Tua Tagovailoa: From College Star to NFL Quarterback

Tuanigamanuolepola Donny "Tua" Tagovailoa, born on March 2, 1998, is an American professional football quarterback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). His journey to the NFL began with a celebrated college career at the University of Alabama, where he quickly rose to prominence. This article delves into Tagovailoa's college career, highlighting his achievements, statistics, and the impact he made on the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Early Life and High School Career

Growing up in Hawaii, Tagovailoa attended Saint Louis School in Honolulu, the same school as 2014 Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota, where Mariota served as a mentor to him when they were growing up in Hawaii. As a child, his main inspiration was his grandfather Seu Tagovailoa. He was highly respected in the local Samoan community and was regularly addressed as "Chief Tagovailoa". Seu believed that Tagovailoa would eventually grow into a football star and he requested that he visit him after every game to report his progress. As a high school varsity player, Tagovailoa threw for 33 passing touchdowns during his first season with three interceptions and 2,583 passing yards. Tagovailoa said his father pressured him to perform in high school, and would beat him with a belt if he threw an interception.

In 2016, Tagovailoa played in the All-American Bowl, and in his regular season threw for 2,669 passing yards with 27 passing touchdowns and seven interceptions. He was also chosen to be a part of the Elite 11 roster as one of the top high school quarterbacks in the nation, where he was named MVP of that roster.

Tagovailoa was deemed a four-star recruit during the 2017 recruiting cycle and was ranked the top high school prospect in the state of Hawaii. He had 17 offers to play on a college football scholarship before eventually enrolling at the University of Alabama in January 2017. Tagovailoa likened Alabama's hospitality to Hawaii's when picking the school, and credits Alabama's church-going culture for making it feel more similar to his home state.

Arrival at Alabama and Freshman Season

Tua Tagovailoa attended the University of Alabama, where he started his career as Jalen Hurts' backup before entering the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship and helping the Crimson Tide win the national championship. As a true freshman, Tagovailoa was the backup to sophomore quarterback Jalen Hurts throughout the 2017 season. However, he received significant playing time due to a couple of blowout victories for the Crimson Tide. On September 9, he made his collegiate debut against Fresno State in a home game at Bryant-Denny Stadium. In the 41-10 victory, he finished 6-of-9 for 64 yards and his first career passing touchdown, which was a 16-yard pass to wide receiver Henry Ruggs. On September 23, in a 59-0 victory against Vanderbilt, he got more playing time and recorded 103 passing yards and two passing touchdowns. In the next game, against SEC West rival Ole Miss, he recorded his first collegiate rushing touchdown in a 66-3 victory. In the annual rivalry game against Tennessee, he finished with 134 passing yards, one passing touchdown, one interception, and one rushing touchdown in the 45-7 victory. On November 18, in a game against Mercer, he threw for three passing touchdowns in the 56-0 victory.

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2018 College Football Playoff National Championship

With Alabama trailing SEC foe Georgia 13-0 at halftime of the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship, Alabama coach Nick Saban sent then-backup quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to try to ignite the Crimson Tide's offense in the second half. Tagovailoa had backed up starter Jalen Hurts all season and he was 35-for-53 passing for 470 yards, eight touchdowns and one interception in his reserve role in the regular season. On January 8, 2018, he replaced Hurts in the second half of the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship due to ineffective play by Hurts. He threw the game-winning 41-yard touchdown pass in overtime to another true freshman, wide receiver DeVonta Smith as Alabama defeated Georgia, 26-23, claiming their 17th National Championship. Given the circumstances, Tagovailoa was just what the doctor order.

Sophomore Season and Heisman Trophy Consideration

On September 1, 2018, Tagovailoa made his first career start at the season's opening game, against Louisville, in Orlando, Florida. He finished 12-of-16, with 227 passing yards and two touchdowns in the 51-14 victory, before Jalen Hurts replaced him in the third quarter. During Alabama head coach Nick Saban's weekly Monday press conference following the victory, he announced Tagovailoa as the starter for the Crimson Tide's home opener against Arkansas State on September 8. In the 62-7 victory over Ole Miss, he was 11-of-15 for 191 passing yards and two touchdowns to go along with 47 rushing yards. He continued his efficient season against Texas A&M with 387 passing yards, four passing touchdowns, and a rushing touchdown in the 45-23 victory. In a limited role against Louisiana, he was 8-of-8 passing for 128 passing yards and two passing touchdowns in the 56-14 victory. In the next game against Arkansas, he had more passing touchdowns than incompletions as he went 10-of-13 for 334 passing yards and four passing touchdowns in the 65-31 victory.

