Vanderbilt football lost its 16th straight game to South Carolina with a 28-7 defeat Saturday at FirstBank Stadium.
The Commodores (6-4, 3-3 SEC) haven’t beaten the Gamecocks (6-3, 4-3) since 2008. Quarterback Diego Pavia made headlines Friday night for filing a lawsuit against the NCAA looking for an extra year of eligibility.
South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers threw the only touchdown of the first half after Pavia fumbled in the red zone. But the Gamecocks scored three touchdowns in the second half while Vanderbilt was stopped twice on fourth down.
Coming into the matchup at FirstBank Stadium, the Commodores just clinched bowl eligibility with a win over Auburn, while South Carolina upset Texas A&M the same day.
Both teams were narrowly left out of the College Football Playoff top 25 release. Vanderbilt was ranked No. 25 in the Coaches Poll and No. 24 in the AP Poll, while South Carolina received votes in both polls.
After Vanderbilt failed a fourth-down conversion at South Carolina’s 40, the Gamecocks took the ball down the field again and scored, with Sanders again providing elusive to Vanderbilt’s tacklers.
South Carolina marched down the field once again and scored a touchdown from Sanders to go back up by two scores.
Vanderbilt put together a strong drive capped off by Pavia’s touchdown run.
After getting the ball out of halftime, South Carolina scored in just three plays, including a 51-yard bomb from LaNorris Sellers to Jared Brown.
Sanders eventually found the end zone from 33 yards out to take a two-score lead.
South Carolina scored the first points of the game after a Vanderbilt fumble. Sellers led the Gamecocks down the field for a touchdown drive.
Vanderbilt was set up with exceptional field position after forcing a fumble at the South Carolina 15, but two plays later Diego Pavia gave it back with a fumble of his own. Combined with a missed field goal by South Carolina, it led to a scoreless first quarter.
SEC SHORTSEverybody come on! SEC Shorts’ Vanderbilt is strutting to West End this weekend | Estes
Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina will be televised on SEC Network. The announcers will be Dave Neal and Aaron Murray.
Vanderbilt has a 4-29 record all time against South Carolina.
Last Vanderbilt win: 2008, 24-17
Last South Carolina win: 2023, 47-6
Vanderbilt 17, South Carolina 14: This looks like a classic spot for a low-scoring game. It could go either way, but Vanderbilt has played well at home this season and that could provide an advantage.
Game lines and odds from BetMGM as of Saturday:
Vanderbilt will be without CB Mark Davis (Achilles), DL Bradley Mann (ACL) and OT CJ Williams (ankle fracture), who are both out for the season. BJ Diakite (turf toe) will also be out for the Commodores.
Forecast high in Nashville for Saturday is 71 degrees with a 30-40% chance of rain throughout the game.
Aug. 31: Virginia Tech, 34-27 win (OT)
Sept. 7: Alcorn State, 55-0 win
Sept. 14: at Georgia State, 36-32 loss
Sept. 21: at Missouri, 30-27 loss (2OT)
Sept. 28: Open
Oct. 5: Alabama, 40-35 win
Oct. 12: at Kentucky, 20-13 win
Oct. 19: Ball State, 24-14 win
Oct. 26: Texas, 27-24 loss
Nov. 2: at Auburn, 17-7 win
Nov. 9: South Carolina
Nov. 16: Open
Nov. 23: at LSU
Nov. 30: Tennessee
Aug. 31: Old Dominion, 23-19 win
Sept. 7: at Kentucky, 31-6 win
Sept. 14: LSU, 36-33 loss
Sept. 21: Akron, 50-7 win
Oct. 5: Ole Miss, 27-3 loss
Oct. 12: at Alabama, 27-25 loss
Oct. 19: at Oklahoma, 35-9 win
Nov. 2: Texas A&M, 44-20 win
Nov. 9: at Vanderbilt
Nov. 16: vs. Missouri
Nov. 23: vs. Wofford
Nov. 30: at Clemson
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Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X, formerly Twitter, @aria_gerson.
