Taulia Tagovailoa enters transfer portal
Suck for Maryland but I can't blame the kid. He's got to be looking at Penix and realizing there could be hope
January 5th, 2024 at 2:46 PM ^
I posted an article when he was still considering it and at that point Miami was the favorite. Have to imagine that hasn't changed since they've missed on their transfer targets and this is seemingly a monetary transfer and his brother being a star in town.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:24 PM ^
What's he gonna do there? Lead them to another mediocre season. He should be looking at places like USC or Washington!
January 5th, 2024 at 3:49 PM ^
Would he want to stay in the Big Ten?
January 5th, 2024 at 4:51 PM ^
I’m glad OSU already took Howard.
January 5th, 2024 at 8:49 PM ^
If Day stays heavily involved in gameday offense Tata would drive him up the wall. Doubt bigly Just For Men wants him.
January 5th, 2024 at 4:38 PM ^
What's he going to do in Miami with a boatload of money? I'd imagine he's going to have a lot of damn fun.
January 5th, 2024 at 4:10 PM ^
Miamis gonna be desperate after whiffing on Cam Ward. Taulia's getting paaiiiid because at minimum Miami is driving up the asking price
Honestly I'm glad OSU took Will Howard first because I'd be more afraid of OSU with Taulia
January 5th, 2024 at 6:50 PM ^
For his sake, I hope he can transfer to a place that doesn't have a November.
January 5th, 2024 at 2:46 PM ^
Not sure what’s he trying to pull cause he’s out of eligibility.
January 5th, 2024 at 2:50 PM ^
I think someone on here mentioned before that he only played a few snaps of game 5 one year, so hoping for some sort of red short exception that both bama and MD would have to approve. Not sure if that is completely accurate, but makes as much sense as any other solution.
January 5th, 2024 at 2:53 PM ^
Looks like he only recorded stats in 3 games in 2019. So if he appeared in more, it was literally just to hand off the ball. That must be what they're going for. Then count 2020 as covid year and you can get one more year. Hey, worth a shot!
January 5th, 2024 at 3:22 PM ^
Locksley seems like a legit OC, and the Big Ten is a good conference to show your wares, I wonder why he felt going somewhere else would serve him better. Perhaps Locksley gave him no guarantees that he would start next year.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:30 PM ^
I’ll reserve judgement on Locksley until we see what Maryland can do sans Taulia. Not saying he’s not a good coach and has obviously brought the program back from irrelevancy but Taulia was their cornerstone piece. He could sling it for sure. Unless they had a 5* QB waiting in the wings, that’s Taulia’s job without a doubt.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:56 PM ^
If they approve it then I hope they do it for everyone and not those with a famous last name.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:16 PM ^
he's already used his redshirt, true, but not his red short!
January 5th, 2024 at 3:17 PM ^
red snort?
January 5th, 2024 at 4:02 PM ^
Red sky at night, sailor's delight
Red short at morning, sailors take warning.
January 5th, 2024 at 4:13 PM ^
Red short or brown shart?
January 5th, 2024 at 3:28 PM ^
How does the COVID year factor into his eligibility? Didn't the NCAA grant a blanket waiver exempting the COVID year from counting against players' eligibility?
The pandemic created a bunch of unprecedented situations with players being granted sixth and even seventh years (e.g., Alan Bowman, Cameron Rising). That's not likely to happen again.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:56 PM ^
He played this season with the year of eligibility that didn't count in 2020.
He has no more eligibility and is banking on the NCAA to grant him a waiver to let him retroactively claim his 2019 season at Alabama as a redshirt year (despite taking live snaps in 5 games, including the penultimate regular season week).
January 5th, 2024 at 3:58 PM ^
Yes, but even not counting 2020 he’s still had 4 years of appearing in more than 4 games. Thus, he has no more eligibility.
January 5th, 2024 at 4:09 PM ^
Alan Bowman just got his 7th year of eligibility approved. Why not Taulia?
January 5th, 2024 at 2:48 PM ^
From the article, because we're all saying "huh"?-
"He has finished his fifth season of eligibility, however, so to transfer to another program, he would need to get a waiver for a sixth year. It's unclear at this time whether he has been granted that sixth year."
January 5th, 2024 at 3:02 PM ^
I don't at all blame players for trying to max out their eligibility. I would. But it's absurd for any player to get more than 5 years of eligibility. You literally have 24-year-old men playing.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:06 PM ^
Alan Bowman just got approved for his 7th year. 6th year senior has been a thing forever. Take a redshirt year and then have an early injury in another season. That being said, Taulia played 5+ games in 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, so he should be done
January 5th, 2024 at 3:19 PM ^
Isn't Michael Barrett a 6th year?
Agree though, you always had the random kid who was 24 or 25 because they went on a missionary trip out of high school, but it's time to be done with this 'covid year' bonus stuff. At some point these guys need to go to the NFL or be done playing college football.
January 5th, 2024 at 2:50 PM ^
I swear to God I thought he was out of eligibility about four years ago. Some SEC program is going to pony up for him if he actually has a year left.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:07 PM ^
You sure you aren't combining Tua and Taulia or something? Taulia was just finishing his freshman year at Bama 4 years ago
January 5th, 2024 at 2:58 PM ^
I thought he was out of eligibility and was applying for another year of eligibility? Did he end up getting that year?
