Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia found his voice to challenge the NCAA. As reported in an X post by Mitt Winter on November 9, “Diego Pavia has sued the NCAA.” He filed a lawsuit on Friday in the US District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee. According to the lawsuit, the 23-year-old senior alleged that “NCAA rules that count juco seasons towards NCAA eligibility & that prohibit redshirts from being used after an athlete has played 4 years at an NCAA school violate antitrust law.” 

As per Diego Pavia’s statement, this rule restrains athletes from making NIL money. Unfortunately, fans aren’t seeing eye to eye with his petition and the reactions are harsh. Following this information, an X user commented, “Dude just doesn’t wanna stop playing. Like sir, you are eventually gonna hafta (have to)  give up the dream and become that car salesman or realtor.”

Diego Pavia began his college football career in 2020 with the New Mexico Military. Then he left for New Mexico State Aggies after two seasons, after which he transferred to Vanderbilt in 2024. Now, he’s already changing the Commodores’ history by leading them with 1,677 yards and 15 touchdowns in nine games. Now, with a record of 6-3 after beating Auburn 17-7 on the road, they’re set to make their first bowl appearance since 2018. 

However, the NCAA rules would mean that Pavia will have to leave when things are just getting promising. Aside from his football achievements, his NIL also profited from his rise to fame. But as per the rule, this would be the last season of college football for Pavia because of his lack of eligibility. Still, fans are divided in their reactions to his lawsuit. 

Fans troll Diego Pavia’s lawsuit

After Pavia’s claims that the NCAA’s rules for junior college eligibility are anticompetitive, another user dropped a bomb on the QB. They wrote, “I’m team NCAA on this one 😂 never thought I’d say that,” revealing that Diego Pavia is alone in this one.

Another concerned person weighed in on the situation. They wrote, “The allegation that the rules cause athletes to miss out on NIL can only be true as an admission that NIL compensation is not actually for N, I, or L. There is no rule or law preventing individuals without collegiate athletic ability from signing endorsement deals.” But if you wish to be known for a particular brand of sports, you need to be part of an organization and Pavia doesn’t want to miss the good things with Vanderbilt. 

But is Diego Pavia going to be known as just a college football player? One fan wrote, “One step closer to @Gabelkard dream of Diego Pavia being a college football lifer coming true.” Former Oklahoma alum Gabe Ikard had shown his support for Pavia as a potential Heisman candidate when he led the Commodores to a big win against Alabama earlier in October. 

Diego Pavia fulfilled one person’s curiosity when he came up with this lawsuit. They wrote, “I wonder how long till someone challenges the “4 year eligibility” rule.” The NCAA’s 4-year eligibility rule for CFB was approved and went into effect in June 2018. As of now, we’ll have to wait and see what happens to Diego Pavia and his petition. 

Also, have a look at this interesting interview with the Griffin sisters in our exclusive Think Tank podcast.