Pavia rebuffed Big Ten interest, says Vandy will soon 'run' Tennessee

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia took a shot at the Big Ten, saying he had no interest in leaving the Commodores and joining a team in the conference.

"You want to play with the best - you don't want to play with the Big Ten," Pavia said during an interview with the "Bussin With The Boys" podcast published Tuesday. "You ignore those calls. You know that."

Pavia was granted another year of eligibility by a federal judge in December and made it clear he wanted to remain at Vanderbilt. However, the signal-caller revealed he had offers from other schools, including a $4-million NIL deal to join another SEC program.

"(In the Big Ten) you really only have four games a year," Pavia said. "The SEC, it's like week after week. You're going to get beat on. The Big Ten, you ain't going to get beat on with the Purdue, Nebraskas."

He added, "The best pass rushers are from the SEC, except, like, Abdul Carter. You'll find one. You'll have one or two. If the kid from South Carolina (Dylan Stewart) could've left, he would've been a first-round pick."

The Big Ten went 15-12 versus other conferences in 2024, while the SEC finished 20-11. However, the Big Ten produced four teams in the College Football Playoff, and the SEC fielded three.

Pavia is set to enter his second season as the Commodores' starting quarterback after transferring from New Mexico State. He led Vanderbilt to a 7-6 record last year. The school didn't face any Big Ten programs.

The 24-year-old also took aim at the Tennessee Volunteers, saying the Commodores will become the premier school in the state following this season.

"Vanderbilt's gonna run Tennessee after this year," Pavia said. "This is gonna be the new staple of college football. It's going to happen here at Vanderbilt."

He added, "Everyone wants to come to Tennessee because of Nashville. ... Then, when we have, like, the most money in NIL, why not come here? So, we literally just have to win this year and throughout the rest of the year, and it'll take care of itself."

Pavia completed 59.4% of his passes last season while throwing for 2,293 yards and 20 touchdowns.