Why Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia Went Undrafted in 2026 NFL Draft Despite Being Heisman Finalist

Diego Pavia became the first Heisman Trophy finalist to go undrafted since 2014.

Why Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia Went Undrafted in 2026 NFL Draft Despite Being Heisman Finalist

Diego Pavia (Image via IMAGO)

In Short
  • Diego Pavia, a Heisman finalist, went undrafted in the 2026 NFL Draft despite a successful college career at Vanderbilt.
  • Concerns over his attitude and height (5-foot-10) contributed to his lack of interest from NFL teams.
  • Pavia's outspoken nature and controversial social media posts may have negatively impacted his draft prospects.

Diego Pavia talked himself out of the draft completely. Many people thought the former Vanderbilt quarterback would not be drafted, but there was still a small chance that an NFL team would pick him up in the late rounds. He is the only one to blame for it not happening.

Pavia, a zero-star recruit, took the juco route (junior college) by joining New Mexico Military Institute, where he spent the first two years of his college life before the coaches at the University of New Mexico State took notice. In 2023, he was voted the best player in the Conference USA and, piggybacking on that success, received an offer from Vanderbilt in the SEC.

In 2024, the SEC voted Pavia the best newcomer, and the following year, he bagged the SEC’s best offensive player award. And for good reason. For the first time in a long time, the Commodores had gone undefeated at home and finished with 10 wins (10-3). Pavia threw 31 touchdowns and ran for 15 more scores to reach the final round of the Heisman voting.

Standing in the way of Pavia and a historic underdog success story were Fernando Mendoza and Jeremiyah Love. Mendoza won the trophy by a landslide (with 2,362 points), Pavia finished second (with 1,435 points), and Love finished third (with 719 points).

Pavia ranked as the 12th-best quarterback in the 2026 draft on Mel Kiper Jr.‘s projected draft list. It was an indication that the 24-year-old probably won’t be drafted. And he was proven correct. Diego Pavia remained undrafted.

Diego Pavia is not the first Hiesman finalist to go undrafted

Well, it may come as a surprise to many, but Pavia is not the first college player to go undrafted. According to The Athletic, the last player to end up in a similar scenario was Jordan Lynch of Northern Illinois.

Why Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia Went Undrafted in 2026 NFL Draft Despite Being Heisman Finalist
#2 Diego Pavia (Image via IMAGO)

Lynch finished third in the voting behind runner-up A.J. McCarron (fifth-round pick) and winner Jameis Winston (first overall pick).

Why did Diego Pavia go undrafted?

Pavia certainly has the skills to play quarterback, and he proved it at Vanderbilt. But what drew a red flag is his attitude, and his 5-foot-10 height did not help either. He had some memorable, if not a little over-the-top, moments during his two years in Tennessee. Before the big showdown against the Volunteers, Pavia took a direct shot at them.

We can beat Tennessee literally any given Saturday. [Expletive] every single one of them dudes. We’re gonna win this game at all cost.

And his words came back to haunt him. He completed just 8 passes, one touchdown, and one interception, and was held to 45 yards rushing in a 36-23 defeat for Vanderbilt. After losing out on the Heisman Trophy, Pavia posted a message that garnered a lot of attention.

Sure, he took the post down immediately, but the damage was done. Unruly behavior never slips under the radar, especially when the player keeps making national headlines for taking down big schools every so often. One NFC scouting director went all out against Pavia while speaking with Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network. He said:

Little bit of Johnny Football [Manziel]… It’s more lore and college [expletive] than it is really true mystique or allure or whatever.

Going undrafted is not the end of the road. He can still sign a UDFA (free agent) contract with an NFL team, or try his luck in the UFL, CFL (Canada), or even in Europe. Pavia just needs to wait and play his cards correctly if he aims to play football professionally.