Alabama Football: Sarkisian and Tagovailoa’s Relationship History

Talented Alabama Football quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and new offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian have a history that dates back prior to Sarkisian being added to Nick Saban’s coaching staff this offseason.

This past week, Nick Saban finally released the official names for the 2019 Alabama Football coaching staff after weeks of rumors and headlines swirling about possible candidates. Nick Saban named Steve Sarkisian as the new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Not exactly a new hire. Sarkisian returns to the Tide after leaving to join the Atlanta Falcon’s staff after coaching only the National Championship game in 2016.

In Sarkisian’s one 2016 game as offensive coordinator, Jalen Hurts was the man behind center for the Tide. However for Sarkisian’s 2019 return, he will be working with star quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Sarkisian and Tagovailoa’s relationship dates back to Tua’s recruitment coming out of high school.

When Tagovailoa was a high school Junior going through the recruitment process, Steve Sarkisian was coaching at USC. The Hawaii native received his first college scholarship offer from Sarkisian in 2015. Lane Kiffin later admitted he believed USC to be the front-runner for Tagovailoa early on, but with Sarkisian’s later firing, the relationship was severed.

Saban brought in Sarkisian as an offensive analyst in 2016 to work alongside Lane Kiffin. While Tagovailoa has never openly acknowledged it, many believe Sarkisian’s hire to be a key reason Tagovailoa ended up at Alabama. Unfortunately with Sarkisian’s short tenure at Alabama, the Tagovailoa-Sarkisian relationship was never able to flourish at the collegiate level.

The two will be reunited for the 2019 season, and the results should be exciting. Sarkisian’s west coast tendency should complement Tagovailoa’s cannon more so than it did Hurts’ mobility. SEC Network analyst Cole Cubelic’s comments on what Sarkisian could bring to the table with Tua behind center sound promising.

Many Alabama Football fans may have a bad taste in their mouth with respect to Sarkisian. I personally was not sold on the idea as reports began surfacing that he may be returning to Tuscaloosa. His quick exit for the Atlanta Falcons after coaching only one game (a loss, at that) seemed distasteful.

He certainly did not earn rave reviews during his time with the Falcons either. He inherited an offense with the Falcons that should have made anyone look good with Matt Ryan and Alabama Football legends Julio Jones and rookie Calvin Ridley. However, red zone efficiency was a concern all season.

Yet despite the concerns, Sarkisian and Tagovailoa’s past relationship gives a more hopeful insight into what the 2019 Alabama Football offense could look like with Sark calling the plays. A more west coast style offense could reap huge benefits for the Tide in terms of the passing game with Tagovailoa. Sarkisian’s west coast connection will also be a huge benefit on the recruiting trail. Hopefully Nick Saban will encourage the balance of that type of firepower air raid with the hard-nosed run game on the heels of Najee Harris.

Sarkisian and Tagovailoa’s prior relationship history should be a viewed as a positive for now. Yet, only time will tell what the new coaching changes will mean as the Alabama football team sets out in its quest for the next National Championship.