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How It Happened: No. 7 Tennessee 36, Vanderbilt 23

IMG_3593by:Grant Ramey•11/30/24•

GrantRamey

Tennessee Football, Tennessee Athletics
Tennessee Football, Tennessee Athletics

NASHVILLE — Tennessee rallied from an early 14-0 deficit to beat Vanderbilt 36-23 Saturday afternoon at FirstBank Stadium, seemingly clinching a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff for the Vols.

Here’s how it happened, as it happened:

First Quarter

Vanderbilt 7, Tennessee 0 (14:47): Vandy needed just 13 seconds to go 100 yards for a touchdown. Junior Sherrill took the opening kickoff back for a touchdown giving the Commodores an early 7-0 lead.

Vanderbilt 14, Tennessee 0 (10:22): The disastrous start for Tennessee continued on its second offensive snap, when Dylan Sampson fumbled at the Tennessee 26-yard line. Vanderbilt recovered the fumble and scored seven plays later on a 4-yard run from Sedrick Alexander to take an early 14-0 lead.

Vanderbilt 14, Tennessee 7 (8:48): Tennessee had to answer and the Vols did just that. Dont’e Thornton caught a 28-yard touchdown pass to get Tennessee on the board, capping a five-play, 73-yard touchdown drive. Sampson started the drive with a 28-yard run and Nico Iamaleava threw to Chris Brazzell for 21 yards on third-and-14 on the play before the touchdown.

Vanderbilt 17, Tennessee 7 (4:01): Vanderbilt answered the UT touchdown with a nine-play, 61-yard drive that ended with a 32-yard field goal from Brock Taylor to get the lead to 10. Vandy converted on third-and-eight early in the drive and later got a 15-yard facemask penalty on the Vols. 

Second Quarter

Vanderbilt 17, Tennessee 10 (8:33): Max Gilbert’s 50-yard field goal hit the crossbar and bounced through to get the Vols back within seven points, ending a six-play, 21-yard drive. The Vols had third-and-three set up before the field goal attempt, but was called for back-to-back false starts.

Tennessee 17, Vanderbilt 17 (6:38): Tennessee took over at its own 9-yard line after forcing Vanderbilt’s first punt of the day. Two plays later, the game was tied. Iamaleava threw an 86-yard touchdown to Thornton to tie the game at 17-17. The play gave Thornton 114 receiving yards on two catches with two touchdowns. 

Third Quarter

Tennessee 31, Vanderbilt 17 (8:43): Iamaleava stayed hot to start the second half, throwing a 14-yard touchdown pass to freshman receiver Mike Matthews to get the lead to two touchdowns, at 31-17. The opening drive of the third quarter covered 75 yards in 13 plays, taking 6:17 off the clock.

Tennessee 33, Vanderbilt 17 (1:10): Jackson Ross pinned Vanderbilt on the 4-yard line and Tennessee’s defense did the rest, recording a safety on a 5-yard tackle for loss from Tyre West. 

Fourth Quarter

Tennessee 36, Vanderbilt 17 (8:24): Max Gilbert connected on a 22-yard field goal midway through the fourth quarter, giving the Vols points on five of six drives since the start of the second quarter.

Tennessee 36, Vanderbilt 23 (5:56): Vandy got back in the end zone on a 31-yard pass from Diego Pavia to Richie Hoskins. The drive went 63 yards in four plays to get the Commodores back on the board. Boo Carter made the tackle to deny Vandy on its two-point attempt.

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