Diego Pavia Finishes Second in the Heisman Trophy Race – Sports Illustrated

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia appeared to have a strong case, but Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is the 2025 Heisman Trophy winner. Pavia finished in second place with 189 first place votes and 1,435 total voting points, behind Mendoza's 2,362.
Pavia’s Heisman campaign has included a merch line that has resulted in the #2Turnt saying being plastered all over Nashville, a Heisman moment of sorts after a touchdown run against Tennessee and a strong push from Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea. It wasn’t enough, though. 
Mendoza has been the odds-on favorite since Indiana took down Ohio State in last weekend’s Big 10 Championship Game. The Indiana quarterback led the Hoosiers to a 13-0 record and the No. 1 overall seed in the College Football Playoff, which appeared to be the difference in him winning the award and Pavia taking it home. 
Pavia’s regular season passing and rushing yardage as well as his rushing touchdowns eclipsed Mendoza’s, yet Vanderbilt didn’t find its way into the College Football Playoff. Pavia still believed he had a path to the award in the moments following Vanderbilt’s final regular season game. 
“I just hope everyone looks at the stats,” Pavia said of his case after Vanderbilt’s win over Tennessee. “I think the numbers speak for themselves and obviously the best player in the country goes off the numbers and tape. If you go look at that I feel the same way. That’s not me being cocky or arrogant, that’s just point blank.”  
Pavia was among the four finalists to win the Heisman Trophy alongside Mendoza, Notre Dame running back Jeremiah Love and Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin. Mendoza was the heavy favorite with -1800 odds while Pavia’s sat at +900, Love’s were at +25,000 and Sayin’s were +50,000. It appeared to be a two-horse race between Mendoza and Pavia if FanDuel’s odds were indicative of anything with Mendoza having a significant lead on Pavia. 
Mendoza won the AP Player of the Yead r award this week and received 32 of the 51 first-place votes while Pavia was second while receiving just nine votes to win the award. Logic indicated at that stage that Pavia would be the Heisman runner up rather than the actual winner of the award. 
Pavia did win the SEC Offensive Player of the Year as well as the Unitas Award, which is “presented annually to the nation’s top upper-class collegiate quarterback who excels on the field, in the classroom, and in the community.”
“I don’t know what else to say,” Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea said after Vanderbilt’s win against Tennessee. “It is my belief that he is the best football player in the country.”
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Joey Dwyer is the lead writer on Vanderbilt Commodores On SI. He found his first love in college sports at nearby Lipscomb University and decided to make a career of telling its best stories. He got his start doing a Notre Dame basketball podcast from his basement as a 14-year-old during COVID and has since aimed to make that 14-year-old proud. Dwyer has covered Vanderbilt sports for three years and previously worked for 247 Sports and Rivals. He contributes to Seth Davis' Hoops HQ, Basket Under Review and Mainstreet Nashville.
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