Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia did not seem too pleased about finishing second in the Heisman Trophy voting.
Pavia lost out on the Heisman to Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza on Saturday night. After the ceremony, he reposted an Instagram post from comedian Theo Von to his Instagram story with the caption “F- all the voters but … family for life”
Diego Pavia’s post-Heisman ceremony message to Heisman voters. (Instagram)
Pavia apologized on social media on Sunday night.
“Being a part of the Heisman ceremony last night as a finalist was such an honor,” he wrote, in part. “As a competitor, just like in everything I do I wanted to win. To be so close to my dream and come up short was painful. I didn’t handle those emotions well at all and did not represent myself the way I wanted to. I have much love and respect for the Heisman voters and the selection process, and I apologize for being disrespectful. It was a mistake, and I am sorry.
“Fernando Mendoza is an elite competitor and a deserving winner of the award. I have nothing but respect for his accomplishments as well as the success that Jeremiyah and Julian had this season.”
Mendoza won the Heisman after leading Indiana to a 13-0 season and the Big Ten title. It’s the winningest season in Indiana history and the first conference title for the school since 1967. The Hoosiers are the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
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Pavia, meanwhile, has led a similar season for Vanderbilt. The No. 14 Commodores went 10-2 in the regular season as they won 10 games for the first time in school history.
Pavia set Vanderbilt’s single-game passing record in the penultimate game of the season with 484 yards against Kentucky and also led the team in rushing yards over the course of the season. There was a strong case to be made for Pavia as a Heisman winner given how his arrival in Nashville ahead of the 2024 season has helped invigorate Vanderbilt’s football program.
Voters saw there was a much stronger case for Mendoza, however. And the voting results weren’t all that close. Mendoza finished with 2,362 points and 643 first-place votes while Pavia had 1,435 points and 189 first-place votes. Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love was third and Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin finished fourth.
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Mendoza’s margin of victory is the biggest since 2021, when Alabama QB Bryce Young had over 1,300 more points than Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson in second.
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