Walk-on to Heisman finalist: Diego Pavia's journey fuels Vanderbilt's rise from SEC cellar

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Clark Lea can tick off all the statistics Diego Pavia piled up leading the Vanderbilt Commodores to their best season ever as the quarterback put himself all over the program's record books.

Defining what Pavia means to the Commodores is much simpler.

“This guy deserves all the attention, all the credit, all the accolades that are coming his way because he has been such an important part of the heartbeat of our team,” Lea said.

Pavia has gone from unrecruited out of high school to junior college, New Mexico State and finally Vanderbilt in 2024 through the transfer portal to become the first Heisman Trophy finalist for the charter Southeastern Conference program.

Brash and confident to the point of cockiness, Pavia is the guy rival fans hate and begrudgingly respect while the Commodores and their faithful couldn’t love him more.

“I just feel like I’m a chip on the shoulder guy,” Pavia said.

Generously listed as 6 feet tall, Pavia led Vanderbilt to its first ever 10-win season along with six SEC wins. That includes four wins over ranked programs, including three in the top 15 when the game was played, and a No. 9 ranking that was Vanderbilt's highest in The Associated Press' Top 25 since 1937.

The two losses came on the road to ranked opponents.

Pavia made quite the impression on Texas coach Steve Sarkisian after a three-point loss to his Longhorns. Sarkisian said Pavia has a knack for making plays at critical moments and deserves all the praise he gets.

“One thing about playing quarterback, it’s not always about the passes you throw. It’s not always about the runs you made,” Sarkisian said. “It’s about instilling belief in teammates, and instilling belief in your organization, and instilling belief in your fan base. Diego Pavia has done that for that program.”

Cornerback Martel Hight said Pavia walked into Vanderbilt with so much confidence in himself that it spread “throughout the entire program."

“He’s a dog,” Hight said. "So I mean, just him having that dog mentality and nobody really trusting in him or believing in him.”

Pavia ranks second nationally with 334.8 yards of total offense per game and third averaging 9.39 yards per pass attempt. He threw for 3,192 yards completing 71.2% of his passes and led the SEC with 27 touchdown passes. He also led Vanderbilt with 826 yards rushing and nine more TDs.

He became the first Vanderbilt player with at least 300 yards passing and at least 100 yards rushing in the same game with 377 yards passing and 112 yards rushing in a win over Auburn.

Then he became the first SEC player since 2023 Heisman winner Jayden Daniels to throw for more than 250 yards and run for at least 150 in a 45-24 rout of then-No. 18 Tennessee. Pavia threw for 268 yards and ran for a career-high 165 yards in that win.

“Diego Pavia is a great quarterback, we knew that coming into this game,” Tennessee linebacker Jeremiah Telander said.

This season, his impact went beyond the games themselves. Vanderbilt sold out six home games, hosted a rare visit from ESPN's “College GameDay” and had people at games from comedian and podcaster Theo Von to actress, producer and writer Reese Witherspoon.

Pavia also has worked to ensure the Commodores can build on this season, helping Vanderbilt flip five-star quarterback Jared Curtis from his verbal commitment to Georgia. Curtis signed with the Commodores last week on National Signing Day.

Lea hopes that Pavia isn't hurt in Heisman voting by Vanderbilt not playing in the Southeastern Conference title game or missing the College Football Playoff by a “razor's edge" margin. The Commodores finished 14th in the CFP final rankings.

“Statistically, he wins the award in my mind. Emotionally, he wins the award,” Lea said. “I mean this guy if you watch him particularly late in the season taking games over. He's had the most complete season of any player at that position that I'm aware of. I mean just never once hit a wall, never once hit a lull.”

Pavia hoped Heisman voters just looked at the stats.

“Numbers speak for themselves and obviously the best player in the country goes off numbers and tape,” Pavia said. “You go look at that. I feel the same way, and that's not me being cocky or arrogant. I just feel like that's point blank. I hope they see it that way.”

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AP Sports Writer Jim Vertuno contributed to this report from Austin, Texas.

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