January 5th, 2024 at 3:00 PM ^
How does he have any eligibility left?
January 5th, 2024 at 3:08 PM ^
He doesn't and shouldn't. This was covered in a thread a few days ago; he is definitely out of eligibility. I'm sure he'll get some kind of waiver because rules only apply to Michigan but he should absolutely be done.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:09 PM ^
Trick question. He doesn't. Played 5 games at Bama in 2019, free covid year, then 12-13 games in 21, 22, and 23. I guess he's trying to get 2019 to count as a redshirt but I don't really see how. He played 5 games
January 5th, 2024 at 3:19 PM ^
He used his Covid year but still has his German Measles year.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:30 PM ^
The flip side of this issue is all the younger players who have fewer opportunities because of this.
The "five to play four" window should have been without exception. Sure, there would be injury situations where we'd like to see individuals have a sixth or seventh year, but for every exception is one less player who doesn't have an opportunity.
As major college football increasingly becomes a professional sport, though, why have age or service limits at all? Taulia doesn't have an NFL future, but he could have a good career as a journeyman in the ACC. Why deny him that opportunity?
January 5th, 2024 at 3:02 PM ^
I'd guess he's had some conversations with agents, and he hasn't heard good things about his draft prospects, given the potential QB's in this class. Probably hoping for a decent NIL pay day and one more year to try and improve his stock.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:04 PM ^
If he transfers to UCLA or Washington he could pad his all-time career Big Ten passing record.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:05 PM ^
Shoot your shot, I guess, but unless Maryland and Bama both sign off and the NCAA decides they want to ignore that in 2019 he took live snaps in 5 games (including a week before the Iron Bowl) ... this seems stupid and unlikely to happen.
But hey, it's the NCAA so 🤷♂️
January 5th, 2024 at 4:12 PM ^
I'm guessing he is banking on the now obvious decision tree utilized by the NCAA:
Is Michigan somehow involved?
TRUE: apply rules in most draconian manner possible...hell, make up new ones to screw UM over just for shits and giggles.
FALSE: shrug shoulders and rubber stamp request/ignore obvious rules infraction.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:08 PM ^
If JJ goes pro, I would take him.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:16 PM ^
He wouldn't want to come to a 60/40 run/pass system, but even more so, I don't think Michigan/Harbaugh would want his maddening inconsistency and tendency to make back-breaking mistakes.
January 5th, 2024 at 4:22 PM ^
Yep, no thank you. He's a turnover waiting to happen.
January 5th, 2024 at 5:08 PM ^
You see that upside. If there is a program in the country that can straighten out those inconsistencies, it's Michigan. You give him time and protection, and not the Maryland OL, could be great things. *shrug*
January 5th, 2024 at 10:37 PM ^
He's not an upgrade over Alex Orji.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:21 PM ^
If JJ goes, how crazy would this scenario be. Arch Manning has already sat a year, The manning family will not be happy if he has to sit another year. Texas paid a huge sum of money on his recruiting trip. The Mannings pressure Texas to start arch. Quinn Ewers transfers to Michigan and beats Ohio.
GO BLUE
January 5th, 2024 at 3:37 PM ^
If JJ goes pro, the April portal window will be very interesting. Any good college QB who did not portal in December will have a decision to make. The Arizona kid? Ewers OR Manning? (Peyton said he had UM on his short list. Or claims he did.) Maybe Cam Ward does a U-turn from the draft? With our attrition and 2024 schedule we will not exactly be natty faves… and may well have a new HC… but we will be an upgrade for 99% of QB situations.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:32 PM ^
Seems unlikely, but I'd be glad to have him if JJ goes. Sets a floor for quality of play at that position, and he could do a lot of the running stuff we'd be designing around Orji - so they could split time without needing to change things around too much
January 5th, 2024 at 4:01 PM ^
I don't think Harbaugh would look at Taulia, mainly due to his penchant for terrible interceptions and 20-yard sacks. Michigan really wants to control the ball, stay in front of the chains, and minimize mistakes. TT is talented but too erratic, IMO, for Michigan's system.
January 5th, 2024 at 8:26 PM ^
Totally fair. The reason to take him would be if the coaches think they can get that out of him by putting him in a different offense with better protection. Don't know if they think that though
January 5th, 2024 at 3:35 PM ^
He played in 5 games as a freshman, which should have burned his redshirt. All of the guys getting their waivers for 6th years actually had multiple-year injuries OR they met the redshirt requirements. He's got to enter the portal because there's so much money to be made if he gets the waiver, and he was at the deadline to enter, but the only reason they have for giving him the waiver is he makes them money by being in college football for another year.
In other words, it's a non-story. He's throwing a Hail Mary, and this was a necessary step if he's going to get his value as a free agent.
January 5th, 2024 at 3:47 PM ^
He's a 12th round keeper for me in my Big Ten Fantasy league, leading me to a title this year. Would love it if he got another year, as long as he stays at a Big Ten school.