Tua Tagovailoa

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.

He finished the game 14-of-24 for 166 passing yards, three passing touchdowns and one interception, along with 27 rushing yards on 12 attempts.

Tagovailoa was named the Offensive MVP of the game.

Tuanigamanuolepola Donny Tagovailoa (born March 2, 1998) is an American football quarterback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL).

Tagovailoa briefly considered quitting the sport after Seu's death in 2014 until he and his father agreed that he could best honor him by continuing to play.

When Tagovailoa began varsity football in high school, he threw for 33 passing touchdowns during his first season with three interceptions and 2,583 passing yards.

Tagovailoa said a big inspiration and motivation for his performance was how his father disciplined him, saying he used a belt whenever Tagovailoa threw an interception.

He 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.

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.

As a true freshman, Tagovailoa was the backup to sophomore quarterback Jalen Hurts throughout the 2017 season.

However, he experienced 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.

He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide and was named the Offensive MVP of the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship during his freshman season.

Tagovailoa won the Maxwell and Walter Camp Awards as a sophomore.

He is the brother of Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa.

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.

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.

After his junior season was cut short by a hip injury, 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.

He led the league in passer rating in 2022 and passing yards in 2023, earning Pro Bowl honors in the latter.

Tagovailoa was born in ʻEwa Beach, Hawaii, to Galu and Diane Tagovailoa, as the oldest of four children in a Samoan family.

He was said to have grown up with an intense interest in football, with his parents noting that he slept with a football under his arm every night as a small child.

During Pop Warner games when he was eight years old, when his peers could typically throw a football little more than 10 yards, he routinely threw passes of more than 30 yards.

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.