Clark Lea lays out vision for what he’s looking for from Vanderbilt fans after upsetting Virginia Tech

After his Commodores upset Virginia Tech 34-27 at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea called on his fanbase to show up in numbers for all future home games – something that they didn’t do on Saturday.

"We want to build a team that inspires people to show up,” Lea said postgame to reporters . “I want a stadium that's filled with black and gold. It wasn't today."

The Commodores blew a two-touchdown lead in the fourth quarter but were able to force overtime. Vanderbilt successfully contained Hokies quarterback Kyron Drones and forced a turnover on downs for the win.

Lea said the game was “personal” to him and lauded his Commodores for their efforts.

"This is all personal to me,” Lea prefaced before saying, “I'm proud of the way this program has modeled consistency. I'm proud of the fight."

Diego Pavia proves to be a difference-maker for Vanderbilt

The undisputed star of the afternoon was New Mexico State transfer QB Diego Pavia, who went for 294 all-purpose yards and was responsible for three touchdowns – including the game-tying score with 1:51 left in the fourth quarter and the game-winner in overtime.

Following the heroic effort, Pavia had a word for the haters: criticize him when he isn’t on top.

“Some people from over there called me a poor man’s Trace McSorley. When you stop me, then you can talk,” Pavia said postgame.

McSorley has been in the NFL for five years on various teams, so being compared to the former Penn State quarterback is barely an insult. Any athlete takes offense to the term “poor man’s” anything, though.

In Week 1, Pavia was rich with timely touchdowns and big gains on the ground. Criticize him at your own risk.