Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia had a great college career.
This past season, he threw for 3,539 yards and tossed 29 touchdowns, which led the SEC. His completion percentage was an amazing 70.6%. That also led the SEC. Yet,
draft sites and scouts aren’t giving him any love regarding April’s NFL draft.
He is ranked #178. That is the very bottom of the fourth round.
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Vanderbilt finished their 2025 season with a 10-3-0 record and one game out of first place in the conference with a 6-2-0 mark. But they couldn’t beat Texas and Alabama in critical conference play. However, they did thump their rival, Tennessee 45-24.
Pavia placed second in the Heisman Award balloting. He was named the SEC Offensive Player of the Year and won the Unitas Golden Arm Award.
Yet, his Vanderbilt media guide states he is 6’-0” and weighs 207 pounds. Now a participant at the Panini Senior Bowl, the first bit of business is to weigh and measure players. And they measure almost everything. For Pavia? 5’-9 7/8” and 198 pounds. In person, he looks it.
One thing a great QB needs is the ability to see over his own offensive linemen and the height of the defensive line, trying to plant him into the turf.
Pavia took the difficult road to success. He and his three siblings were raised by a single mom who worked two jobs. He grew up in the desolate section of South Valley in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It wasn’t murder central, but it was up there per capita.
Dawgs by Nature staff writer Barry Shuck is at the Senior Bowl this week. He interviewed Pavia at this event as one of six quarterbacks in attendance.
QB Diego Pavia (5’-10”, 198 pounds)
Vanderbilt
Ranking: #178 (Round 5)
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Shuck: Starting out at the JUCO level, you led New Mexico Military Institute to the National Championship in 2021, then you headed to New Mexico State. What were your beginning stages like?
Pavia: Coming out of high school, I didn’t have any offers. Coach (Jerry) Kill took a chance on me. It was my first FBS offer, although Coach Prime gave me an offer to become the backup at Jackson State. In my first big college game, I didn’t play well, but finished the season winning some games. The next year, we went 10-1. But when I hit the transfer portal, no one wanted me. Washington State and Nevada finally offered.
Shuck: How did you end up at Vanderbilt, which is an all-academics school?
Pavia: I had to go back to New Mexico State and take 21 credits in the spring and pass all of them in order to play in the fall. I had committed to Nevada, but Coach Kill called me from a vacation in Mexico and told me he was going to Vanderbilt and would be taking me with him. I am a loyal dude. He took a chance on me once, and so I had to take the opportunity.
Shuck: The NFL has this size/height stigma about quarterbacks. At Vandy, you played at a Heisman level. Why wouldn’t an NFL draft you and see what you can do on the field first?
Pavia: I can win wherever I go. Just give me a chance. I just want an opportunity. That’s just how I feel, deep inside. I’m a true competitor. At all costs, I’m going to beat you out. It’s a testament to wrestling.
Shuck: You are a very humble man. You finally get to winning at Vandy, and the accolades begin. How were you able to remain modest?
Pacia: I do yoga and grounding, and it would bring me back to earth. I would live on a high Saturday night and Sunday film study. So, on Monday, I would do yoga. After that, transition and reset.
Shuck: NFL teams are physical tool entities. What is your selling point to them, and what do you want to prove here at the Senior Bowl?
Pavia: What I can do is rally the troops, and let’s bang on Sunday. Us versus you, and see who’s better. And I have what it takes between the ears. I know when to check plays, I know what’s coming, I know pre-snap. I study a lot of film.
Shuck: You are known to be a confident guy. What’s your vision for what comes next?
Pavia: I think one thing, is all I can ask for is a fair opportunity. That’s all I want. I’m a competitor, and this is all I have ever dreamed of as a kid, playing football. Obviously, it’s going to be up to a GM or a head coach. I’m going to give it all I got and earn the respect of the people in the locker room.
