NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Virginia Tech found a way to stymie Vanderbilt’s defense for most of the second half, then Diego Pavia took over and led the Commodores to a surprise victory.

Pavia threw a touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter to tie the score and scored a touchdown run in overtime, leading the Commodores to a 34-27 victory over the Hokies in the teams’ season opener Saturday afternoon at FirstBank Stadium.

The Commodores (1-0) took a seven-point lead in overtime thanks to a 4-yard run by Pavia.

Tech, which needed to score, had to rely on backup quarterback Collin Schlee while starter Kyron Drones was struggling with cramps.

Schlee’s fourth-down attempt on Da’Quan Felton in the end zone failed, prompting the entire Vanderbilt sideline to rush the field to celebrate.

The late surge allowed the Commodores to regain the momentum the Hokies (0-1) had built in the second half and prevent Tech from recording its first road win against a non-conference Power Five opponent since 2015.

Pavia, trailing by seven points with less than 4 1/2 minutes left, led a six-play scoring drive that culminated with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Sedrick Alexander to tie the score with 1:51 left.

The Hokies’ ensuing drive featured two incomplete passes and a swing pass to Bhayshul Tuten that went out, allowing Vanderbilt to use all three timeouts in the second half.

Pavia and Alexander managed to get the Commodores to within 25 of the Hokies.

Brock Taylor, who had made field goals from 43 and 53 yards earlier in the game, fired his attempt from 43 yards wide of the field, forcing overtime.

The Commodores’ defensive looks in the first half led to the Drones and Tech offense utilizing screens and quick passes in the first 30 minutes. The Hokies were unable to establish the run and it led to the Drones not having time in the pocket to find receivers on their downfield routes.

That changed in the second half. The Hokies couldn’t fully establish Bhayshul Tuten in the run game, but the threat of Tuten running the ball gave the Drones time to pick apart the Vanderbilt defense.

Drones had 67 passing yards at halftime. He threw for 255 yards in the second half. That includes touchdown passes of 11 yards to Tuten and 62 yards to Ali Jennings.

The long touchdown pass to Jennings capped the Hokies’ comeback, giving them a 27-20 lead with 4:21 left.

Vanderbilt did just about everything right in a dominant first half, with a methodical scoring frenzy led by Diego Pavia resulting in a 17-3 lead at halftime.

The Commodores had the ball for more than 18 minutes in the first half, with their first three drives producing scores and a 17-point lead.

Tech, on the other hand, only managed to get much going on offense late in the first half.

The first two drives ended with an interception and a punt respectively, before the third drive ended with a 40-yard field goal by John Love.