Taulia Tagovailoa
{{short description|American gridiron football quarterback (born 2000)}}
{{for|his brother|Tua Tagovailoa}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name = Taulia Tagovailoa
| image = 2024, 01, Taulia Tagovailoa.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Tagovailoa with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2024
| currentteam = Hamilton Tiger-Cats
| number = 3
| position = Quarterback
| college = {{ubl|Alabama (2019)|Maryland (2020–2023)}}
| high_school = Thompson {{nowrap|(Alabaster, Alabama)}}
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|2000|2|15}}
| birth_place = ʻEwa Beach, Hawaii, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| height_ft = 5
| height_in = 11
| weight_lb = 200
| pastteams =
- Hamilton Tiger-Cats ({{CFL Year|2024}}–present)
| status = Active
| cflstatus = American
| highlights =
- Polynesian College Football Player of the Year (2023)
- 2× second-team All-Big Ten (2022, 2023)
- Pinstripe Bowl MVP (2021)
| undraftedyear = 2024
| cflstatlabel1 = Passing completions
| cflstatvalue1 = 1
| cflstatlabel2 = Passing attempts
| cflstatvalue2 = 1
| cflstatlabel3 = Passing yards
| cflstatvalue3 = 6
| cflstatvalue4 = 0–0
| cflstatlabel5 = Rushing touchdowns
| cflstatvalue5 = 1
| cfl = taulia-tagovailoa/165917/
}}
Taulia Tagovailoa (born February 15, 2000) ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|t|ʌ|ŋ|oʊ|v|aɪ|ˈ|l|oʊ|ə}} {{respell|TUNG|oh|vy|LOH|ə}}) is an American professional football quarterback for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He also played college football for the Maryland Terrapins and Alabama Crimson Tide. He holds the Big Ten Conference record for most all-time passing yards and holds the Maryland single-season and career school records for both completions{{Cite news |last=Giambalvo |first=Emily |date=November 20, 2021 |title=Maryland, still seeking bowl eligibility, is pounded by Michigan for third straight loss |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/11/20/maryland-football-michigan-bowl-eligibility/ |access-date=2021-11-28 |newspaper=Washington Post |issn=0190-8286}} and passing yards,{{Cite news |last=Giambalvo |first=Emily |date=November 27, 2021 |title=Maryland is bowl eligible for the first time since 2016 after a 40-16 victory over Rutgers |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/11/27/maryland-bowl-eligible-rutgers/ |access-date=2021-11-28 |newspaper=Washington Post |issn=0190-8286}} as well as a tie for Maryland's single-season touchdowns record.{{Cite web |date=December 29, 2021 |title=Taulia Tagovailoa ties Terrapins touchdown record as Maryland routs Virginia Tech in Pinstripe Bowl |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2021/12/29/maryland-beats-virginia-tech-pinstripe-bowl-taulia-tagovailoa/9049645002/ |access-date=2022-01-01 |work=USA TODAY|agency=Associated Press}}{{Cite web |last=Baumgartner |first=Blake |date=2023-01-18 |title=Terps QB Tagovailoa to return for senior season |url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/35473190/maryland-qb-taulia-tagovailoa-return-2023-season |access-date=2023-06-12 |website=ESPN.com}} He is the younger brother of Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
College career
=Alabama=
Tagovailoa spent his true freshman season at Alabama in 2019 as a backup to his older brother, Tua Tagovailoa, and Mac Jones. He saw his first collegiate action in the season opener against Duke but did not record any stats. On September 21, 2019, Tagovailoa completed his first career pass for a gain of 20 yards against Southern Miss, finishing 1-for-1 on the day. He entered in the third quarter against the Arkansas Razorbacks on October 26, 2019, for his most extensive action to date, finishing 6-of-8 passing for 45 yards while adding one rush for no gain. He came in late for the Tide against Mississippi State, handing the ball off to run out the clock in Starkville. Tagovailoa finished 2-of-3 for 35 yards against Western Carolina with his first career touchdown. He finished the season 9-of-12 for 100 yards and one touchdown.{{cite web | last=Al-Khateeb | first=Zac | title=How good is Tua's brother? Why Taulia Tagovailoa can make his own name at Alabama | website=Sporting News | date=2020-04-23 | url=https://www.sportingnews.com/us/ncaa-football/news/tua-tagovailoa-brother-taulia-how-good-alabama/199ixyslh41fv1o2luzzw6uhus | access-date=2024-10-12}}
=Maryland=
==2020 season==
On May 15, 2020, Tagovailoa announced he would be transferring to the University of Maryland.{{cite web | last=VanHaaren | first=Tom | title=Ex-Tide QB Taulia Tagovailoa joining Terrapins | website=ESPN.com | date=2020-05-16 | url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/29180989/former-alabama-qb-taulia-tagovailoa-transfers-maryland | access-date=2024-10-22}}{{cite web | last=Zenitz | first=Matt | title=Why Taulia Tagovailoa left Alabama for Maryland | website=AL.com| date=2020-05-18 | url=https://www.al.com/alabamafootball/2020/05/why-taulia-tagovailoa-left-alabama-for-maryland.html | access-date=2024-10-22}}
He started all four games in which he played, only missing the final game vs. Rutgers. In his 4 games, he led Maryland to a 2–2 record, in which he beat Penn State and Minnesota. He broke the 5-game losing streak Maryland had against Penn State. He threw 75-of-122 passing for 1,011 yards, seven touchdowns and seven interceptions.{{Cite news |last=Wang |first=Gene |date=August 9, 2021 |title=Maryland QB Taulia Tagovailoa looks to elevate his leadership and his production |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/08/09/maryland-qb-taulia-tagovailoa-looks-elevate-his-leadership-his-production/ |access-date=2025-04-26 |work=The Washington Post}} He ranked top five in the Big Ten in multiple passing categories: first in yards per completion (13.48), second in passing efficiency (138.5), second in yards per pass attempt (8.29), third in passing yards per game (252.8) and third in total offense (263.8). At the end of the season, Tagovailoa was named All-Big Ten Honorable Mention.
