BLACKSBURG — Diego Pavia threw for 193 yards and two touchdowns to lift Vanderbilt to a 44-20 victory over Virginia Tech on Saturday night.
Pavia completed 12 of 18 and threw touchdown passes of 54 yards to Brycen Coleman and 26 yards to Tre Richardson for the Commodores (2-0), who rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit and defeated Tech for the second consecutive season, leaving thousands of disappointed fans at Lane Stadium in their wake.
The Commodores used a powerful rushing attack to dominate the second half. They scored touchdowns on their first five second-half possessions, with Richardson’s excellent one-handed touchdown grab with 24 seconds left in the third quarter giving Vanderbilt its first lead.
The Commodores had 262 yards rushing and put the game away in the fourth quarter with three touchdowns, including two on runs by Sedrick Alexander.
Virginia Tech (0-2) was outgained 307 yards to 21 in the second half. Kyron Drones threw for 134 yards and a score and rushed for a touchdown to lead the Hokies.
The takeaway
Vanderbilt: The Commodores were sloppy, committing 11 penalties, committing two turnovers that led to touchdowns and missing an extra point. But they overcame their mistakes with a dominating run game and a defense that shut out the Hokies in the second half.
Virginia Tech: The Hokies, who fell apart in the second half, have lost 15 consecutive non-conference games against Power Four opponents dating to 2017.
Up next
Vanderbilt travels to play No. 10 South Carolina on Saturday.
Virginia Tech hosts Old Dominion on Saturday.
