NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Diego Pavia had only one real destination in mind after a federal judge granted him a sixth season of college football.
Vanderbilt. It's where coach Clark Lea brought Pavia to the Southeastern Conference in 2024 and where the quarterback led the Commodores to the biggest win in program history.
“I want to finish something that I started,” Pavia said.
Pavia already helped Lea post his first winning season as a head coach at his alma mater. He also led the Commodores to their first win in 61 games against an AP Top Five opponent. Better yet? Vanderbilt never trailed against then-No. 1 Alabama last October.
With Pavia, Vanderbilt capped the season with a bowl win and its first winning record since 2013 at 7-6.
“He’s the ultimate competitor, and that’s what everybody loves about him,” wide receiver Richie Hoskins said of Pavia. “There’s nobody you’d rather put down than Diego because all he wants to do and all he cares about is winning, and you can put a lot of trust in a guy like that.”
Aside from beating Alabama, Pavia also has a big win after he sued the NCAA last November over a rule limiting the time players who start their careers in junior college have to compete at the Division I level. Pavia's attorneys argued he could earn more than $1 million in NIL compensation with another season.
Pavia won his injunction last December, then helped Vanderbilt beat Georgia Tech in the Birmingham Bowl. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled to hear arguments Sept. 16 in the NCAA’s appeal. Others trying to follow his judicial path to another season have had mixed success.
Generously listed by Vanderbilt as 6-foot, Pavia didn't get an FBS offer coming out of Volcano Vista High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He went to New Mexico Military Institute in 2020 and led the junior college to the 2021 national championship.
He went to New Mexico State in 2022 and led that team to a 10-win season in 2023. The Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year followed his head coach, Jerry Kill, and offensive coordinator Tim Beck to Vanderbilt.
Pavia won the starting job and finished sixth in the SEC with 20 touchdown passes. He set a school record for a quarterback rushing with 801 yards, leading all Power 4 quarterbacks in that category. He was intercepted only four times in an offense that had the nation’s fewest turnovers with just seven in 2024.
Running back Sedrick Alexander expects even more from Pavia after a season in the SEC.
“He's very adapted to the SEC, and I think that he's bringing his team along and the offense running with Coach Beck is going to be very explosive this year,” Alexander said.
Pavia won Lea over by how he listens closely when coaches speak along with having a knack for connecting with teammates. Vanderbilt now has a chance to benefit with Pavia securely the starter going into Saturday night's season opener against Charleston Southern.
“I think he's really comfortable here in the right ways, so yes I'm hoping that will also show up for us in the way we play,” Lea said. “At the end, this is a long season. ... Knowing what to expect from the quarterback? I think that can help a bunch.”
The rest of the SEC has seen Pavia too, and tough road trips await at No. 13 South Carolina, No. 8 Alabama, No. 1 Texas and No. 24 Tennessee.
Beck has been with Pavia long enough to know the quarterback's strengths and doesn't want to discourage his instincts when it's time to bolt from the pocket or try to find someone downfield.
“He knows this is a tremendous opportunity for him, so just continuing to operate our offense at a high level is something he’s gotten better at and continues to work on,” Beck said.
When Pavia dealt with an injured hamstring last season, Vanderbilt lost four of its final six after a 5-2 start. That's why Pavia is working out, drinking water when home with a specific pH level to help muscles recover better, dry needling and even a hyperbaric chamber. All to be as healthy as possible for Vandy.
“We want to be pure fireworks,” Pavia said.
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
FILE - Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia plays during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Tennessee, Nov. 30, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV, File)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act and deploy troops to quell persistent protests against the federal officers sent to Minneapolis to enforce his administration's massive immigration crackdown.
The threat comes a day after a man was shot and wounded by an immigration officer who had been attacked with a shovel and broom handle. That shooting further heightened the fear and anger that has radiated across the city since an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot Renee Good in the head.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to invoke the rarely used federal law to deploy the U.S. military or federalize the National Guard for domestic law enforcement, over the objections of state governors.
“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State,” Trump said in social media post.
Presidents have indeed invoked the Insurrection Act more than two dozen times, most recently in 1992 by President George H.W. Bush to end unrest in Los Angeles. In that instance, local authorities had asked for the assistance.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison responded to Trump's post by saying he would challenge any deployment in court. He's already suing to try to stop the surge by the Department of Homeland Security, which says it has made more than 2,000 arrests in the state since early December. ICE is a DHS agency.
In Minneapolis, smoke filled the streets Wednesday night near the site of the latest shooting as federal officers wearing gas masks and helmets fired tear gas into a small crowd. Protesters responded by throwing rocks and shooting fireworks.
Demonstrations have become common in Minneapolis since Good was fatally shot on Jan. 7. Agents who have yanked people from their cars and homes have been confronted by angry bystanders demanding they leave.
“This is an impossible situation that our city is presently being put in and at the same time we are trying to find a way forward to keep people safe, to protect our neighbors, to maintain order,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said.
Frey said the federal force — five times the size of the city’s 600-officer police force — has “invaded” Minneapolis, and that residents are scared and angry.
Homeland Security said in a statement that federal law enforcement officers on Wednesday stopped a driver from Venezuela who is in the U.S. illegally. The person drove off then crashed into a parked car before fleeing on foot, DHS said.
Officers caught up, then two other people arrived and the three started attacking the officer, according to DHS.
“Fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired a defensive shot to defend his life,” DHS said. The confrontation took place about 4.5 miles (7.2 kilometers) from where Good was killed.
Police chief Brian O’Hara said the shot man was being treated for a non-life-threatening injury. The two others are in custody, DHS said. O’Hara's account of what happened largely echoed that of Homeland Security.
Earlier Wednesday, Gov. Tim Walz described Minnesota said what's happening in the state “defies belief.”
“Let’s be very, very clear: this long ago stopped being a matter of immigration enforcement,” he said. “Instead, it’s a campaign of organized brutality against the people of Minnesota by our own federal government.”
Jonathan Ross, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who killed Good, suffered internal bleeding to his torso during the encounter, a Homeland Security official told The Associated Press.
The official spoke to AP on condition of anonymity in order to discuss Ross’ medical condition. The official did not provide details about the severity of the injuries, and the agency did not respond to questions about the bleeding, how he suffered the injury, when it was diagnosed or his medical treatment.
Good was killed after three ICE officers surrounded her SUV on a snowy street near her home. Bystander video shows one officer ordering Good to open the door and grabbing the handle. As the vehicle begins to move forward, Ross, standing in front, raises his weapon and fires at least three shots at close range. He steps back as the SUV advances and turns.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has said Ross was struck by the vehicle and that Good was using her SUV as a weapon — a self-defense claim that has been criticized by Minnesota officials.
Chris Madel, an attorney for Ross, declined to comment.
Good’s family has hired the same law firm that represented George Floyd’s family in a $27 million settlement with Minneapolis. Floyd, who was Black, died after a white police officer pinned his neck to the ground 2020.
Madhani reported from Washington, D.C. Associated Press reporters Bill Barrow in Atlanta; Julie Watson in San Diego; Rebecca Santana in Washington; Ed White in Detroit and Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis contributed.
A protester holds an umbrella as sparks fly from a flash bang deployed by law enforcement on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Monica Travis shares an embrace while visiting a makeshift memorial for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A protester yells in front of law enforcement after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Tear gas surrounds federal law enforcement officers as they leave a scene after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Protesters shout at law enforcement officers after a shooting on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Law enforcement officers stand amid tear gas at the scene of a reported shooting Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
