Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia suing NCAA over NIL, eligibility

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia filed a lawsuit Friday against the NCAA, arguing that because the governing body counts junior college seasons towards NCAA eligibility and athletes cannot redshirt after they have played four years, NCAA rules violate antitrust law. The former New Mexico State transfer goes on to argue that the rules have forced athletes to miss out on NIL dollars.

Pavia transferred to Vanderbilt for the 2024 season after spending two seasons at New Mexico State. The 2023 Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year did not hold an FBS offer out of high school. A native of Albuquerque, New Mexico, Pavia spent two seasons at the New Mexico Military Institute to begin his career.

Filed in U.S. District Court of Middle Tennessee, Pavia is seeking a temporary restraining order against the NCAA, which is preventing him from playing the 2025-26 season based on his attendance at junior college during the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

Pavia led Vanderbilt’s upset of Alabama earlier this season. He threw for 252 yards and rushed for 56 more as the Commodores stunned No. 1 Alabama 40-35. The quarterback’s performance led Vanderbilt to its first win over an AP top-five team in program history. Vanderbilt was 0-60 all-time against AP top-five teams.

“Athletes playing football outside of the NCAA monopoly have no meaningful opportunity to profit off their name, image, or likeness,” the complaint states. “Even so, JUCO Eligibility Limitation Bylaws restrict the ability of athletes who begin their college football careers in junior colleges from having the same opportunity to profit from NIL as students who enter an NCAA institution as freshmen.

“Specifically, the JUCO Eligibility Bylaws limit athletes who begin their college careers at junior colleges to only two or three seasons of NCAA Division I football, as opposed to the four seasons of competition (and NIL Compensation opportunities) available to all other NCAA Division I football players.”

The complaint included a declaration of support from Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea. Pavia’s lawsuit also calls on the court to examine the rule of restitution, which could include vacating wins, postseason bans, return of TV revenue and financial penalties if an ineligible athlete participates.

“To make a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction meaningful in this case, Pavia respectfully requests that the Court enjoin the NCAA’s application of the Rule of Restitution against Pavia, Vanderbilt University, or any other NCAA Division I college to which Pavia could transfer,” the filing states. “Because its “purpose is to punish challenges to the NCAA’s anticompetitive rules by attempting to deprive courts of the ability to grant effective relief and depriving individual student-athletes and member institutions of the practical ability to rely on court orders in their favor.”

An NCAA rule change in 2018 allowed college football players to compete in up to four games without having that season count toward their four allotted years of eligibility. Pavia played eight games in 2020-21 and 12 games in 2021-22 at New Mexico Military Institute.

A name to watch in the Heisman Trophy race, Pavia has thrown for 1,677 yards with 15 touchdowns and just three interceptions. He’s also rushed for 563 yards and four touchdowns. No. 24 Vanderbilt is 6-3 and hosts South Carolina on Saturday.

“Pavia brings this action to put a stop to the unjustified anticompetitive restriction on universities who seek to compete for college athletes, and to restore freedom of economic opportunity for himself and other college football players,” Friday’s filing states.