Finalists for the Heisman Trophy in 2025 will be revealed on Monday, Dec. 8, and Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia is one of the top contenders for college football’s top award.
Pavia has been one of the best stories in college football this season, leading Vanderbilt to a 10-2 regular season finish two years after the Commodores won just two games. The two-time transfer started his career at New Mexico Military Institute, a junior college, before transferring to New Mexico State and now Vanderbilt.
‘There is no one that can improvise like him right now in our game, no one that can create right now in our game,’ Lea said. ‘I would encourage everyone to tune into our bowl game. I mean, this guy is really special, one of one. I’m hoping, obviously, we get the invitation to New York, I’m hoping that he wins the award because he deserves it. This is the best player in college football.’
‘But what’s best about him is 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 has done the important work is establishing player-led leadership in our locker room and really pulling people in from our community into this program and making them feel like a part of it.’
Pavia passed for 3,192 yards with 27 touchdowns to eight interceptions this season, also rushing for 826 yards and nine scores. His 36 combined touchdowns led the SEC, and he became the first player in conference history to total 400 yards of offense or more in four consecutive games, which he did in his final four starts against Texas, Auburn, Kentucky and Tennessee.
Pavia also ranks fourth in QBR at 87.7, only behind USC’s Jayden Maiava, Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza and Ohio State’s Julian Sayin, with the latter two also expected to be Heisman finalists. He currently has the second-best odds to win, according to BetMGM.
Pavia led Vanderbilt to its first win over in-state rival Tennessee since 2018 in the Commodores’ dominant 45-24 win on the road.
The sixth-year senior has played an important role in turning around Vanderbilt, which has been perennially one of the worst programs in Power Four. The Commodores recently gained a commitment from 5-star high school quarterback Jared Curtis, the No. 1-ranked recruit nationally, according to 247Sports’ Composite rankings.
Pavia’s final game will be against Iowa in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Dec. 31.
‘He (has) been everything,’ Lea said. ‘I think it starts with the humility in his process, his curiosity day-in, day-out. Just in search of higher levels of performance as a person, as a player. The quiet connections he builds with teammates that really lead the inspirational moments on the field.’