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Vanderbilt

Clark Lea endorses Diego Pavia as an NFL QB

Untitled design (2)by: Sam Gillenwater10/17/24samdg_33
Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia
Jordan Prather | Imagn Images

Diego Pavia has been one of the stories of the season in college football. That has now led to some wonder of if he could take it to the next level in the NFL.

Clark Lea was asked about Pavia’s chances at the pros during a media availability on Thursday afternoon. He said that he thinks they’re good – although he’s going to leave it to NFL personnel to decide on what they think for themselves about the Commodores’ quarterback.

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“I like them,” said Lea. “I mean, you know, again, I’ll let the head coaches, scouts, and general managers do their evaluation.”

However, Lea believes the assessment of Pavia speaks for itself. He has shown the best efficiency and intellect of his collegiate career with his play this season. He has done so while also being the leader of what they’re doing right now in Nashville.

“All I can say is that he’s efficient with the ball, he knows how to find the matchups,” Lea said. “He’s a football-smart guy so, you know, again, it’s not just about simple reads. I mean, he sees the full field. I don’t know a coach in the world that wouldn’t want that mentality and that competitive makeup in their locker room – no matter the sport.”

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Pavia is 85-123 (69.1%) in passing for 1,116 yards, 10 touchdowns, and one interception during his first season in the SEC at Vanderbilt. He has also rushed for 388 yards, good for 64.7 per game, for two more scores. That has led a special season so far at Vandy with a 4-2 start. That records includes a near upset in overtime at Missouri and outright, double-digit upsets over Virginia Tech, Kentucky, and Alabama.

The 2025 NFL Draft class is going to include several top quarterbacks from across the country. Still, of all of them, Lea is most interested in seeing where Pavia sets himself up by the end of this season and into the draft process afterward.

“Obviously, our focus is right now, just closing out the season,” said Lea.

“You know, I’m excited for him to finish out the season the way I know he can and then really excited to help push him for that opportunity,” Lea added. “If I know one thing about Diego, it’s, if he gets the opportunity, he’s going to seize it and run with it. I’m looking forward to that for him.”