Johnny Manziel Mentoring Vanderbilt Star Diego Pavia

At only 6’0” and 210 pounds, Manziel was in the spotlight all the time with his 47 touchdowns as a freshman and 46 touchdowns as a sophomore. The numbers in the NFL didn’t carry over, going 2-6 as the starter over two seasons. Manziel completed 57.0 percent of his passes for 1,675 yards with seven touchdowns and seven interceptions. 

After getting into trouble several times while playing professional football, the situation reached a point where the Browns released the star, effectively ending his NFL career.  

Manziel doesn’t want Pavia to rewrite his own mistakes, and that’s when he got to know the quarterback better.

“I went to dinner with Diego Pavia tonight,” Manziel said. “They hungry. And guess what? I’m going to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on Saturday, and I’m on the Vandy sideline. ‘Bring it on’ is what them boys are saying.” 

Diego Pavia

The Commodores quarterback, Diego Pavia, has been one of the most underrated players in college football. The Albuquerque, New Mexico native has already thrown for over 1,200 yards in the air with 13 touchdowns and three interceptions. His total quarterback rating sits at 88.4 and is only trending in an upward direction for how he’s performed this season. 

This weekend, Pavia faces a challenging task as Vanderbilt travels to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, for a 2:30 p.m. game at Bryant-Denny Stadium, where College Gameday will be attending to highlight the marquee matchup.  

Back on November 10, 2012, Manziel upset the No. 1 Crimson Tide, which spotlighted the stellar star’s talent on national television. Pavia hopes he can pull off what the Aggies did over ten years ago in a rowdy environment. 

“I bet them once,” Manziel said. “Diego’s got a chance to beat them twice.”

With numerous scouts in attendance to watch both programs, the pressure will be on Pavia to continue racking up tremendous numbers for a Vanderbilt team that hasn't received much credit from many national outlets. With wins against Charleston Southern, Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Georgia State and Utah State, the bar is getting raised higher against an historically successful program that loves to win at home. 

With Johnny’s insight, Pavia wants to shock the doubters with his talent and upset the Crimson Tide, a team that Johnny told the "Nightcap" podcast with Shannon Sharpe and Chad Ochocinco Johnson isn’t the same as it used to be. 

“The one thing I will say that I think… in the past, you walk in, face an Alabama team, you’ve probably got a little fear,” Manziel said. “This is Bama, the team that’s been a dynasty. “You’ve got a little fear. That fear aspect of what Alabama is completely gone. And nobody’s scared of them boys. Not Vandy, not Kentucky, not nobody.”