Diego Pavia fell short of leading Vanderbilt to a ReliaQuest Bowl win against Iowa on Wednesday, with the Hawkeyes winning 34-27. The loss at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, mends the Commodores’ season, as Pavia continues his dispute with the NCAA over eligibility rules.
Diego Pavia Heaps Praise on His Vanderbilt Successor
Pavia faced a tough first half against Iowa’s defense on Wednesday, taking four sacks. He finished 25 of 38 for 347 yards, throwing two touchdowns and adding one rushing score. The PFSN College Football QB Metric’s No. 1 signal-caller was named SEC Player of the Year after totaling 3,192 passing yards and 27 touchdown passes during the regular season.
With Vanderbilt falling to Iowa 34-27, ending the season at 10-3, Pavia may consider entering the NFL Draft, though his ongoing lawsuit aims to benefit other junior college players. In the meantime, he has passed the quarterback responsibilities to five-star Jared Curtis.
Pavia had nothing but absolute praise for the incoming Vanderbilt quarterback.
“I think Jared has some learning to do, some freshman growing pains to get through,” Pavia said. “This is me speaking two weeks in. His arm is through the roof. He’s got everything he needs. He’s an NFL player already, I think, if he just learns.”
Curtis is an early enrollee, and he was seen practicing with Vanderbilt this week. He was ineligible for the ReliaQuest Bowl, where Pavia took the first-team reps as expected.
Pavia played a big hand in helping land Curtis, as he even attended a Nashville Christian game earlier this season to see him play in person. Curtis also said after his Vanderbilt signing that he and Pavia talked on the phone a lot, while labelling the Vanderbilt star as “supportive and helpful.”
In the absence of Pavia, junior Blaze Berlowitz will be Vanderbilt’s most experienced quarterback returning. Many see Curtis as the immediate starter, being the No. 1 quarterback prospect in the 2026 class and committing to Vanderbilt as the highest-ranked signee in program history. However, he remains humble about his potential.
“The job’s not (promised) for me,” Curtis said. “I just need to go in there and compete. Blaze is a good quarterback, and I’m excited to compete with him. We’ll just see how that goes. I don’t look at myself as a big hotshot. I play football, and that’s my job.”
Curtis finished high school with over 9,500 passing yards, 123 passing touchdowns, and nearly 2,200 rushing yards with 48 scores. Vanderbilt fans can look forward to him stepping in as Pavia’s successor, or he might even surpass him.
