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Jake Coker on Tua Tagovailoa’s title-game performance: ‘He came in and played his ass off’
By Adam Spencer
Published:
The Alabama Crimson Tide would never have won the National Championship Game without true freshman QB Tua Tagovailoa’s heroic second-half effort.
The left-handed Hawaiian threw three touchdown passes, including the game-winner in overtime to give coach Nick Saban his sixth national championship (fifth with Alabama).
Former Alabama QB Jake Coker, who won two titles during his college career (one during his time in Tuscaloosa), was impressed with what he saw from the young quarterback, telling 105.5 WNSP’s “The Opening Kickoff” on Wednesday that he thinks Tagovailoa can be a special player (via AL.com):
“Tua’s one hell of a player,” Coker said. “He’s a special player. For a freshman to come into a national championship is really special. What I was impressed with was — even with the incomplete passes — the throws and the routes he was hitting.
“He was making throws and seeing things a lot of other guys don’t see. It comes natural to him. There are a lot of things you can teach and a lot of things you can’t teach. Being comfortable in the pocket and how to move around in it and avoid people is very hard to teach.
“Tua’s a very special player in terms of what comes naturally. He came in and played his ass off.”
Tagovailoa still has a chance to add to his title collection before he leaves Alabama, too, so it’ll be interesting to see how his college career plays out from here.
He’ll compete with Jalen Hurts for the starting job next year, and after Monday, he probably has the advantage.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
