WATCH: Vanderbilt Takes Early Lead Over Georgia Tech in Birmingham Bowl
The last impression many people had of Vanderbilt heading into their Birmingham Bowl showdown versus Georgia Tech are their three straight losses, something that likely caused pundits to pick against the Commodores since the Yellow Jackets' lasting impression was almost beating Georgia in their regular season finale.
But, since then, there has been tons of momentum going Vanderbilt's way while Georgia Tech lost some of their best players in the portal.
Diego Pavia not only was feeling healthy for this contest, but with another year of eligibility given to him by the court, there is a lot of positivity taking place in Nashville about what this program might be able to accomplish.
First things first, though, was winning this bowl game to become the first Vanderbilt team in 11 years to have a winning season.
The Commodores struck first on their second possession of the contest, going 87 yards in just under five minutes to take a 7-0 lead.
DORES STRIKE FIRST pic.twitter.com/lOf8TkQDoP
— Vanderbilt Football (@VandyFootball) December 27, 2024
Pavia was the maestro of this drive, running for a five-yard gain before finding Sedrick Alexander to move the chains on a huge third down.
He then ran for 16 the next play before connecting with Loic Fouonji on a 40-yard strike that moved the ball down to Georgia Tech's eight-yard line.
Two plays later, Pavia found Cole Spence for a touchdown that gave Vanderbilt the early lead.
So far, this has been the start the Commodores were looking for, putting together a long scoring drive to create their preferred game script that forces Georgia Tech to throw the football.
To win this matchup, they'll need their defense to continue being stout and their offense to keep moving the chains and capping off their drives with points.
