JAMM AQUINO / NOV. 2015
St. Louis’ Tua Tagovailoa (13) soars into the end zone for a touchdown over Kahuku’s Kekaula Kaniho (1) during the second half of the 2015 HHSAA Division I Football Championship between the St. Louis Crusaders and the Kahuku Red Raiders on Friday, November 20, 2015 at Aloha Stadium in Halawa. Kahuku won 39-14 to become the 2015 State Champions.
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After an impressive showing at the Pylon Elite 7v7 tournament in Las Vegas over the weekend, Saint Louis junior Tua Tagovailoa landed a scholarship offer from the national champions.
Alabama makes it 17 D-I offers for Tagovailoa, who is the highest-ranked quarterback prospect ever to come out of Hawaii.
Tagovailoa led a group of Hawaii players at the Las Vegas tournament and had some of his best moments on Sunday in bad weather conditions. Most reports regarded Tagovailoa as the No. 2 quarterback in the tournament behind Bishop Gorman’s Tate Martell, who has committed to Texas A&M.
Bishop Gorman will host defending state champion Kahuku in Las Vegas in September.
The offer came in a telephone conversation between Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin and Galu Tagovailoa, Tua’s father. Galu Tagovailoa did not hesitate when Kiffin asked him if he thought his son might be interested in attending the school.
“I said, ‘Yeah, who wouldn’t?’” Galu Tagovailoa said. “National champion. Kiffin said he thought Tua would be ready to go in and start right now. I was blown away.”
Tagovailoa has thrown for 5,503 yards and 57 touchdowns to only 10 picks in 20 games with the Crusaders. He will enter his senior season needing 2,499 yards to break Timmy Chang‘s state passing record. He’s also rushed for 1,034 and 19 touchdowns.
Tagovailoa is the second high school player from Hawaii in as many years to earn a scholarship offer from the Crimson Tide. Alabama offered Kaiser senior OL Michael Eletise last summer. Eletise signed with Arizona last month.