Going back to his time as a recruit, Diego Pavia didn’t earn a single FBS scholarship offer out of high school. Now, the once-overlooked quarterback is one of the best players in college football and has led the Vanderbilt Commodores to remarkable success.
Vanderbilt fell short of a playoff berth in the 2025 season, but the 10-2 Commodores proved their caliber with some magnificent wins, highlighted by their 45-24 win over Tennessee in the regular-season finale on Nov. 29.
Deion Sanders’ Son Shows Support to Diego Pavia in Heisman Race
Pavia was announced as a finalist for the 2025 Heisman Trophy on Monday night. Even before the official announcement, Coach Prime’s eldest son, Deion “Bucky” Sanders Jr., publicly backed Pavia for the award.
“Vote @diegopavia02 for Herman!!!” Bucky tweeted.
Putting aside Bucky’s accidental misspelling of Heisman, he also retweeted a post celebrating Pavia’s finalist status. It shows the support the Vanderbilt quarterback is getting from all over the nation.
Pavia threw for 3,192 yards, 27 touchdowns, and completed 71.2% of his passes this season. He became the first Vanderbilt player to record 3,000 or more total offensive yards in multiple seasons. He ranks second in total offense with an average of 334.8 yards per game, third in average yards per pass attempt (9.4), and fourth with a 171.5 quarterback rating.
In an interview with ESPN on Monday, Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea made his case for Pavia’s Heisman candidacy.
“I’m hoping that he wins the award because he deserves it,” Lea said. “This is the best player in college football. What’s best about him is that he’s one of the great people in college football. This guy cares about his teammates, cares about the families connected to this program, and that’s really where he’s done his most important work is establishing player-led leadership in our locker room.”
Pavia’s performance has helped Vanderbilt earn a spot in the ReliaQuest Bowl, where they will face Iowa on Dec. 31. He has already earned the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and is also a finalist for the Walter Camp Player of the Year. Now he is aiming to win the Heisman Trophy, which will be presented at the ceremony at Lincoln Center in New York City on Saturday.
Pavia will compete against the other three finalists: Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, and Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin. According to PFSN, Pavia is the top-graded QB of 2025, finishing with a 94.8 QB Impact Grade, ahead of Mendoza (93.2), Jayden Maiava (93.0), and Sayin (90.8).
