Vanderbilt Commodores Slide in Latest College Football Power Rankings
The Vanderbilt Commodores have had one hell of a football season in 2024, that many may not have seen coming.
After finishing the 2023 campaign with a 2-10 record and going 0-8 in Southeastern Conference play, things have changed drastically for the program and fourth-year head coach Clark Lea.
A lot of that change can be attributed to the addition of incoming transfer quarterback Diego Pavia, a senior out of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Their success this season has seen their stock rise in the eyes of many throughout the nation, but this week, despite a win over the Ball State Cardinals, the Commodores have fallen in the latest college football power rankings.
Every week Chris Vannini of The Athletic drops a new college football power rankings, and in his latest that was released on Monday, Vanderbilt slipped to 22nd on the list after ranking 21st last week.
Vandy was jumped by the 6-1 Illinois Fighting Illini, who beat the Michigan Wolverines, a conference opponent, 21-7 at home.
Despite being dropped one spot in the rankings, the Commodores have had a spectacular season thus far, and while they do still have three very tough games remaining on their schedule against the Texas Longhorns, LSU Tigers, and Tennessee Volunteers, who are all currently ranked inside the top 10 in college football, they still have more than an outside chance of becoming bowl eligible at the very least.
Sitting at 5-2 currently, Vanderbilt is only one win away from bowl eligibility, and with games against the South Carolina Gamecocks and Auburn Tigers left to play, they are more than capable of doing just that.
With the way that Vandy handled the Alabama Crimson Tide earlier in the year, it would not be at all surprising if they took down at least one of the three remaining ranked teams on their schedule.
Pavia has been a big part of their offensive success, throwing the ball for 1,391 yards with 11 touchdowns and only one interception while adding 470 yards rushing on 118 attempts with four touchdowns on the ground.
Pavia has spread the wealth amongst his receiving targets with three different players having 20 or more targets thus far (Eli Stowers, Junior Sherrill, and Quincy Skinner Jr.), but Stowers has been his favorite option with 49 targets out of Pavia's 154 attempts.
Regardless of how the rest of the season goes for the Commodores, it is still one that will not be forgotten anytime soon.
Even if the highlight is beating the Crimson Tide.
