Birmingham Bowl

Georgia Tech (7-5) vs. Vanderbilt (6-6)

2:30 p.m. CST Friday (ESPN)

Protection Stadium in Birmingham

1 The interception was thrown by Georgia Tech QB Haynes King on 236 passes this season. No other player with as many passes as King has thrown as few interceptions. Vanderbilt intercepted nine passes in 2024.

4 Wins and four losses for SEC teams and two wins and two losses for ACC teams in the Birmingham Bowl. But none of the previous games could match the conference session teams in Friday’s game.

4 Georgia Tech’s coaches posted an eight-win season in their first two years with the Yellow Jackets. All are in the College Football Hall of Fame – John Heisman, William Alexander, Bobby Dodd and Paul Johnson. Brent Key is in his second season as Georgia Tech’s coach and the Yellow Jackets enter Friday’s game with seven wins in 2024.

4 Interceptions were thrown by Vanderbilt passers this season, the fewest in a season in the Commodores’ record book dating back to 1946. The four interceptions were thrown by QB Diego Pavia, who has 277 passes this season. Nationally, only one QB with as many passes as Pavia has thrown fewer interceptions this season – Missouri’s Brady Cook, with three interceptions on 289 passes. Georgia Tech has intercepted five passes this season.

5 Major college QBs had at least 1,900 passing yards and 10 touchdown passes with no more than one interception in a season. The group currently includes Georgia Tech’s Haynes King, who has 1,910 passing yards, 11 touchdown passes and one interception in 2024. The players who finished a season with these statistics were Virginia’s Matt Blundin in 1991 and North Carolina State’s Russell Wilson in 2008, South Carolina’s Connor Shaw in 2017 and Alabama’s Jalen Hurts in 2017.

6 It’s been years since Vanderbilt played in a bowl. The Commodores lost to Baylor 45-38 in the Texas Bowl on December 27, 2018 in their last bowl. Vanderbilt has a 4-4-1 bowl record, including a 41-24 victory over Houston in the Birmingham Bowl on Jan. 4, 2014, the Commodores’ most recent bowl victory.

10 Consecutive losses for Georgia Tech against SEC opponents, including a 44-42 setback in eight overtimes to Georgia in the previous game. Georgia Tech’s most recent win over an SEC opponent is a 33-18 victory over Kentucky in the TaxSlayer Bowl on December 31, 2016. The Yellow Jackets have a 43-94 record since leaving the conference after the 1963 football season :3 against SEC opponents season. Vanderbilt has a 33-27 record against ACC opponents, including a 2-1 mark in bowls. Georgia Tech is 2-5 against SEC members in bowling since leaving the league.

14 Wins without a loss for Vanderbilt as the leader entering the fourth quarter and 32 losses without a win for the Commodores as the trailing leader entering the fourth quarter since Clark Lea became the team’s coach. Vanderbilt has a 1-1 record when the game is tied at the end of the third quarter.

26 Wins and 20 losses for Georgia Tech in bowls. The Birmingham Bowl will be the 22nd different bowl for the Yellow Jackets.

43 Vanderbilt has scored more points in the fourth quarter this season than its opponents. The Commodores have a 100-57 fourth quarter points lead in 2024. This season, Vanderbilt has outscored its opponents 320-277 – a margin of 43 points. Georgia Tech has outscored its opponents by seven points in the fourth quarter this season (105-98).

83 Years since Vanderbilt beat Georgia Tech. Since the Commodores defeated the Yellow Jackets 14-7 on October 18, 1941, Georgia Tech has beaten Vanderbilt 12 times and the teams have tied once. The Yellow Jackets have won the last six meetings. The last meeting between the teams took place on September 17, 2016, when Georgia Tech won 38-7. The Yellow Jackets lead the series 20-15-3. As SEC members, the teams met 14 times. Georgia Tech was in the league from 1933 to 1963.

259 Punt return yards for Vanderbilt CB Martel Hight, most in the SEC this season. Georgia Tech recorded 210 punt return yards, the most in the ACC this season. Hight averaged 16.2 yards on 16 returns. Georgia Tech has given up an average of 9.1 yards on 23 returns.

716 Rushing yards for Diego Pavia in 2024, the most for a Vanderbilt quarterback in a season. Pavia’s 176 rushing attempts this season include six touchdowns.