NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - OCTOBER 26: Quinn Ewers #3 of the Texas Longhorns throws the ball against the Vanderbilt Commodores in the second half at FirstBank Stadium on October 26, 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Carly Mackler/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Texas coach Steve Sarkisian got to see his Longhorns, and quarterback Quinn Ewers, bounce back from a tough loss against Georgia last week.
Ewers shook off an early tipped pass for an interception to complete 17 straight passes on his way to 288 yards and three touchdowns Saturday, as the fifth-ranked Longhorns beat No. 25 Vanderbilt 27-24 in their Southeastern Conference road debut.
Sarkisian called this a "culture" and "toughness" win for his Longhorns.
"We knew it was going to take 60 minutes against this style of team and again, it’s always good to get a road win and like I said before, that was a good football team," Sarkisian said of Vanderbilt. "They weren’t 25th in the country on accident."
Vanderbilt (5-3, 2-2) snapped a three-game winning streak in its first game ranked in the Top 25 since the 2012 Music City Bowl. This was the Commodores’ first regular-season game as a ranked team since Oct. 18, 2008, when they played three games as a Top 25 team.
They had a chance late as Diego Pavia threw for two touchdowns after Texas went up 24-10 in the third. Pavia’s second TD pass, an 8-yarder to Eli Stowers with 46 seconds left, pulled Vanderbilt within 27-24.
Texas easily recovered Vanderbilt’s onside kick attempt to seal the victory.
"I’m heartbroken about coming up short," Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea said.
The Longhorns opened slowly as a holding penalty on the opening kickoff was followed by a tipped Ewers’ pass that was picked off by Martel Hight. Vanderbilt needed only five plays before Pavia scrambled 18 yards for a touchdown and 7-0 lead.
He threw a 3-yard TD to Matthew Golden on the Longhorns’ next drive, and he connected with DeAndre Moore Jr. for a 27-yard TD late in the first quarter for a 14-7 lead Texas never lost.
Arch Manning didn’t take a snap after getting into the game against Georgia.
"He played really well," Sarkisian said of Ewers. "If he plays like that for the rest of the year, we’re going to be okay. We’re going to be just fine."
The Texas quarterback found Moore again for a 25-yard catch-and-run up the left sideline for a 21-7 lead in the second. Ewers didn’t miss on a throw until the final minute of the first half.
Pavia threw for 143 yards and ran for 67 more and a score. After Miles Capers’ interception, Pavia tried to rally Vanderbilt finding Junior Sherrill on fourth-and-goal with a 3-yard TD pass late in the third.
Texas linebacker Liona Lefau picked off Pavia’s pass on fourth-and-2 with 5:05 left to set up Bert Auburn’s second field goal with 3:11 left.
"We obviously came up short, and that was unfortunate," Lea said.
Poll implications
Texas might not win many style points for the Longhorns’ first league road win, but Vanderbilt came in having lost its first two games by a combined seven points. An argument can be made the Commodores deserve to stick around at the bottom of the AP Top 25 after going 3-1 in October.
The takeaways
Texas: The Longhorns gave up four sacks and played sloppy with 10 penalties for 108 yards. They overcame that by outgaining Vandy 392-269.
Vanderbilt: The Commodores showed that their win against Alabama on Oct. 5 wasn’t a fluke, only losing to a top-5 team by three points. They finished October 3-1, and their three losses this season are by a combined 10 points.
Up next
Texas has an open date before hosting Florida on Saturday, Nov. 9, while Vanderbilt visits Auburn next.