Alabama Football: Taulia Tagovailoa has entered the Transfer Portal

Only months after Tua entered the 2020 NFL Draft, his brother Taulia Tagovailoa has decided to transfer from Alabama football.

Rumors have swirled for months, but it’s finally official. Taulia Tagovailoa has finally decided to transfer from Alabama football, according to Matt Zenitz. This is shortly after his brother Tua got drafted to play for the Miami Dolphins in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Taulia played his way out of a redshirt his freshman season, but he did not do much with his reps. He was mostly in the game during garbage minutes, handing the ball off to whatever third-string running back the Tide had in the game. As a freshman, Lia went 9 for 12 passing for 100 yards and a touchdown. These numbers showed promise, but his departure only seemed a matter of time.

There was a feasible path for Taulia to be Tua’s replacement for Alabama football when he committed. Mac Jones was still a developmental prospect, so they were expected to battle it out for the starting job over this summer. However, Tua’s hip injury sped up the process, forcing Mac Jones into a starting role. Pairing that with the signing of Bryce Young makes Lia’s path to be a starting quarterback near impossible.

There is also a strong family tie for the Tagovailoas. Tua’s parents uprooted their immediate family and travelled from Hawaii to Alabama to be closer to Tua in college. Lia ended up playing his high school ball in the state of Alabama. Now that Tua will be playing in Miami, it would not surprise me if his brother ends up playing the remainder of his college ball in the state of Florida. With his redshirt still available, there is a chance he could sit at Miami and still have three years of eligibility after D’Eriq King graduates.

Although this is a sad day for Alabama football fans, I am sure the Tide will be cheering on Taulia Tagovailoa on his next team. As long as he doesn’t play for Auburn, LSU, or UCF, he will always have a fan base in Tuscaloosa.