Longhorns Country

Arch Manning, Texas Longhorns Hold on for Win vs. Vanderbilt: Live Updates

The Texas Longhorns look to secure their second Top-10 win of the season when they host the Vanderbilt Commodores.
Zach Dimmitt|
Texas Longhorns defensive lineman Alfred Collins tackles Vanderbilt Commodores quarterback Diego Pavia for a loss during the second half at FirstBank Stadium.
Texas Longhorns defensive lineman Alfred Collins tackles Vanderbilt Commodores quarterback Diego Pavia for a loss during the second half at FirstBank Stadium. | Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

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Texas Longhorns

The No. 20 Texas Longhorns will look to keep their College Football Playoff hopes when they host the No. 9 Vanderbilt Commodores in Austin.

This marks the first SEC home game of the season for the Longhorns, who have not played at home since Sept. 20 against Sam Houston. Texas has been playing away from home since then, suffering the SEC-opening loss to the Florida Gators on Oct. 4 before the three-game winning streak that included victories over the Oklahoma Sooners, Kentucky Wildcats and Mississippi State Bulldogs.

Fortunately for the Longhorns, they will have starting quarterback Arch Manning at the helm after he was removed from the injury report Friday night. He recovered in time from the concussion he suffered against Mississippi State, an injury that occured on the first play of overtime.

Texas' Path to College Football Playoff Begins Now

Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning
Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning passes the ball during the fourth quarter against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Texas will now be faced with arguably its toughest test yet up to this point in the SEC schedule, with matchups against No. 5 Georgia and No. 3 Texas A&M still to come. Despite the Longhorns' struggles this season, they still control their own destiny to the College Football Playoff and potentially the SEC Championship.

However, they will have to first contain Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, who is the second-leading rusher among SEC quarterbacks (458 rushing yards) this season while adding five rushing touchdowns. He's gone 139 of 202 passing for 1,698 yards, 15 touchdowns and five interceptions.

"He's versatile," Texas defensive lineman Hero Kanu said of Pavia. "He can run the ball, but he can also pass it, but also very confident in his game. You know, he knows when to take the ball for himself and when not to. I think he makes great decisions on the field. He can play option plays. He can run QB counters, QB lead zone, stuff like that. QB draw is very dangerous, so his game is just very broad."

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian added to this praise of Pavia, calling him "one of the more competitive players" he's coached against.

"Obviously, the quarterback is the tip of the spear," Sarkisian said. "He's one of the more competitive players that I've competed against. He's their leading rusher. He obviously passes the ball; he makes plays at critical moments when they need to have it. And so he's a guy that you know, he's getting all the praise that he's getting is well deserved. He's a very good football player."

Texas and Vanderbilt will kickoff from Austin at 11 a.m. CT on ABC.

Follow below for live updates of the game once kickoff gets underway.

Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning
Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning (16) warms up before a game against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

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Vanderbilt won the toss and has deferred to the second half. Texas will receive.

First Quarter

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TOUCHDOWN: Arch Manning found Ryan Wingo for a short completion to the right on the first play and he took it all the way down the sideline to the house for a 75-yard touchdown.

Texas 7, Vanderbilt 0

change of possession

FUMBLE: Colin Simmons sacked Diego Pavia on Vanderbilt's fourth play from scrimmage and recovered the fumble. Texas began the drive at the Vanderbilt 29-yard line.

change of possession

FIELD GOAL: The Longhorns were unable to capitalize on the takeaway and instead settled for a 39-yard field goal from Mason Shipley.

Texas 10, Vanderbilt 0

change of possession

Pavia picked up a first down with his legs after a 13-yard gain to move the chains. He then appeared to find running back Sedrick Alexander for a 33-yard gain on the next snap but the play was wiped away due to an illegal forward pass from Pavia.

Pavia then connected with Makhilyn Young for an 18-yard gain to move the chains.

Vanderbilt got to a 3rd and 1 but a holding penalty stalled the drive, forcing the Commodores to punt.

change of possession

Manning started the drive with a 14-yard completion to Wingo. Wisner then had a 13-yard run.

Texas kept the drive moving with a 14-yard catch by DeAndre Moore Jr. and an 11-yard grab by Parker Livingstone.

TOUCHDOWN: Arch Manning scrambled on 1st and goal and found CJ Baxter for a six-yard touchdown to extend the lead.

Texas 17, Vanderbilt 0

change of possession

FIELD GOAL: The Commodores put together a nine-play, 53-yard drive that ended with a 44-yard field goal from Brock Taylor.

change of possession

Manning found Wisner for a 17-yard gain on a screen pass before completing passes to Emmett Mosley V and Daylan McCutcheon for 10 and 14 yards, respectively.

TOUCHDOWN: Wisner summersaulted his way into the end zone for a four-yard score to extend the Texas lead and cap an eight-play, 68-yard drive.

Texas 24, Vanderbilt 3

change of possession

TOUCHDOWN: Pavia and Vanderbilt put together a 13-play, 75-yard drive that ended with an 18-yard touchdown grab to Eli Stowers with 11 seconds left before halftime.

Texas 24, Vanderbilt 10

HALFTIME

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THIRD QUARTER

Vanderbilt received the ball to begin the second half.

PUNT: The Commodores went three-and-out on their first possession of the second half.

change of possession

Manning found Mosley for an 18-yard gain on third down before connecting with Livingstone for a 10-yard gain on 2nd and 9.

He then found Moore Jr. for a 29-yard gain toward the left sideline before going the other way to tight end Jack Endries for a 17-yard completion.

TOUCHDOWN: Manning led an 11-play, 93-yard drive that featured some big-time throws, but none were bigger than the six-yard touchdown he threw to Mosley while getting hit in the pocket.

Texas 31, Vanderbilt 10

change of possession

MISSED FIELD GOAL: The Commodores drove to the Texas 30-yard line but missed a 48-yard field goal after an eight-play, 45-yard drive.

change of possession

Published | Modified
Zach Dimmitt
ZACH DIMMITT

Zach Dimmitt is the Deputy Editor for Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI. He also contributes as a writer for the On SI channels of the Oregon Ducks, Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans. He was previously the editor-in-chief of Buffalo Bills on SI, Philadelphia Eagles on SI and Seattle Seahawks on SI. Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, Dimmitt received his Bachelor’s Degree in journalism at the University of Texas at Austin in 2022. He originally started with SI’s Fan Nation network in 2021, providing extensive coverage of the NFL and NBA along with college football and basketball. In that time, Dimmitt has published thousands of stories and has reached millions of people across multiple fan bases. You can follow him on X at @ZachDimmitt7

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