Vanderbilt was stunned on Saturday night as it dropped a game in which it was 8.5-point favorites to Georgia State.

Here's a breakdown of its offense in that loss.

What went right

In a night full of negatives, Vanderbilt found a positive in the way it was able to throw the ball down the field.

The Commodores threw for 270 yards on seven "big" plays that resulted in 158 yards.

Despite Vanderbilt's running game struggling to find answers, it often bailed itself out with Diego Pavia's arm and Eli Stowers' legs. That's a sign that things could change for the better through the air throughout SEC play.

Stowers' emergence in the abscence of Cole Spence, who was nursing a hamstring injury, was perhaps the Commodores' biggest positive of the night.

Vanderbilt also seemed to have a sense of big moments and was pesky as it attempted to mount a comeback.

It wasn't enough, though.

What went wrong

Vanderbilt fell short.

The Commodores had their chances, but couldn't get it done. Plain and simple. It stalled out far too often, it lost the time of possession battle, it lost the battle on the ground.

It looked like it lost its identity.

The way Vanderbilt started this one indicated that things wouldn't run as smoothly as they did in week one and week two. Tim Beck's offense looked flat and jarred as its first drive ended in its first turnover of the season on Pavia's fumble that Georgia State recovered deep inside its own territory.

That play would be a precursor to what Vanderbilt's offensive line play looked like the rest of Saturday night.

Vanderbilt just didn't seem to get the push from that group that it did throughout its first two games and continually failed to establish the run game against a team that it should've.

The Commodores ran for just 110 total yards on the night while going for just 3.2 (2.6 in first half) yards per carry.

Pair that with five penalties that cost them it's hard to win that way.

Bigger than all, Vanderbilt didn't do enough to win. That will haunt it for the rest of 2024 in a similar way to what its loss at UNLV did last season.

Grade: D

The downfield passing game developing as well as the responsiveness was a plus, but Saturday's result was unsatisfactory for Vanderbilt in just about every way.

Regardless of how many yards you put up or how many times you respond, you can't lose a game like that.

MVP: Eli Stowers

Stowers went for a game-high nine receptions for 110 yards and proved to be a true safety blanket for Pavia when he needed it most.

The New Mexico State transfer consistently found the open spot in the zone and racked up 60 yards after the catch on the day as he helped to keep Vanderbilt's offense afloat.

Stowers will have to continue to be an important piece for Vanderbilt's offense as it enters SEC play.