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.[5]
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.[8] 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
Tagovailoa with Maryland in 2021.
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.[9][10][11] 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.[12] 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.[1][2][13][3] 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.[3]
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.[14]
2023 season
On January 18, 2023, Tagovailoa announced he would forgo entering the NFL draft and return to Maryland to play his senior season.[14] 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.[15] In the season finale, Tagovailoa passed Curtis Painter to become the Big Ten's all–time passing leader with 11,256 passing yards.[16]
Tagovailoa went undrafted in the 2024 NFL Draft, but was invited to the Seattle Seahawks minicamp for a tryout.[18] The Seahawks did not sign him after camp ended.[18]
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
On June 10, 2024, Tagovailoa signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League.[19] 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.[20] 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.[21]
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