Rece Davis reveals where he advocated for College GameDay to visit in Week 9

For just the second time in program history, No. 10 Vanderbilt will host ESPN‘s College GameDay in Nashville this Saturday for its SEC clash against No. 15 Missouri. It is the first time the show has taken place at Vandy since Oct. 4, 2008.

However, the show could have ended up elsewhere had different results occurred last weekend. During the latest edition of the ‘College GameDay Podcast,’ ESPN‘s Rece Davis revealed he advocated for the show to head to Memphis for this weekend’s showdown between the Tigers and No. 18 USF.

“Look, I had advocated for GameDay to go to Memphis prior to the Memphis loss,” Davis said. “And also, I think with it being a noon start on ESPN2, it would have complicated a trip to Memphis. That is one of the great GameDay sights we have ever had in my almost 11 years on the show. We shut down Beale Street. It was amazing.”

It looked as if the monstrous clash in the American Conference would feature USF going against an undefeated Memphis program, but it was shocked by UAB 31-24 last weekend in Birmingham. In what was the first game following their firing of Trent Dilfer, the Blazers took a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter and held on for the seven-point win.

College GameDay will highlight Diego Pavia this weekend

The show now heads to Nashville for the Commodores vs. the Tigers. Vanderbilt has climbed into the Top 10 of the AP Poll Rankings for the first time since 1947, while Missouri is coming off an overtime road victory at Auburn. In Vanderbilt‘s win over No. 10 LSU last weekend, quarterback Diego Pavia hit the ‘Heisman pose’ after scoring a touchdown.

“I didn’t see the pose, but yeah, I mean, I think he’s the best player in college football,” Lea said about Pavia. “That’s what I think. You can’t watch him play and not realize what a game-changer he is.”

In the game against LSU, Pavia threw for 160 yards and a score and ran for 86 yards and two more touchdowns. That was enough to help power Vanderbilt to a 31-24 win. It moved the ‘Dores to 6-1 on the season, suddenly a team that college football analysts will begin recognizing as a legitimate College Football Playoff contender. That’s how good he’s been. Heisman level.

“There are a lot of good players,” Lea said. “There’s only a handful, to me, that can take a game over, and he’s one of those. So he deserves all the attention, all the credit. He’s a confident guy, but he’s humble in his process. His greatest trait is his curiosity.”