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Texas defeated Vanderbilt 27-24 on Saturday afternoon in Nashville.
It was far from a dominant performance, although the Longhorns performed better than the final score may indicate. A couple of turnovers from quarterback Quinn Ewers helped keep Vandy in the game, but the Commodores were not able to find the breakthrough moment in the second half.
Here are 3 takeaways from this win:
Texas was dominant defensively
UT’s defense couldn’t have been much better on Saturday. Vanderbilt scored 17 points, but 14 of them were scored directly off of turnovers by the Texas offense. The Commodores managed just 3.9 yards per play until their final drive of the game, which took place with the outcome no longer in doubt.
The Texas secondary was especially productive. The Longhorns registered 2 interceptions and 6 pass breakups on the night. They also had a late pick-6 that was wiped off the board due to a questionable roughing-the-passer call.
Diego Pavia finished the night 14-of-24 for 114 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions. He also had a rushing touchdown in the first half.
Turnover trends
While the defense was largely up to the task on Saturday, the Longhorns offense was not. Ewers had a couple of painful interceptions in this one, continuing a worrisome trend for him. He now has 6 interceptions on the season despite missing multiple games due to injury.
Ewers has thrown at least 1 interception in 4 consecutive games.
Penalties were also a big issue for Texas in this game. The Longhorns amassed 10 penalties for a total of 108 yards — an uncharacteristic total for Steve Sarkisian’s team. Texas entered the game averaging under 50 yards of penalties per game, which ranked 3rd in the SEC.
Charting UT’s path forward
This was an important win for Texas as it continues to march toward a potential SEC Championship Game appearance and a berth in the College Football Playoff. The Longhorns are now 7-1 overall this season and 3-1 in SEC play.
The SEC standings situation remains complicated with numerous teams still hanging around with 1 or fewer loss, but the Longhorns seem poised to be in the mix deep into November.
Texas is off in Week 10 but will be in action again at home against Florida in Week 11.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