Following the regular season, he finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting to Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray, but he won the Walter Camp Award and Maxwell Award for 2018, both awarded to the top player in college football. While recovering from the high ankle sprain he suffered during the SEC Championship against Georgia, Tagovailoa put on a nearly flawless offensive performance against Oklahoma in the 2018 Orange Bowl (24-of-27 with 318 yards passing, four touchdowns and no interceptions) to lead the Tide to their fourth consecutive CFP National Championship appearance.

Junior Season and Injury

Tagovailoa began his junior season at the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game with a victory against Duke in Atlanta. He finished 26-of-31 with 336 passing yards and four touchdowns before sitting out the fourth quarter. The second game of the season was a home opener victory against New Mexico State. Former Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa led the Crimson to a come-from-behind victory in the national championship game as a freshman, he was the Heisman Trophy runner-up as a sophomore and he was on pace to potentially contend for the Heisman again as a junior before suffering a season-ending injury.

College Statistics and Achievements

Here are Tua Tagovailoa's career stats in college. comp. In the 32 games in which Tua Tagovailoa played in college, Alabama went 30-2.

Tagovailoa's college career was marked by numerous records and achievements, including:

1st in FBS history in career passing efficiency rating (min.
1st in FBS history in percentage of passes for touchdowns in a season (min.
1st in FBS history in percentage of passes for touchdowns in a career (min.
1st in FBS history in average gain per play in a career (min.
1st in Alabama history in touchdowns in a game: Seven touchdowns (Sept. 28, 2019 vs.
1st in Alabama history in completion percentage in a game (min. eight attempts): 100 percent (Sept. 29, 2018 vs.
2nd in Alabama history in yards per play in a game (min. 20 plays): 14.5 yards (Nov. 17, 2018 vs.
3rd in FBS history in passing efficiency rating in a season (min.

Notable Games

Alabama 45, Texas A&M 23 | Sept. For the second game in a row, Tagovailoa completed 73.3 percent of his passes as he threw for a then-career-high 387 yards and four touchdowns, while also rushing for another score, giving him five for the game.
Alabama 52, Auburn 21 | Nov. Playing in his first Iron Bowl, Tagovailoa was exceptional, completing 25-of-32 passes (78.1 percent) for 324 yards and five touchdowns, without any interceptions, and he rushed for a touchdown as well, giving him six for the game.
Alabama 45, Oklahoma 34 | Dec. In Tagovailoa's first and only College Football Playoff win as a starting quarterback, the sophomore quarterback powered a dominant first half as the Crimson Tide jumped out to a 28-0 lead over No. 4 seed Oklahoma in the game's first 17 minutes. When Oklahoma made the margin more respectable in the second half, Tagovailoa responded with two more touchdown passes - one to DeVonta Smith and another to Jerry Jeudy, which gave Tagovailoa 318 yards and four touchdowns for the game.
Alabama 59, Ole Miss 31 | Sept. Tagovailoa was responsible for seven touchdowns in this 28-point win, which was the most of his career.

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Quotes About Tagovailoa

Former Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts, after Tagovailoa replaced him in the 2018 CFP National Championship and led Alabama to a win: "He just stepped in and did his thing. He's built for stuff like this.
Alabama coach Nick Saban, after Alabama won the 2018 CFP National Championship: "I just thought we had to throw the ball, and I felt he could do it better, and he did. He did a good job, made some plays in the passing game. Just a great win. I'm so happy for Alabama fans. Great for our players.
Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher, after Alabama defeated Texas A&M 45-23 in 2018: "He's good. I mean he's good. He's got good people around him. I mean he's got really good people around him, and we tried to pressure him and he scrambled and they've got a good scheme, and they did a good job.
Former Arkansas coach Chad Morris, after Alabama defeated Arkansas 65-31 in 2018: "He is a fantastic leader and you can definitely see that.
Saban, after Alabama defeated Auburn 52-21 in 2018: "I thought Tua was into it.
Saban, after Alabama defeated Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl: "Our offense really controlled the tempo of the game.

