Diego Pavia Posts 'Immature' Message After Losing Heisman Trophy
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Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia is not handling losing the Heisman Trophy very well.
The Commodores quarterback, 23, lost the 2025 Heisman Trophy to Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza. Pavia finished in second place behind the Hoosiers quarterback. Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love and Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin finished in third and fourth place, respectively.
Mendoza became the first player in Indiana Hoosiers football history to win the award, defeating Pavia (1,435 points), Love (719 points) and Sayin (432 points) in impressive fashion.
"I haven't seen the numbers yet," Mendoza said after winning. "But it's such an honor to be mentioned with these guys [Pavia, Love and Sayin]. It's really a credit to our team. It's a team award."
Pavia, though, was not happy with the Heisman Trophy voters.
The Vanderbilt Commodores quarterback took to social media to blast the people who voted against him in the 2025 Heisman Trophy race.
"(Expletive) all the voters," he wrote on his Instagram Story.
"But…family for life."
Vanderbilt senior quarterback Diego Pavia not happy with @HeismanTrophy voters and voiced his thoughts on Instagram 😳😳😳😳
While his performance on the field is A➕ his character off the field is anything but 🤦♂️
“Win with humility, lose with grace, and do both with dignity," pic.twitter.com/4XYqV32rO1
— Southern Sports Central Radio Network™ (@SoSportsCentral) December 14, 2025
The Vanderbilt quarterback needs to mature
Pavia seems to be trying to channel his inner Johnny Manziel, but that's probably not the best plan.
He's had a lot of success at Vanderbilt, but right now, he needs to be thinking about his future in the National Football League. Posts like that are not going to sit well in the eyes of NFL front offices.
If Pavia wants his football career to continue past the college level, he's going to need to show NFL front offices that he is capable of leading a franchise. Posts like that would suggest that at the moment, he is not.
This story was originally published by The Spun on Dec 14, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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