Charleston Southern Coach Gabe Giardina Breaks Down Vanderbilt Football, Diego Pavia

As Charleston Southern coach Gabe Giardina watches his team’s week one opponent, he sees a few things that he hopes his group can emulate themselves.

Giardina leads Charleston Southern’s rebuild after its 1-11 season hoping to emulate the “deserve to win” philosophy that he says Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea has instilled “probably better than anybody.”

The Charleston Southern head coach reflects on Vanderbilt’s seven turnovers last season–which ranked No. 1 in the country–as well as their identity as the least penalized team in the SEC as things he needs to do if he’s going to build a winner at Charleston Southern.

“They’re very football savvy,” Giardina told Vandy on SI. “They’ve got a great scheme. It’s not like they’re just trying to go out there and line up and say ‘hey, we’re just better than you.’ They try to out smart you on a lot of things, too.”

Conventional wisdom would indicate that Lea’s team–which is a 36.5-point favorite in week one–is better than Giardina’s, but Lea has often harped on the reality that his group isn’t good enough to overlook anyone or enter a Saturday without adequate preparation.

Giardina and Lea are in different stages of their careers, but in a way they’ve had to learn what being successful as underdogs takes. Lea was a walk-on at Vanderbilt and has always been told he’s up against a nearly unclimbable mountain as he tries to build Vanderbilt’s program. Giardina is a former walk-on himself and had to take a Division-II job before ultimately becoming a Division-I head coach.

As Giardina looks at a fellow chip on the shoulder guy, he sees an intention to instill that within his team.

“I think coach Lea has just done a great job of creating a team that mirrors his character,” Giardina said. “There’s no situation that they seem to be out of sorts in.”

Perhaps Giardina’s claim is based in reality as a result of the quarterback that Lea has and how he’s taken hold of the program. The Charleston Southern head coach doesn’t always get a chance to watch Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia when their games overlap on Saturdays, but he’s seen enough from him to know what he’s up against.

Pavia led Vanderbilt to its turnaround from a 2-10 SEC doormat to a bowl-eligible group with confidence. Giardina believes that Pavia’s success likely isn’t a one-year wonder, either.

“Diego is a problem in a whole lot of ways to prepare for,” Giardina said. “He does things in and out of the pocket that are just special.”

Giardina also says he also takes note of a less highly regarded Vanderbilt player when he watches defensive tape of the team that his will be facing off against on Aug. 30.

If the Charleston Southern coach could pluck one player from Lea’s defense, it may be Nick Rinaldi. Giardina sees the sacks. He sees the versatility. He sees the untapped athleticism. He believes more people should, as well.

“He’s underrated to me,” Giardina said. “He’s kind of a game wrecker.”

As Vanderbilt and Charleston Southern line up in Saturday’s season opener, Giardina will likely try to scheme around Rinaldi as well as Vanderbilt’s other defensive standouts in an effort to keep his team in the game. Charleston Southern will debut a new pro-style offense in 2025 and doesn’t have much tape out there at this stage.

Even then, Giardina’s team is a 36.5-point underdog as it heads to FirstBank Stadium and is all but counted out from getting a win. Giardina says his team would benefit from watching Gene Hackman’s scene in Hoosiers in which he measures the floor and rim, lacing up the cleats and giving Vanderbilt its best.

“We’re going to have our hands full,” Giardina said, “We know that. But we’re obviously very excited to get the chance to compete.