==2021 season==
File:NCAA 2021 - Maryland vs. Kent State, Sep 25 2021 DSC03151 (51525590309).jpg
Tagovailoa returned to Maryland as the team's starting quarterback in 2021, starting in all 13 games and again earning All-Big Ten Honorable Mention.{{Cite news |last=Giambalvo |first=Emily |date=September 18, 2021 |title=Maryland QB Taulia Tagovailoa shows poise, growth at Illinois |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/09/18/taulia-tagovailoa-growth-maryland-football-illinois/ |access-date=2025-04-26 |work=The Washington Post}}{{Cite magazine |last=Dellenger |first=Ross |date=September 29, 2021 |title=Taulia Tagovailoa Is Resurrecting Maryland's QB Position |url=https://www.si.com/college/2021/09/29/taulia-tagovailoa-maryland-football-quarterback-history |access-date=2025-04-26 |magazine=Sports Illustrated}}{{Cite web |last=Trister |first=Noah |date=September 1, 2021 |title=Expectations not a burden for Maryland's Tagovailoa |url=https://apnews.com/article/college-football-sports-nfl-coronavirus-pandemic-health-42e157dd74de96fedce39b78fc807b78 |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=AP NEWS}} He led Maryland to the program's first winning season since 2014 and the program's first bowl bid since 2016, beating West Virginia, Howard, Illinois, Kent State, Indiana, Rutgers, and Virginia Tech.{{Cite web |title=2021 Maryland Terrapins Stats |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/maryland/2021.html |access-date=2024-02-19 |website=College Football at Sports-Reference.com}} He broke the 1992 single-season completion record set by John Kaleo in a loss against Michigan and then the 1993 single-season passing yards record set by Scott Milanovich in the subsequent win against Rutgers, then tied Milanovich's 1993 single-season touchdowns record in the bowl win.{{Cite web|title=2021 Football Record Book (PDF)|url=https://umterps.com/documents/2021/6/28/Updated_Record_Book_6_28.pdf|access-date=2021-11-28|work=University of Maryland Athletics}} Tagovailoa was named MVP of the 2021 Pinstripe Bowl against Virginia Tech where he went 20-of-24 with 265 passing yards and two touchdowns, along with 42 rushing yards on four carries in their 54-10 win. He led Maryland to the program's first bowl win since 2010.
==2022 season==
Despite missing one game with a knee injury, Tagovailoa passed for 3,008 yards and 18 touchdowns along with eight interceptions in 2022. He set a school record for career passing yards during the season and earned second-team All-Big Ten Conference honors. Despite leading Maryland to an 8–5 record and an appearance in the 2022 Duke's Mayo Bowl, Tagovailoa was benched for the opening drive of the game due to a minor team rule violation. He returned to play the remainder of the game, which the Terrapins won.
