead. Pavia took a huge sack on the opening drive that stalled the opening Vandy drive.
The dual-threat quarterback and the offense then punted on the subsequent possession before nailing a field goal on the third drive. Vanderbilt didn't create a long drive until toward the end of the second quarter with a 10-play sequence.
Pavia didn't catch fire until the fourth — leading three touchdowns including two through the air. The beloved Vandy star showed his resiliency but it wasn't enough in the end.
The transfer portal addition settled for 365 yards and three touchdown throws while adding 43 rushing yards on 14 carries. This loss still puts a slight halt on the Heisman hype.
Commodores defense exposed
Arch Manning was supposed to be the QB with the fading Heisman chatter.
But Manning ignited a comeback tour…by shredding and exposing the Commodores defense.
Manning knifed through Vandy in throwing for 328 passing yards. He ended up earning the highest passing grade among SEC QBs. Manning even extended plays and looked poised doing so.
Arch Manning seems to be settling down after a rough start to the season.
He’s on fire early vs. #9 Vanderbilt: 8-11, 144 yards, 2 TDs. pic.twitter.com/uLAhDCDTac
— uSTADIUM (@uSTADIUM) November 1, 2025
Manning averaged 9.9 yards per completion — but completed passes between 11 and 75 yards eight times.
But Manning was most skilled at exposing Vanderbilt's short-to-intermediate defense…which is a notable flaw on Vandy. Bubble screens and quick routes put the defenders on their heels right away.
Vanderbilt must help Diego Pavia
Pavia has become a folk hero in the Music City. But Saturday proved he needs more help.
He carried the ground attack in what became a dismal day there. Sedrick Alexander settled for only 11 yards and needs to improve his production moving forward. Same with Makhilyn Young, who finished with seven yards.
Vanderbilt played in shootouts too — and are 2-1 there. But the Nashville program can't rely on Pavia stacking touchdowns.
The defense never got to Manning for sacks. Worse for Pavia, he took six sacks facing the Texas defense. His offensive line must prevent anymore multiple sack outings or he won't be able to finish out the season.
Vanderbilt becoming a fraud?
Pavia unapologetically believes Vanderbilt is still a national championship contender. But contenders win the regular season games that matter the most.
Vandy hasn't consistently proven that.
Alabama blasted this team for Vandy's first loss. Texas then reentered the SEC title game picture by toppling the visitors. Vandy also defeated previously ranked South Carolina and LSU — both of which dropped out of the Top 25.
That makes Missouri the lone quality win as of now. Vandy gets one more chance to prove they can beat a top 25 team, but must go to Knoxville and upend No. 23 Tennessee to do so.
