Diego Pavia lands national award after Vanderbilt’s overtime win over Auburn
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Diego Pavia and Vanderbilt needed overtime to get past Auburn and improve to 8-2 on the season. More importantly, they kept their College Football Playoff hopes alive for at least another week.
Pavia threw for 377 yards and 3 touchdowns while rushing for another score and 112 yards on 18 carries. That was enough to get him named the Walter Camp Football National Player of the Week on offense for the second time this year.
Pavia has been a massive part of Vanderbilt’s stunning season as the Commodores have become one of the biggest stories in college football. Through 10 games, he has thrown for 2,440 yards and 21 touchdowns while tossing just 5 interceptions. His 21 passing touchdowns are tied with Alabama‘s Ty Simpson and Tennessee‘s Joey Aguilar for the SEC lead.
He’s also Vandy’s leading rusher, too, with 613 yards on 117 attempts. Pavia has also recorded 7 touchdowns on the ground.
The Commodores are on an open week before hosting Kentucky on Nov. 22. They then finish the regular season at Tennessee. Their next win will give them 9 on the year, their most since reaching that total in back-to-back seasons in 2012 and 2012.
Vanderbilt also has a strong chance at a 10-win season, which would be its first in program history.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