NFL Career

Tagovailoa was selected fifth overall by the Dolphins in the 2020 NFL draft. He spent his rookie season alternating as a backup and starter before becoming the team's primary starter in 2021. Tagovailoa led the league in passer rating in 2022 and passing yards in 2023, earning Pro Bowl honors in the latter, and helping the Dolphins qualify for the playoffs both seasons.

He made his debut appearance in a Week 6 game against the New York Jets, coming in relief of Fitzpatrick in the fourth quarter of a 24-0 win where he threw two passes for nine yards. His NFL appearance was the first for a left-handed quarterback since Kellen Moore in 2015. During the team's bye week, Tagovailoa was named the starter for their Week 8 game against the Los Angeles Rams. On Tagovailoa's first career pass attempt as a starter, he was strip-sacked by Aaron Donald. Later in the game, Tagovailoa recorded his first career touchdown on a pass thrown to DeVante Parker. In Week 11 against the Denver Broncos, Tagovailoa threw for 83 yards and a touchdown before being replaced by Fitzpatrick early in the fourth quarter with the Broncos leading 20-10. Tagovailoa jammed his thumb in practice prior to a Week 12 game against the Jets and missed the game. He made his return in Week 13 against the Cincinnati Bengals, where he threw for 296 yards and a touchdown during a 19-7 win. In Week 14 during a narrow 33-27 defeat against the Kansas City Chiefs, Tagovailoa eclipsed the 300 passing yard mark in the NFL for the first time by passing for 316 yards and two touchdowns, plus with an additional rushing touchdown.

Tagovailoa led the Dolphins to a Week 1 win over the New England Patriots, their divisional rivals. During Week 2 against the Bills, Tagovailoa suffered a rib injury early in the game, and was carted off the field on a motorized stretcher, not returning in that game. Tagovailoa was later ruled out for the Dolphins Week 3 matchup against the Raiders, as it was revealed that he had fractured several ribs. He was then placed on injured reserve on September 25, 2021, and returned from injury in Week 6 against the Jacksonville Jaguars in London. In their next game against the Baltimore Ravens, Tagovailoa came off the bench to energize the Dolphins, completing 8 of 13 passes for 158 yards and a rushing touchdown, resulting in an upset 22-10 victory. Tagovailoa used the win to catapult a turnaround in his and his team's fortunes. The following week set the tone for the rest of the season, as he completed 27 of 33 passes for 273 yards, two touchdowns and an interception as the Dolphins beat the Jets 24-17. He led the team to its first seven-game winning streak since 1985. During their 20-9 victory over the New York Giants in Week 13, he became the first Dolphins quarterback since Dan Marino in 1994 to throw at least 21 completions in the first half of a game. In Week 17 against the Tennessee Titans, Tagovailoa and the Dolphins were blown out 34-3.

During the offseason previous to the 2022 season, the Miami Dolphins fired head coach Brian Flores, arguing internal communication issues. A few weeks later, several sources confirmed differences between Tagovailoa and Flores with rumors of heavy discussions between them. Tagovailoa began his third season by throwing for 270 yards and a touchdown in a 20-7 win over the Patriots, improving to 4-0 against Bill Belichick and the Patriots. The next week against the Ravens, Tagovailoa threw for a career-high 469 yards, six touchdowns, and two interceptions in the 42-38 comeback win. The 21-point comeback was the first fourth-quarter comeback of 21+ points in 12 years. Prior to the game, teams were 0-711 when trailing by at least 21 points in the fourth quarter since 2011. His six-touchdown performance also tied the Dolphins franchise record, tying Hall of Famers Bob Griese and Dan Marino, and his 469 passing yards ranks fourth in franchise history. As a result of his historic performance, Tagovailoa was named American Football Conference (AFC) Offensive Player of the Week for Week 2. During Week 3 against the Bills, Tagovailoa briefly left the game with what the Dolphins claimed was a back injury but eventually returned to the game, finishing with 186 passing yards and a touchdown as the Dolphins won 21-19. After the game, the NFLPA suspected that the Dolphins might have violated concussion protocols by letting Tagovailoa back in the game and subsequently announced that an investigation would be launched. After being a game-time decision for Week 4, Tagovailoa was cleared to start against the Bengals. After taking a sack by Bengals nose tackle Josh Tupou during the second quarter, Tagovailoa hit the ground with his left elbow, back and back of his helmet. On October 15, Tagovailoa cleared concussion protocol, but remained inactive for the Week 6 game against the Minnesota Vikings. Tagovailoa returned in Week 7 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he threw for 261 yards and a touchdown in the 16-10 win. The next week against the Detroit Lions, Tagovailoa threw for 382 yards and three touchdowns while completing 80% of his passes in the 31-27 win.

