Diego Pavia’s third touchdown pass, a four-yarder to Cole Spence, lifted No. 16 Vanderbilt to a 45-38 overtime win over Auburn on Saturday in Nashville, Tenn.
Vanderbilt (8-2, 4-2 SEC) then stopped Auburn on fourth-and-7 with an incomplete pass.
Pavia went 25 of 33 for 377 passing yards and rushed for 112 on 18 carries with a score. Tre Richardson caught three passes for 124 yards and a TD. Eli Stowers had 12 receptions for 122 yards.
In its first game under interim coach D.J. Durkin, who replaced the fired Hugh Freeze, 6-point underdog Auburn (4-6, 1-6) saw quarterback Ashton Daniels go 31 of 44 for 353 yards and two TDs. He carried 18 times for 89 yards and two scores.
Jeremiah Cobb rushed for 115 yards on 16 carries.
Cam Coleman had 143 yards on 10 catches, and Eric Singleton Jr. caught 11 passes for 102 yards. Both had touchdowns.
On Auburn’s first drive, Daniels fired a 14-yard slant to Singleton for a 7-0 lead with 5:45 left in the first quarter.
Brock Taylor hit a 23-yard field goal at 13:30 after the Tigers went 70 yards to open the second, but Daniels led Auburn on another impressive series that the signal caller capped with an 11-yard keeper for a 14-3 lead.
Keldric Faulk’s fumble recovery set up Auburn’s 57-yard series that led to Alex McPherson’s 26-yard boot with 1:52 left in the half.
However, Vanderbilt’s subsequent 37-second drive — three plays, 75 yards — cut it to 17-10 after Pavia connected with Junior Sherrill on a 20-yard strike.
Auburn managed one last offensive push, and McPherson drilled a 47-yarder for a 20-10 halftime edge.
Pavia helped the Commodores start strong with a 19-yard run on their first series of the second half. Alexander’s four-yard run trimmed it to 20-17.
McPherson’s third field goal, a 38-yarder at 9:15, made it a six-point game, but Richardson grabbed a 57-yard score from Pavia as the home team led for the first time, 24-23, at 7:37 of the third.
Daniels’ dazzling dash around the left end from 16 yards gave Auburn a 30-24 lead with 1:11 left in the third, but Pavia scored from seven yards for a 31-30 lead early in the fourth and Alexander’s run made it 38-30.
However, Coleman made a pair of spectacular, one-handed catches for a TD and a two-point conversion to knot it 38-all.
