The SEC Now crew debates the possibilities for the Commodores: place their bets on the hometown freshman Jared Curtis or depend on seasoned senior Blaze Berlowitz? (1:37)
NASHVILLE — In two seasons, former Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia did more than lead the Commodores out of the SEC cellar.
The Heisman Trophy runner-up also helped Vanderbilt land the quarterback who might become his successor this coming season.
When five-star prospect Jared Curtis flipped from Georgia to Vanderbilt on Dec. 2, he became the highest-ranked commitment in school history. He was ESPN’s No. 1-ranked pocket passer in the Class of 2026.
Through his first four months on campus, Curtis has looked the part.
“Some of the things he does, I’ve seen a couple throws that I haven’t seen probably since I was a player watching Jay Cutler throw,” said Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea, who played fullback for the Commodores from 2002 to 2004. “Just putting the ball right past the linebacker’s ear or throwing a wheel route on a line almost to the tick marks.”
Lea won’t name a starting quarterback until later this summer. Curtis is locked in a four-way battle for the job. Like Pavia, senior Blaze Berlowitz followed offensive coordinator Tim Beck to Vanderbilt from New Mexico State. Junior Whit Muschamp (Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp’s son) and sophomore Jack Elliott are also in the mix.
Berlowitz might be the favorite to start in Vanderbilt’s opener against FCS program Austin Peay on Sept. 5. He threw 17 passes in six games as Pavia’s backup last season.
But Curtis is why many Vanderbilt fans flocked to FirstBank Stadium to watch the Black & Gold spring game April 18.
Curtis completed 5 of 13 passes for 87 yards and didn’t turn the ball over. He led one scoring drive with a 22-yard pass to receiver Ja’Cory Thomas and a 23-yarder to freshman tailback Evan Hampton.
“He’s got to show that he’s the best of the four,” Lea told ESPN earlier this spring. “There are certainly things that make him unique. His biggest hurdle is going to be pre-snap and post-snap processing. What I’m learning about him, especially as we’ve been able to see him a little bit in a competitive environment, he’s got really good instincts.
“It’s not just about arm talent. I think he sees the field well. If the rush separates, he’s going to be able to do what he needs to do to make a team pay for that.”
That the Commodores even landed a prospect of Curtis’ ability is further evidence of the program’s ascension under Lea. After years of being a punching bag in the SEC, Vanderbilt went 17-9 the past two seasons. The Commodores won their first five games last season before falling 30-14 at Alabama on Oct. 4.
Six days after that loss — during Vanderbilt’s bye week — Pavia helped put the wheels in motion for the Commodores to unexpectedly poach Curtis from SEC power Georgia’s recruiting class.
On Oct. 10, Pavia attended Nashville Christian School’s 49-42 victory against Tyner Academy with a friend, Josh Smith, whose son played for Nashville Christian. When Pavia saw Curtis throw the ball, he asked his friend where the strong-armed quarterback was going to college.
“I showed up, and I’m watching this kid play quarterback and I’m kind of in disbelief,” Pavia told The Tennessean. “I’m like, ‘Does this kid have any offers?'”
Smith told Pavia that Curtis had already committed to play at Georgia.
Pavia’s reply: “This kid’s got to come to Vanderbilt. He can stay home.”
Along with two of his famous friends, comedians Theo Von and Nate Bargatze, Pavia went to work in making it happen.
“I didn’t know until about the second quarter that Diego was in the stands,” Curtis told ESPN. “I went up and talked to him and introduced myself, and then we started texting.”
During a few videoconferences, Pavia and the comedians persuaded Curtis to visit Vanderbilt and meet Lea and Beck. Then Curtis attended Vanderbilt’s Oct. 25 home game against No. 15 Missouri. The Commodores knocked off the Tigers 17-10 to improve to 7-1, their best start since 1941.
“I came to a couple of the practices and then I went to the Missouri game with my high school head coach,” Curtis said. “Then I talked to Coach Lea and started building connections from there.”
It wasn’t until the Commodores actually got Curtis on campus that Lea believed they were a real contender in his recruitment.
“He was paying attention to who we were, what we were saying and what the opportunity looked like here,” Lea said. “I think he was just drawn in by all that. I was thrilled that he was really scrutinizing our program and was serious about this being a home for him.”
There was one potential hang-up: After guiding Vanderbilt to one of its best two-year stretches in program history, Lea was connected to coaching openings at Penn State and other programs.
But on Nov. 28, Lea signed a six-year contract extension to remain at his alma mater.
“I felt like as we centered in on my contract extension, that was going to position us really well to get him here,” Lea said. “When he came over here and I sat with him, I knew he was serious about it. We spent a little more time on the field together. Then I was getting word back that if you’re going to be here, he’s going to want to come here. I shifted my attention to work on that.”
On Dec. 2, Curtis announced he had flipped his commitment to Vanderbilt. He signed with the Commodores the next day. He had committed twice to Georgia in the previous two years.
“I think the biggest thing was staying home and just building something that’s never been done before and kind of continuing and improving what Diego started,” Curtis said.
In his final high school game on Dec. 4, Curtis led Nashville Christian to a second straight Division II-A state title with a 59-7 victory against University School of Jackson. He threw for 205 yards with five touchdowns and ran for another score.
Curtis finished his high school career ranked No. 2 in state history with 177 total touchdowns and 128 passing scores.
At the NFL combine in late February, Pavia told reporters that Curtis told him, “I’m going to win the national championship that you couldn’t win.”
“I hope they keep soaring through the roof, and then next year, they go 12-0 and then go to the playoffs,” Pavia said.
That will be a tall task as the Commodores have to replace more than Pavia. They also lost four starting offensive linemen, star tight end Eli Stowers and leading receiver Tre Richardson, who transferred to Louisville.
Regardless of who wins the starting quarterback job, Vanderbilt’s offense will look different this season. Pavia passed for 3,539 yards with 29 touchdowns and was the team’s leading rusher with 862 yards and 10 scores.
In a 34-27 loss to Iowa in the ReliaQuest Bowl, Pavia had 15 carries, while tailbacks Sedrick Alexander and Makhilyn Young combined for four.
“We have to be skilled enough as coaches to realize that we don’t have Diego Pavia back there anymore, and the offense needs to evolve around the person that’s taking the snaps,” Lea said. “And in some ways, we might need to simplify because we’ve got to account for the fact that we lost a ton of snaps in that position.”
The next four-plus months will determine whether Curtis gets that chance.
“From a physical trait standpoint, he’s there,” Lea told reporters after the spring game. “From a mental processing standpoint, that’s where we’ve got to cover ground.
“We don’t expect him or any of those guys to be Diego Pavia. Each one of these guys needs to focus on how they strengthen the unit, how they do the small things well, [and] how they make the available plays.”
