Dec 27, 2024; Birmingham, AL, USA; Vanderbilt Commodores quarterback Diego Pavia (2) throws the ball against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets during the first half of the 2024 Birmingham Bowl at Protective Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

Vanderbilt Quarterback Diego Pavia Responds To Ryan Willams’ Comments

Originally posted on Vanderbilt Commodores on SI
By Graham Baakko | Last updated Jun 4, 2025 4:00 PM ET

The rematch of Vanderbilt and Alabama is still four months away from today, but there is already tension between the two schools ahead of the Commodores trip to Tuscaloosa this fall.

In a conversation with Jon Gruden, Alabama phenom wide receiver Ryan Williams talked about Alabama’s attitude ahead of October’s meeting between the Crimson Tide and the Commodores.

"Going into this game, we don't call them revenge games … we're going to kill an ant with a sledgehammer this year," Williams told Gruden. "Every game we fell short last year, we definitely got red eyes going into them (this year)."

Just hours after Williams’ words to Gruden made its rounds on social media, Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia took to Instagram to respond.

In an Instagram story post on his account, Pavia posted a screenshot of an On3 story of Williams’ comments with Gucci Mane’s “Made It (Outro)” playing in the background and highlighting the lyrics “They actin like they tough but don’t want no confrontation.”

In 2024, Vanderbilt pulled off one of the biggest upsets in college football in recent memory, and certainly the upset of the year in college football last season as the Commodores beat then-No. 1 Alabama 40-35.

Coming off a home win against Georgia, Alabama looked like a completely different team against Vanderbilt the next week. Pavia carved the Alabama defense all night last October as he completed 16 of his 20 passes for 252 yards and ran for an additional 56 yards on 20 carries.

Williams put up numbers himself as he caught three passes for 82 yards and a touchdown and ran in another touchdown late in the game.

What ultimately gave the Commodores the advantage in the game was their ability to keep the Alabama offense on the field and converting on seemingly every critical third down. In last season’s meeting, Vanderbilt had a time of possession of 41:33 of the 60 minutes in the game and converted on 66% of its third downs, going 12/18.

This season, Vanderbilt will travel to Alabama for the first time since 2022, when the Crimson Tide beat the Commodores 55-3. However, a lot has changed since then and yesterday’s comments between Pavia and Williams is sure to add a little extra flare as both teams await October’s matchup.