Diego Pavia rushes for 2 TDs as No. 17 Vanderbilt beats No. 10 LSU 31-24

Johnnie Izquierdo via Getty Images

Vanderbilt got just its seventh win ever against a top-10 opponent as the No. 17 Commodores beat No. 10 LSU 31-24 on Saturday.

The Tigers (5-2) went three-and-out with 3:24 to go in their own territory and instead of going for the eight yards his team needed on fourth down from its own 22-yard line, coach Brian Kelly punted it away with two timeouts and the two-minute warning upcoming.

That decision backfired. Makhilyn Young broke a 43-yard run on Vanderbilt’s first play after the punt. Young’s run put the Commodores (6-1) in field goal range, and then Diego Pavia ended the game when he slid short of the goal line just ahead of the two-minute warning with LSU out of timeouts.

As it’s done all season, Vanderbilt held onto the ball as long as possible to limit LSU’s possessions. It’s a task made easier with an efficient offense and a quarterback like Pavia, who continued to make positive plays out of seemingly dead-end situations.

Vanderbilt had the ball for over 36 minutes and rushed 42 times for 242 yards. Pavia was also 14-of-22 passing for 160 yards and a TD pass to Cole Spence. 

The victory makes Vanderbilt 6-1 for the first time since 1950 and is the first for the school over LSU since 1990 and is not a surprise. The Commodores were favored over the Tigers all week, and had LSU chasing the game all day.