Commodores Are SEC Coach, Offensive Player of the Year – Vanderbilt Athletics

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — For the second time in as many days Vanderbilt football has a pair of individuals who have earned SEC honors with the announcement Wednesday of the league’s individual awards. E. Bronson Ingram Chair in Football Clark Lea is the 2025 SEC Coach of the Year while Diego Pavia has been voted the SEC Offensive Player of the Year. It’s the second year in a row that Lea has claimed the award, making him the first Commodore head coach to ever accomplish the feat. Pavia was also honored for the second consecutive season after he was named the inaugural SEC Newcomer of the Year in 2024. On Tuesday, Pavia and Eli Stowers were both announced as first-team All-SEC selections. Lea is a finalist for four national honors this year including the Walter Camp Football Bowl Subdivision, American Football Coaches Association, George Munger and Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Awards. He was announced as the AFCA Region 2 Coach of the Year last month—the second straight season he has earned the recognition—and was placed on the Paul “Bear” Bryant and Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award watch lists in October. This fall Lea has led the Dores
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