The Vanderbilt football team pulled off the upset of the season so far in college football on Saturday as they knocked off #1 Alabama. The Crimson Tide were obviously huge favorites coming into this game, but they were clearly sleepwalking a bit after their big win over Georgia the week prior. Alabama was favored by 22.5 points, but Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia was able to lead the Commodores to a 40-35 victory.

Vanderbilt got off to a fast start in this one as they led 13-0 in the first quarter, but no one really thought the Commodores could pull it off until they fought off the Alabama comeback to take a 40-28 lead late in the fourth.

The Crimson Tide went down the field quickly after that to make it 40-35, but there wasn't a ton of time left. The Vanderbilt football team just needed to get some first downs to burn the clock. Diego Pavia kept things real with his teammates in the huddle.

“So when we got the ball back, when they scored and we were up by five, I said ‘hey, two first downs, we win this game, you change your life forever,'” Pavia said during an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show. “That’s just the reality, you change this program's life forever. So we were hyped, I said no dumb penalties, we can’t get behind the sticks, just play smart, play fast let’s go do this thing. Then first play hits for a 1st down, I said shoot, we might need three first downs.”

Pavia was correct when discussing the significance of this victory. Vanderbilt has consistently been of the worst football teams in the SEC, and they just knocked off Alabama, the team that has dominated the conference for nearly the last 20 years. And, they did it right after the Crimson Tide took down #2 Georgia. That was a life-changing victory, and it shows by how popular Pavia has gotten since this game happened. He is now a household name for college football fans.

Diego Pavia and Vanderbilt were impressive on that final drive

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The pressure was on for Diego Pavia and the Vanderbilt football team on that final drive. Alabama had their timeouts, the two-minute timeout, and their offense had been clicking. What the Commodores were able to do to burn the clock was extremely impressive.

Everyone was assuming that they were going to run the football to force the clock to run and force Alabama to take their timeouts, but they were playing to win. They did what the things that had worked for them all day, and they continued to work on that final drive. What a finish, what a win.

That was a disastrous loss for Alabama after beating Georgia the week before. The Crimson Tide were in prime position to make the SEC title game, but things are looking a lot different now. Alabama has four ranked teams left on the schedule, so it won't be easy.

Vanderbilt improved to 3-2 on the season with the win, but they very easily could be 5-0. A double OT loss to #7 Missouri and a 36-32 loss to Georgia State are stinging right now.

The Commodores are hoping to pick up another big win this upcoming weekend at Kentucky. The game will kick off at 7:45 ET from Kroger Field in Lexington, Kentucky, and the game will be airing on the SEC Network. The Wildcats are currently favored by 14 points.