Indiana’s quarterback Fernando Mendoza is the favorite to win this year’s Heisman Trophy. He’s followed closely by Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia, who, since the announcement of the award’s finalists, has closed the gap between himself and Mendoza while displacing Ohio State’s Julian Sayin as the player with the second-best odds.
Someone who believes that Pavia, who’s worth $2.5 million in NIL deals, should rise even higher is Skip Bayless, who said this on Saturday about the Heisman race:
“Diego Pavia of Vanderbilt University should win this year’s Heisman Trophy by a landslide. I dare you to tell me I’m wrong. Diego Pavia is now a close third in the odds, of course, behind Fernando Mendoza of Indiana and Julian Sayin of Ohio State. But Diego Pavia has done so much more than those two with so much less around him, against so much tougher competition on a schedule.”
Well, Bayless should re-check the odds, because Pavia is currently above Sayin according to BetMGM. Pavia’s odds are +700, while Sayin’s are +15,000. Mendoza’s, however, are at -1200, and he has an implied chance of winning of 92.3%.
Diego Pavia after Vanderbilt’s victory against Tennessee
Diego Pavia was the first to know this year that he had achieved something great this season. Shortly after the final game of the regular season, a 45-24 victory over their bigger in-state rival, the Tennessee Volunteers, he stated his claim to the Heisman right away:
“Take me to New York,” Pavia said after defeating Tennessee. “I feel like if you go look at the numbers, and look at what we got here — obviously, we did something that has never been done. It is a blessing to be here on this stage, something I dreamed about since I was a kid.”
Pavia threw for 3,192 yards, with 27 touchdowns and eight interceptions in 2025. He also ran for 826 yards, with nine touchdowns in 152 carries. Those were his best numbers while at Vanderbilt.
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