Despite junior quarterback Quinn Ewers having arguably one of the best first-half performances of his Texas career, penalties in the second half nearly erased all efforts to make Saturday a close 27-24 win over Vanderbilt.
Ewers made 17 straight passes within the first half before breaking his stride with a minute left in the second quarter, nearly beating his own record for most consecutive completions, topped at 19. He capped it off with a total of 211 passing yards and completed 19-of-21 passes for a 90% pass completion rating before halftime.
Ewers threw his far-too-usual first-quarter interception, a tipped pass picked off at the Texas 35-yard line and ending in Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia scrambling for the first touchdown of the game.
Instead of letting the Commodores get away with the celebration of an early lead, Ewers ignited a completely different side of himself than what Texas fans saw in his previous two matchups.
On the following drive, Ewers completed all eight passes alongside a pass-off to sophomore running back Quintrevion Wisner to find the endzone with a short three-yard touchdown catch by junior wide receiver Matthew Golden.
The Texas defense shut down Vanderbilt’s answering drive in just five plays, while Ewers took even less time to set his team up for success on his next possession. Ewers connected with sophomore wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. in the corner of the endzone for a 27-yard touchdown reception after three plays.
Despite failing to convert a picked-off pass by senior safety Michael Taaffe into another scoring run at the top of the second quarter, Ewers refused to let his offensive rhythm die out. He found Moore once again off a short pass and the wide receiver took off for 20 yards to haul in another touchdown for Texas.
It was safe to say that the Longhorns were outshining a team laced in gold headed into halftime up 21-10 on the Commodores, but it wouldn’t last forever.
A pick followed by a pass interference call on Taaffe late in the third quarter gave away 15 yards to Vanderbilt on a 4th-and-7 and paved the way for a Commodores touchdown to make it a one-score game.
After two unsuccessful drives, the Longhorns were granted another interception late in the fourth quarter, bringing the hope of a dominant win back to the Texas fans who traveled to Nashville. But a holding penalty on senior tight end Gunnar Helm turned a 1st-and-10 into a 1st-and-20, and Texas was held to another field goal, the score now looming at 27-17.
On the next drive, freshman defensive back Kobe Black would make it two turnovers for Texas in the fourth quarter as he caught an interception and raced for the endzone. Black was reluctant to celebrate his run when he heard the whistle blow for a flag, and a targeting call on Vernon Broughton eliminated the play, setting the Commodores ahead 15 yards for an automatic first down.
Texas suffered six penalties for a loss of 65 yards in the second half and lost a total of 108 yards on penalties throughout the entire game.
Pavia redeemed his interceptions by completing two passes to graduate tight end Eli Stowers, resulting in a Vanderbilt touchdown with less than a minute left.
The Longhorns were still able to come away with the tight 27-24 win, receiving their third-ranked win this season. Texas will have its second bye week before facing off against Florida at home on Nov. 9.
