Alabama Backup Tua Tagovailoa Leads Team To National Championship
January 09, 2018
There was a moment in the 2018 College Football National Championship in which Alabama looked helpless.
Unable to throw the ball and stymied by Georgias vaunted rush defense, the Crimson Tide looked like it was ready to concede the title to the Bulldogs.Then Tua Tagovailoa entered the game.The Freshman quarterback out of Hawaii replaced started Jalen Hurts and engineered a comeback for the ages, culminating in a 41-yard game-winning touchdown pass in overtime to DeVonta Smith to give his team the 26-23 victory and the national title.It will go down as a stroke of genius from head coach Nick Saban, who dared to put the ball in the hands of a QB who had played only a small handful of garbage time all season.Despite Tagovailoas brilliance, plenty of things had to fall into place for the comeback to be possible at all. Heading into halftime, the Bulldogs led 13-0, and early in the third quarter, even after Tagovailoa threw his first touchdown, they were up 20-7 after Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm hit Mecole Hardmanalso a 10.64 sprinter and member of the Bulldog 4x100 relay tea,--for an 80-yard score.Alabama also had a chance to win the game in regulation, but kicker Andy Pappanastos missed wide left as time expired.Georgia kicked a 51-yarder to open overtime, and Tagvailoa took a bad sack to start Alabamas first drive. But the rookie wouldnt be denied, and now he heads into next season not just the teams likely starter, but a living legend.Heres some footage of Tua scoring NINE touchdowns in one game in high school. Perhaps we should have known:ImageSource: ESPN Twitter