Diego Pavia Has a Real Shot at Returning to College Football — Here's How

Diego Pavia is coming off one of the greatest seasons of any quarterback in college football.

Key points

• Throughout 13 games, he completed an SEC-leading 70.6% of his passes for 3, 539 yards, 29 touchdowns, and eight interceptions, posting a conference-best 170.4 passer rating.
• Despite his standout 2025 season with the Commodores, Pavia went undrafted in the 2026 NFL Draft due to reservations over his size (under 5-foot-10), playing style, and maturity.
• More news: Bears Insider Raises Concern Over Star CB's Status Ahead of 2026 Season.
• More news: Lions HC Dan Campbell Gives Uneasy Update on TE Sam LaPorta.
• More news: Malik Willis Praises Competitive Fire in Dolphins' Unproven WR Room.

Diego Pavia is coming off one of the greatest seasons of any quarterback in college football. Throughout 13 games, he completed an SEC-leading 70.6% of his passes for 3, 539 yards, 29 touchdowns, and eight interceptions, posting a conference-best 170.4 passer rating. He additionally rushed for 862 yards and 10 touchdowns, leading Vanderbilt to a 10-3 record – the program's highest win total ever. He earned first-team All-SEC, first-team All-American, and SEC Offensive Player of the Year honors, and finished as the Heisman Trophy runner-up. After such a historic season for a program that had never seen that level of success, some have even wondered whether Vanderbilt might retire his iconic No. 2 jersey. Now, the Commodores may not have to – since there's a real path for Pavia to produce a return to college football. More news: Lions HC Dan Campbell Gives Uneasy Update on TE Sam LaPorta More news: Bears Insider Raises Concern Over Star CB's Status Ahead of 2026 Season The NCAA lately adopted a new "five years to play five seasons" rule, replacing the old four-seasons limit. And on Wednesday, ESPN's Dan Murphy and Pete Thamel documented that three former Ole Miss starters were granted a temporary restraining order allowing them to return to college. 30 other college athletes throughout various sports additionally filed a lawsuit against the NCAA in Louisiana state court, plenty of of them football players at present signed to NFL contracts who are looking to create a return to college. Since his two JUCO years technically shouldn't count against him, given what's happening throughout the sport, Pavia could argue he deserves a fifth Division I season. Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio argues it's something Pavia should strongly consider, given how few options he has left elsewhere. "At a time when college programs are scouring NFL rosters for first-year players who could get a fifth year of major college football, why wouldn't someone explore upgrading the quarterback position with Pavia, who currently is under contract with no NFL team?" Florio wrote. "Why wouldn't Pavia want to do it? His only other options are the CFL (that hasn't happened yet) and the UFL (which starts after football season ends). Pavia could create a pretty penny by playing college football for another season." Despite his standout 2025 season with the Commodores, Pavia went undrafted in the 2026 NFL Draft due to worries over his size (under 5-foot-10), playing style, and maturity. After the draft, he received an invite to the Baltimore Ravens' rookie camp but was published by the team at the start of training camp. Though he hasn't yet decided whether he wants to sign and play north of the border, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL at present hold his exclusive negotiation rights. With an NIL valuation of around $300, 000 – more than twice the average CFL player's earnings – his most lucrative option may be to return to college for one more season and create another case to NFL teams that he deserves a shot. More news: Malik Willis Praises Competitive Fire in Dolphins' Unproven WR Room.

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Throughout 13 games, he completed an SEC-leading 70.6% of his passes for 3, 539 yards, 29 touchdowns, and eight interceptions, posting a conference-best 170.4 passer rating. He additionally rushed for 862 yards and 10 touchdowns, leading Vanderbilt to a 10-3 record – the program's highest win total ever. He earned first-team All-SEC, first-team All-American, and SEC Offensive Player of the Year honors, and finished as the Heisman Trophy runner-up.

After such a historic season for a program that had never seen that level of success, some have even wondered whether Vanderbilt might retire his iconic No. 2 jersey. Now, the Commodores may not have to – since there's a real path for Pavia to produce a return to college football.

Notably, the NCAA lately adopted a new "five years to play five seasons" rule, replacing the old four-seasons limit. And on Wednesday, ESPN's Dan Murphy and Pete Thamel documented that three former Ole Miss starters were granted a temporary restraining order allowing them to return to college. 30 other college athletes throughout various sports additionally filed a lawsuit against the NCAA in Louisiana state court, plenty of of them football players at present signed to NFL contracts who are looking to create a return to college.

Since his two JUCO years technically shouldn't count against him, given what's happening throughout the sport, Pavia could argue he deserves a fifth Division I season. Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio argues it's something Pavia should strongly consider, given how few options he has left elsewhere.

"At a time when college programs are scouring NFL rosters for first-year players who could get a fifth year of major college football, why wouldn't someone explore upgrading the quarterback position with Pavia, who currently is under contract with no NFL team?" Florio wrote. "Why wouldn't Pavia want to do it? His only other options are the CFL (that hasn't happened yet) and the UFL (which starts after football season ends). Pavia could create a pretty penny by playing college football for another season."

Despite his standout 2025 season with the Commodores, Pavia went undrafted in the 2026 NFL Draft due to reservations over his size (under 5-foot-10), playing style, and maturity. After the draft, he received an invite to the Baltimore Ravens' rookie camp but was published by the team at the start of training camp. Though he hasn't yet decided whether he wants to sign and play north of the border, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL at present hold his exclusive negotiation rights.

With an NIL valuation of around $300, 000 – more than twice the average CFL player's earnings – his most lucrative option may be to return to college for one more season and create another case to NFL teams that he deserves a shot.

For now, diego Pavia Has a Real Shot at Returning to College Football remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.