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The 2026 NFL draft will take place from April 23 to April 25 at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
A key conversation in every NFL draft revolves around the quarterbacks likely to hear their names called over the course of the weekend. There are a handful organizations in need of quarterbacks going into the 2026 NFL draft, but the depth of the class is a concern for the league.
One quarterback hoping to hear his name called at some point during the weekend is former Vanderbilt starter Diego Pavia.
The 5-foot-9, 200-pounder started his college football career in the junior college ranks at New Mexico Military Institute in 2020. In his career with the Broncos, Pavia threw for 2,644 yards, 31 touchdowns and four interceptions while rushing for 1,107 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Pavia transferred to New Mexico State in the 2022 offseason. In his first season in FBS, he passed for 1,450 yards, 13 touchdowns and six interceptions and ran for 508 yards and six touchdowns, guiding the Aggies to just their second bowl game since 1960.
2023 was Pavia's best season as an Aggie; he finished the year with 2,973 passing yards, 26 touchdowns and nine interceptions to go along with 928 rush yards and seven touchdowns. He was named to the All-Conference USA Second Team offense for his efforts in guiding New Mexico State to a 10-win season, its first season with double-digit wins since 1960.
Pavia transferred to Vanderbilt for his last two seasons of college football. He threw for 2,293 yards, 20 touchdowns and four interceptions and ran for 800 yards and eight touchdowns in his first year with the Commodores, a performance that earned him SEC Newcomer of the Year.
The 10-win season in 2025 was the first for Vanderbilt as a program. In his final season with the Commodores, Pavia passed for 3,539 yards, 29 touchdowns and eight interceptions while rushing for 862 yards and 10 more touchdowns.
He was named the SEC Offensive Player of the Year and a member of the All-SEC First Team. He received a multitude of national honors, most notably his nomination as a Heisman Trophy finalist.
Ahead of the 2026 NFL draft, many questions surround Pavia's placement in the draft due to both his size and age. Longtime NFL draft analyst Todd McShay did not believe Pavia is worthy of a draft when he appeared on a recent edition of The Triple Option with FOX Sports college football panelists Rob Stone, Mark Ingram II and Urban Meyer.
Diego Pavia = NFL quarterback?@McShay13 revealed he wouldn’t draft him but has a lot of respect for him as a football player.
See the full episode Wednesday at 11 am ET on our Youtube channel.https://t.co/0Ilfh1qioq pic.twitter.com/PMobywkCZq
"I'm not drafting him in the NFL. I'd be shocked if he's an NFL starter. I don't even know how much value you have as a backup if I'm being completely honest," McShay said.
"But he's just a good football player, and it's hard to say that because I have so much respect for what he did in the SEC and the way he overcame what he had to overcome. I don't know if it's in the UFL or what it is, but I hate the fact that be the end of his career because he's just a really good football player."
The other discussion around Pavia is whether he could be converted to another position in the NFL. Former college quarterbacks such as Denard Robinson (running back), Taysom Hill (tight end) and Tommy Stevens (tight end) have made it into the NFL after being converted to other positions in the last 15 years, although Hill is the only example that has seen any kind of longevity.
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Tucker Harlin is a passionate sports fan and journalist covering college sports. His work can be found on Vols Wire of the USA TODAY Sports Media Group and The Voice of College Football Network. He graduated from the School of Journalism and Media at the University of Tennessee in 2024 and is based in Nashville.
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