Tagovailoa began his fourth season by throwing for 466 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception as the Dolphins won 36-34 against the Chargers. For his performance, Tagovailoa was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for Week 1. In Week 2, Tagovailoa threw for 249 yards, a touchdown, and an interception in the Dolphins' 24-17 win against the Patriots. During Week 3 against the Broncos, Tagovailoa finished with 309 passing yards and 4 touchdowns. The Dolphins also combined for 350 rushing yards and won 70-20. Tagovailoa finished the season with a league-leading 4,624 passing yards, becoming the first Dolphins quarterback to lead the league in passing yards since Dan Marino in 1992. On July 26, 2024, Tagovailoa signed a four-year, $212.4 million contract extension with the Dolphins through 2028.

Tagovailoa opened the season against the Jacksonville Jaguars, throwing for 336 yards and leading a game-winning field goal drive. During Thursday Night Football on September 12, Tagovailoa suffered another concussion against the Bills after leading with his helmet into contact with safety Damar Hamlin following a scramble. The Dolphins later placed him on injured reserve following what became his third diagnosed concussion in two years, requiring him to miss at least four games, in order to give him ample time to progress through the NFL's concussion protocol while meeting with independent neurologists. After fulfilling the required four-game absence, Tagovailoa was designated to return to practice on October 21. On October 27, Tagovailoa made his return in Week 8 against the Arizona Cardinals, completing 28-of-38 passes for 234 yards and a touchdown as the Dolphins lost on a walk-off field goal, dropping their record to 2-5. The following week against the Bills, Tagovailoa completed a career-best 89.3% of his passes (25-of-28) and led a game-tying touchdown drive with under two minutes left, but the Dolphins lost on another last-second field goal. Tagovailoa helped snap a three-game losing streak with timely third-down throws, going 9-of-12 for 137 yards on third down in a 23-15 win over the Los Angeles Rams. He continued his efficient play against the Raiders and Patriots, completing over 70% of his passes for 605 yards, seven touchdowns, and no interceptions across the two games as Miami improved to 5-6. From weeks 12-14, Tagovailoa became the first QB to attempt 40 or more passes, throw multiple touchdowns, pass for more than 300 yards, and record zero interceptions across three games in the same season. This stretch included a game-winning touchdown pass in overtime against the New York Jets. In the October 12 home game against the Los Angeles Chargers, he threw three interceptions. In the next game on October 19 at Cleveland, he also threw three interceptions.

Playing Style and Personal Life

Tagovailoa has been noted for his throwing accuracy and touch, particularly in passes traveling over 20 yards in the air despite criticism of his arm strength. Although Tagovailoa is predominantly right-handed, his father trained him to throw the ball with his left hand as a child, because he wanted a left-handed son. As of the 2025 season, he is one of three starting left-handed quarterbacks currently in the NFL, alongside Michael Penix Jr. His younger brother, Taulia Tagovailoa, is currently a quarterback in the Indoor Football League (IFL) for the Orlando Pirates and previously played in the CFL and ELF. In 2025, Tagovailoa was added to President Donald Trump's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition. In February 2021, Tagovailoa announced the establishment of the Tua Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to the support of youth initiatives, health and wellness, and other charitable causes. On May 19, 2018, Tagovailoa returned to Hawaii after winning the National Championship game with Crimson Tide teammate and friend Najee Harris to be celebrated at the Hometown Hero Parade. To celebrate his accomplishments that year, Tagovailoa performed a traditional Samoan ceremonial dance called a taualuga, which is often performed as a "final" step in a monumental t…

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