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By Tyler Erzberger
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Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia does not care what I, or you, or anyone thinks about him.
He has lived with a chip on his shoulder throughout his illustrious amateur football career, climbing the ranks of college football to eventually reach the Heisman ceremony this most recent season, where he finished runner-up to Indiana's Fernando Mendoza.
After finishing his final year with the Commodores, Pavia called his shot at his next future: the NFL.
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Pavia was a dual-threat monster for Vanderbilt in 2025, throwing for over 3,500 yards while also adding 862 on the ground. Whenever the team needed a hero, he was there, running, flinging the ball downfield, and showing off his physical prowess against linebackers.
But the one knock on Pavia's game has been his size. At 6-foot, he would be regarded as on the smaller end of starting QBs in the NFL, like Baker Mayfield was when the Cleveland Browns took him No. 1 overall in the now iconic QB draft of 2018.
Kyler Murray, regarded as one of the most physically gifted athletes ever drafted and projected as a star in baseball if he went down that route, has never shaken off his "tiny" image at 5-foot-10.
Pavia would have concerns as an older college QB entering the draft at 6-foot, but those could be brushed aside depending on a stellar combine and interviews with teams.
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But what about 5-foot-9?
Although listed as 6-foot on the official Vanderbilt website, Pavia's actual height was revealed at the Senior Bowl. Although photos and real-life interactions with the QB showed he was shorter than his "official" height, the 5-foot-9 marker puts him in a range where almost no one has succeeded in the NFL at that stature.
Doug Flutie, often recognized at 5-foot-9 or 5-foot-10 depending on the record, would be the last true QB to make a name for himself at the height that Pavia received at the Senior Bowl.
Although it's an uphill mountain to climb, like everything else with Pavia, the noise and doubt are nothing but second nature to him at this point.
He believes he should be selected in the upcoming NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, and official measurement or not, he's going to try to once again silence his critics.
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