AUSTIN (KXAN) — Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia burst onto the national scene last year like a lightning bolt, helping the lowly Commodores go from 2-10 in 2023 to 7-6 and bowl-eligible in 2024.
It turns out he wasn’t just a flash in the pan, either.
He petitioned the NCAA for another year of eligibility and got it, giving him a chance to finish what he started. Now he has the program on his back, invigorating the school in Nashville, Tennessee, more known for its baseball team and stringent academic standards.
Vanderbilt is ranked the highest it’s been in 88 years at No. 9 with a 7-1 record headed into Saturday’s game, bright and early at 11 a.m. inside DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium.
Pavia is a stat-stuffing passer and runner who is one of the most competitive players that Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian has faced. He has thrown for almost 1,700 yards and rushed for nearly 500, making him one of the biggest dual-threat quarterbacks in the country.
So how does Sarkisian prepare for that? Like an onion, it has layers, Sarkisian said.
“One, it’s his ability to find the big receiver, the tight end [Eli Stowers], and they are very creative getting him the ball,” Sarkisian said. “Two, the triple option aspect of their offense, and his decision making. Three, the direct quarterback run game that they use. And four, the ad-lib plays that he makes. He’s very good at those. The first touchdown he scored against us last year was an ad-lib play.”
A big part of Pavia’s game is making something out of what seems like nothing. When a play breaks down, Pavia has a knack for finding the smallest of creases and somehow squeezing the most out of them. Some of it is athletic ability, but a lot of it, Sarkisian said, is his will.
“He’s the tip of the spear. He’s one of the more competitive players I’ve coached against,” Sarkisian said. “All of the praise he’s getting is well-deserved. One thing about playing quarterback is that it’s not always about the passes you throw or the runs you make, it’s about instilling belief in your teammates, organization and fan base, and Diego Pavia has done that.”
Staying disciplined on defense will be critical for the Longhorns to keep Pavia from getting into his bag. Outside defenders need to hold containment, the defensive linemen need to maintain their rush lanes and the secondary needs to keep their eyes up.
“You have to do a good job setting your edges, or else he can get on the perimeter quick,” Sarkisian said.
The game will be a homecoming of sorts for Vanderbilt running back Sedrick Alexander, the Austin LBJ product who is the all-time leading rusher in Austin Independent School District history. He has 388 rushing yards on 73 carries with six touchdowns this season.
Stowers, formerly a quarterback for Denton Guyer High School and UIL high jump champion, was a Mackey Award semifinalist last season and is a matchup problem for defenses. He’s hauled in 31 passes for 397 yards with a pair of scores thus far.
Vanderbilt’s offensive style is one of ball control, so Sarkisian doesn’t expect his offense to have the ball as much as it typically does. He’s not even sure who will take the snaps, whether it’s Arch Manning or Matthew Caldwell, but what he does know is that they’ll have to be efficient and treat every possession like it’s the last one they’ll get.
“We’re not going to go out there and run 80 plays this week,” Sarkisian said. “It’ll probably be somewhere between 50 and 65, so when you think of it that way, it’ll be about an 8-10 possession kind of game. We have to maximize possessions when we get them.”
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