==2023 season==
On January 18, 2023, Tagovailoa announced he would forgo entering the NFL draft and return to Maryland to play his senior season.{{cite news |last1=Giambalvo |first1=Emily |title=QB Taulia Tagovailoa will return to Maryland for his senior season |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/18/taulia-tagovailoa-returns-maryland/ |access-date=23 April 2023 |newspaper=Washington Post |date=18 January 2023 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230423205306/https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/18/taulia-tagovailoa-returns-maryland/ |archive-date=23 April 2023 |url-status=live}} In a week 5 matchup against Indiana, Tagovailoa threw for a career-high 5 touchdown passes with 352 passing yards as well as a rushing touchdown. He was subsequently named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week.{{Cite web |last=Trister |first=Noah |date=2023-09-30 |title=Tagovailoa's big game helps Maryland improve to 5-0 with 44-17 rout of Indiana; Ohio State up next |url=https://apnews.com/article/maryland-indiana-taulia-tagovailoa-17bc3268add06d3f4bae1d6df72c02c3 |access-date=2024-02-19 |work=AP News}} In the season finale, Tagovailoa passed Curtis Painter to become the Big Ten's all–time passing leader with 11,256 passing yards.{{Cite magazine |last=Scott |first=Jelani |date=2023-11-25 |title=Taulia Tagovailoa, Brother of Tua, Just Broke a Massive Big Ten Football Record |url=https://www.si.com/college/2023/11/26/maryland-taulia-tagovailoa-breaks-big-ten-all-time-passing-record |access-date=2024-02-19 |magazine=Sports Illustrated}}
=College statistics=
| class="wikitable" |
| colspan="2"| Legend |
|---|
| style="background:#cfecec; width:3em;"|
| Led the Big Ten |
| Bold
| Career high |
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" | |||||||||||||||
| rowspan="2"| Season
! colspan="3"| Games ! colspan="8"| Passing ! colspan="5"| Rushing | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | |
| colspan="16" style="{{CollegePrimaryStyle|Alabama Crimson Tide}}"| Alabama Crimson Tide | |||||||||||||||
| 2019
| 5 || 0 || — || 9 || 12 || 75.0 || 100 || 8.3 || 1 || 0 || 172.5 || 1 || -2 || -2.0 || 0 | |||||||||||||||
| colspan="16" style="{{CollegePrimaryStyle|Maryland Terrapins}}"| Maryland Terrapins | |||||||||||||||
| 2020
| 4 || 4 || 2−2 || 75 || 122 || 61.5 || 1,011 || 8.3 || 7 || 7 || 138.5 || 26 || 44 || 1.7 || 2 | |||||||||||||||
| 2021
| 13 || 13 || 7−6 || style="background:#cfecec;| 328 || style="background:#cfecec;| 474 || 69.2 || 3,860 || 8.1 || 26 || style="background:#cfecec;| 11 || 151.1 || 80 || 81 || 1.0 || 2 | |||||||||||||||
| 2022
| 12 || 11 || 6−5 || 262 || 391 || 67.0 || 3,008 || 7.7 || 18 || 8 || 142.7 || 87 || 64 || 0.7 || 4 | |||||||||||||||
| 2023
| 12 || 12 || 7–5 || style="background:#cfecec;| 290 || style="background:#cfecec;| 437 || 66.4 || style="background:#cfecec;| 3,377 || 7.7 || style="background:#cfecec;| 25 || style="background:#cfecec;| 11 || 145.1 || 68 || 18 || 0.3 || 5 | |||||||||||||||
| [https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/taulia-tagovailoa-1.html Career] | 46 | 40 | 22–18 | 964 | 1,436 | 67.1 | 11,356 | 7.9 | 77 | 37 | 146.1 | 262 | 205 | 0.8 | 13 |
=Records=
Updated: December 21, 2023.
==Big Ten records==
- Most passing yards, career: 11,256
- Highest completion percentage (min. 875 attempts), career: 67.1%
==Maryland records==
- Most completions, career: 955
- Most passing attempts, career: 1,424
- Highest completion percentage (min. 200 attempts), career: 67.1%
- Most passing yards, career: 11,256
- Most passing touchdowns, career: 76
- Most interceptions thrown, career: 37
- Highest passer rating (min. 200 attempts), career: 145.9
- Most 300-yard passing games, career: 15
- Most total offensive yards, career: 11,473
- Most touchdowns responsible for, career: 89
- Most completions, season: 328 (2021)
- Most completions, sophomore season: 328 (2021)
- Most completions, junior season: 262 (2022)
- Most passing attempts, sophomore season: 474 (2021)
- Most passing attempts, junior season: 391 (2022)
- Highest completion percentage, season: 69.2% (2021)
- Highest completion percentage, sophomore season: 69.2% (2021)
- Most passing yards, season: 3,860 (2021)
- Most passing yards, sophomore season: 3,860 (2021)
- Most passing yards, junior season: 3,008 (2022)
- Most passing touchdowns, season: 26 (2021)
- Tied with Scott Milanovich (1993)
- Most passing touchdowns, sophomore season: 26 (2021)
- Tied with Scott Milanovich (1993)
- Highest passer rating, season: 151.06 (2021)
- Highest passer rating, sophomore season: 151.06 (2021)
- Most 300-yard passing games, season: 7 (2021)
- Most consecutive 300-yard passing games, season: 3 (2021)
- Most total offensive plays, sophomore season: 554 (2021)
- Most total offensive plays, junior season: 469 (2022)
- Most total offensive yards, season: 3,941 (2021)
- Most total offensive yards, sophomore season: 3,941 (2021)
- Most total offensive yards, junior season: 3,069 (2022)
- Most touchdowns responsible for, junior season: 22 (2022)
- Tied with Scott McBrien (2002)
Professional career
{{NFL predraft
| height ft = 5
| height in = 10 3/4
| weight = 185
| arm span = 30 3/4
| hand span = 9 5/8
| note = All values from Pro Day{{Cite web |url=https://draftscout.com/dsprofile.php?PlayerId=1029383&DraftYear=2024 |title=2024 NFL Draft Scout Taulia Tagovailoa College Football Profile |website=DraftScout.com |access-date=April 30, 2024}}
}}Tagovailoa went undrafted in the 2024 NFL Draft, but was invited to the Seattle Seahawks minicamp for a tryout.{{Cite web |last=McCarriston |first=Shanna |date=2024-05-06 |title=Brother of Tua Tagovailoa doesn't make Seahawks roster after rookie minicamp tryout, per report |url=https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/brother-of-tua-tagovailoa-doesnt-make-seahawks-roster-after-rookie-minicamp-tryout-per-report/ |access-date=2024-05-24 |website=CBSSports.com}} The Seahawks did not sign him after camp ended.
