Skip Bayless emphatically calls out Nick Saban after Vanderbilt upset of Alabama

The reactions continue to come in after Vanderbilt pulled off the upset of the 2024 college football season, stunning No. 1 Alabama in Nashville. One came from alumnus Skip Bayless, who emphatically called out Nick Saban.

Bayless penned multiple posts on social media celebrating the game, which Vanderbilt won 40-35. He thanked both Clark Lea and Diego Pavia in the process, but he also called out Saban for his comments about Vanderbilt being a tough place to play – or, rather, not a very tough environment.

“AND THANK YOU, NICK SABAN, FOR SETTING THE TONE FOR THIS BY SAYING TWO WEEKS AGO THAT THE ONLY PLACE IN THE SEC NOBODY FEARS PLAYING IS AT VANDERBILT,” Bayless said. “LOOK AT US NOW, SABAN.”

Saban’s comments quickly resurfaced following the game. During a regular appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, he talked about the tough environments in the SEC and called Vanderbilt an outlier – although not in a good way.

“The only place you’re going to play in the SEC that’s not hard to play, Vanderbilt,” Saban said. “When you play at Vanderbilt, you have more fans there than they have, and that’s no disrespect to them, it’s the truth. When we played in Nashville, we had more fans, Alabama fans, than what they had Vanderbilt fans.”

Bayless called Saturday’s affair the “greatest upset I’ve ever rooted for” as Vanderbilt improved to 3-2. That’s already more than the Commodores had last year, and Pavia led the way. He completed 16 of 20 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns in the air while also adding 56 rushing yards on the ground as Alabama had trouble stopping the option.

“MY SCHOOL VANDERBILT JUST PULLED OFF THE GREATEST UPSET I’VE EVERY ROOTED FOR IN MY LIFETIME: VANDERBILT 40, NO. 1 ALABAMA 35,” Bayless wrote. “THANK YOU, DIEGO PAVIA. THANK YOU, CLARK LEA. THANK YOU, COMMODORES FOOTBALL TEAM.”

Vanderbilt put together a complete performance to pull off the stunner on its home field. The Commodores totaled 418 yards of offense, but the defense made one of the biggest plays of the day when Randon Fontonette picked off Jalen Milroe and took it to the house for a touchdown. It was quite the day in Nashville, and the celebration was only just beginning.

The goalposts came down afterward and were apparently making their way to Broadway. That came after fans stormed the field – and, amid the celebration, Pavia shared an emotional (and also NSFW) reaction to the upset.

“It’s literally all God’s timing,” Pavia said. “Literally, from the jump. God gave me a vision when I was a little kid. And He don’t let back any promises. It’s God’s timeline. I’m super thankful. Super thankful for guys like Eli Stowers. Man, that kid’s are incredible. The rest of our team. I mean, look at this. Look at this. Vandy, we’re fucking turnt!”