Diego Pavia responds to Senior Bowl official height: 'It's the size of the fight in the dog'

The Senior Bowl is giving Diego Pavia an opportunity to showcase his talents in front of a wide range of NFL personnel. Plenty of players have seen their stock rise while in Mobile. More than on-field work takes place, though, as measurements are recorded for future use. Which led to Pavia being listed at 5’8 and 7/8th inches.

Pavia’s height is certainly going to be a topic of conversation throughout the process. He was able to respond to the measurement, even joking that the Senior Bowl “kinda screwed me.” But overall, Pavia revealed his mindset on the situation.

“I just want to show it don’t matter what size you are,” Pavia said via ESPN’s Pete Thamel. “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight. It’s the size of the fight in the dog. You know what I mean? So that’s who I am. That’s what I’ll forever be.”

NFL teams being wary of a quarterback’s height is nothing new in recent years. Measurements of Kyler Murray and Bryce Young were both big deals at the time. Both of them came in the 5’10 range, making them the two shortest starting quarterbacks in the NFL. However, those two wound up going with the No. 1 overall pick. Pavia is not in the range of being the first name off the board or anywhere on Thursday night.

Pavia did not need a ton of height to perform well in the SEC. He threw for 3,539 yards, 29 touchdowns, and eight interceptions while completing over 70% of his throws. His feet were a major part of the offense as well, adding 862 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground. A 5.2 yards per carry number is solid, especially when you consider college stats include sacks.

As usual, there is a ton of confidence from Pavia when it comes to actually getting drafted. He believes his name will be called from Pittsburgh at one point, telling people to look at his numbers and tape from two seasons in Nashville with Vanderbilt.

“When has the last SEC player of the year not been drafted?” Pavia asked, also via Pete Thamel. “You know what I mean? I feel like you go watch, the tape number speaks for [itself]. Everything speaks for themselves. I feel like I’m the best player in the country, and I still believe that. That’s just the ultimate confidence that I’ve had.”