On June 10, 2024, Tagovailoa signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League.{{cite web | last=Alper | first=Josh | title=Taulia Tagovailoa signs with CFL's Hamilton Tiger-Cats | website=NBC Sports | date=2024-06-10 | url=https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/taulia-tagovailoa-signs-with-cfls-hamilton-tiger-cats | access-date=2024-10-31}} He spent nine games on the practice roster before making his professional debut on August 23, 2024, against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, as the third-string quarterback.{{cite web|url=https://static.cfl.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024-GN-Gm-69-Tor-vs-Ham.pdf |title=Game notes |publisher=Canadian Football League |access-date=September 24, 2024}} In the next game, on September 2, 2024, Tagovailoa recorded his first career touchdown on a three-yard rush against the Toronto Argonauts during the annual Labour Day Classic game.{{cite web|url=https://www.cfl.ca/2024/09/02/ticats-stop-argos-comeback-for-labour-day-classic-win/ |title=Ticats stop Argos comeback for the Labour Day Classic win |publisher=Canadian Football League |date=September 2, 2024}}
Career CFL statistics
= Statistics =
| class="wikitable"
! colspan="2" |Legend |
| Bold
|Career high |
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+CFL statistics ! rowspan="2" |Year ! rowspan="2" |Team ! colspan="2" |Games ! colspan="9" |Passing ! colspan="5" |Rushing |
| {{abbr|GP|Games played}}
!{{abbr|Record|Record as a starter}} !{{abbr|Cmp|Passes completed}} !{{abbr|Att|Passes attempted}} !{{abbr|Pct|Completion percentage}} !{{abbr|Yds|Passing yards}} !{{abbr|Y/A|Yards per passing attempt}} !{{abbr|Y/G|Passing yards per game}} !{{abbr|Lng|Longest pass completion}} !{{abbr|TD|Passing touchdowns}} !{{abbr|Int|Interceptions}} !{{abbr|Att|Rushing attempts}} !{{abbr|Yds|Rushing yards}} !{{abbr|Avg|Yards per rushing attempt}} !{{abbr|Lng|Longest rushing attempt}} !{{abbr|TD|Rushing touchdowns}} |
|---|
| 2024
!HAM |8 | -- |1 |1 |100.0 |6 |6.0 |6.0 |6 |0 |0 |3 |10 |3.3 |7 |1 |
| colspan="2" |Career
!8 !-- !1 !1 !100.0 !6 !6.0 !6.0 !6 !0 !0 !3 !10 !3.3 !7 !1 |
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- {{Twitter|Tauliaa12}}
- [https://rolltide.com/sports/football/roster/taulia-tagovailoa/5675 Alabama Crimson Tide bio]
- [https://umterps.com/sports/football/roster/taulia-tagovailoa/8867 Maryland Terrapins bio]
- [https://www.ticats.ca/players/taulia-tagovailoa/165917/ Hamilton Tiger-Cats bio]
{{Hamilton Tiger-Cats roster navbox}}
{{Polynesian High School Football Player of the Year Award}}
{{Polynesian Collegiate Football Player of the Year Award}}
{{Maryland Terrapins quarterback navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tagovailoa, Taulia}}
Category:American football quarterbacks
Category:Alabama Crimson Tide football players
Category:Maryland Terrapins football players
Category:Players of American football from Hawaii
Category:American sportspeople of Samoan descent
Category:Hamilton Tiger-Cats players
Category:Canadian football quarterbacks
Category:Players of Canadian football from Hawaii
Category:Pacific Islander American players of American football