#2 Diego Pavia
QB
Student-Athlete Features
Vanderbilt Hustler – Diego Pavia: Overlooked No Longer
The Athletic – Is Diego Pavia the ‘Mind-Blowing’ Hero the Commodores Need?
The Tennessean – How Vanderbilt Football Transfer Diego Pavia’s Unrelenting Competitiveness Landed in Nashville
As a Graduate (2024)
• Team Captain
• Maxwell Award Semifinalist
• Davey O’Brien Award Semifinalist
• Davey O’Brien Award QB Class of 2024
• Manning Award Watch List
• Maxwell Award Watch List
• Led the Commodores on the ground versus South Carolina with 12 rushes for 77 yards and a touchdown
• Became the 13th starting quarterback since 2004 to beat Auburn and Alabama in the same season
• Recorded a team-high 16 carries for a net gain of 67 yards and scored three touchdowns, one rushing and two passing in game against Texas
• Completed 17-of-31 passes for 275 yards and scored one passing and one rushing touchdown in victory over Ball State
• Finished 15-of-18 with two touchdowns in win at Kentucky
• Named Week 6 SEC Offensive Player of the Week, Maxwell and Davey O’Brien Awards National Player of the Week and to the Davey O’Brien Great 8 after performance in win over Alabama
• Went 16-of-20 passing for 252 yards and two touchdowns, also added 56 yards rushing in defeat of Alabama
• Completed 14 of 23 pass attempts for 178 yards and two scores at Missouri and led the Vandy offense on the ground with 84 yards rushing
• Completed a 53-yard pass to AJ Newberry at Georgia State and tallied season-highs in completions (18) and passing yards (270)
• Scored on a 5-yard rush in win over Alcorn State, also went 10-for-13 passing for 83 yards
• Named the SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week, Manning Award Star of the Week, to the Davey O’Brien Great 8 and the Tennessee Sports Writers Association’s Offensive Player of the Week for his performance in the Dores’ win over the Hokies
• Went 12-of-16 passing for 190 yards and two scores versus Virginia Tech, while rushing for a game-high 104 yards and the game-winning touchdown in overtime
• Was the only Power 4 quarter back to eclipse 100 yards in both passing and rushing during Week 1
Prior to Vandy
• Competed two seasons at New Mexico State (2022-23) and two seasons at New Mexico Military Institute (2020-21)
• 2023 Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year
• Started all 15 games for NMSU in 2023, leading team to the second 10-win season in program history and first since 1960
• Threw for 2,973 yards on the season with 26 touchdowns to nine interceptions while also rushing for 125 yards and seven touchdowns
• Totaled 3,896 offensive yards on the year, 12th in FBS and sixth among non-Power 5 players
• Threw three touchdown passes in three games on the season, including in NMSU’s win at Auburn
• In leading Aggies to their first-ever victory over an SEC opponent, completed 67.9 percent of his passes against the Tigers including three touchdowns and no interceptions
• Recorded both a rushing and passing touchdown in five games on the year
• Ranked fifth in FBS in forced missed tackles (46) per Pro Football Focus
• Capped his NMSU career ranked ninth all-time in passing yards, second in rushing yards by a quarterback and sixth in passing touchdowns
• Played in 12 games and made eight starts in 2022
• Most valuable player of the Quick Lane Bowl, passing for 167 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 65 yards in 24-19 win over Bowling Green
• Threw a career-best four touchdown passes while adding a rushing score against Valparaiso in the season finale
• Finished the season fifth among FBS quarterbacks in passing yards per completion (14.36)
• Played in all 13 games for the New Mexico Military Institute in 2021, helping team to NJCAA National Championship
• Threw for 1,728 yards and 21 touchdowns while adding 658 yards and seven scores on the ground
• Won the starting job as a freshman at NMMI in 2020, as Covid-19 pandemic saw team play all nine games in Texas
The Pavia File
• Three-sport athlete at Volcano Vista, competing in baseball and wrestling in addition to football
• Led Volcano Vista to an 11-0 regular season as a senior before suffering first loss in state semifinals
• Three-time state finalist in wrestling, winning one state title
• Did not hold an FBS offer out of high school
• Son of Antoinette Padilla
• Has three siblings – Roel Jr., Javier and Abrielle
• Brother, Roel Jr., wrestled and played football at Briar Cliff University
• Majored in biology at New Mexico State