Pavia Garners Postseason Honor

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Following one of the best performances by an NCAA FBS quarterback this postseason, Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia was named to the Davey O’Brien Award’s Great 8 for his production in the Commodores’ bowl game last month.

The graduate transfer completed his first season with the program by accounting for 245 yards and a school bowl game record five touchdowns to help lead the Dores to a 35-27 victory—their first in the postseason since 2013—over Georgia Tech in the Birmingham Bowl. In the contest, Pavia completed 13-of-21 attempts for 160 yards and three scores while leading Vandy on the ground with 85 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries.

He opened the scoring against the Yellow Jackets by finding Cole Spence in the end zone from 7 yards out late in the first quarter, and when he scored on a 2-yard run just after the two-minute timeout in the second period it gave the Commodores the lead for good. After Georgia Tech closed to within a point, Pavia hit Eli Stowers for a 3-yard touchdown and a 21-13 lead with less than a minute to go in the third quarter, and when he connected with Quincy Skinner Jr. for a 7-yard score and reached the end zone from 6 yards out in the first five minutes of the fourth Vandy led 35-13 before closing out the victory.

Pavia was also among the Davey O’Brien Award’s Great 8 following his Vanderbilt debut after guiding the Dores past Virginia Tech in the season opener, and after leading the program to its first-ever defeat of a No. 1 team in the rankings—the Dores beat top-ranked Alabama, 40-35, on Oct. 5—he was named the Davey O’Brien Award national Quarterback of the Week and Maxwell Award Player of the Week.

On the season, he was 177-of-298 passing for 2,293 yards and 20 touchdowns and he rushed 192 times for 801 yards and another eight scores to be named the SEC Newcomer of the Year. In addition to being a semifinalist for both the Davey O’Brien and Maxwell Awards, Pavia was a second-team All-SEC selection and chosen co-Newcomer of the Year by the Associated Press.

Pavia and the Commodores will begin the 2025 campaign on Aug. 30 when they play host to Charleston Southern.