Tua Tagovailoa Being Pursued By New Oregon Coach Willie Taggart


Four-star quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is being pursued by new Oregon coach Willie Taggart.


New Oregon Ducks head coach Willie Taggart has hit the ground running. After being named the successor to Mark Helfrich in Eugene this past week, Taggart is making recruiting a priority before the dead period starts on Dec. 12.

One of the first recruits up on his list? Highly-touted quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, currently an Alabama commit, out of the St. Louis School in Hawaii.

Tagovailoa pledged to the Crimson Tide in May of 2016, and has remained loyal to that ever since. But Taggart is going to do his best to sway him into following fellow St. Louis School prospect Marcus Mariota’s path to Oregon. Mariota went on to become the first Heisman Trophy winner in Oregon football history.

According to DuckTerritory, as of Thursday night Taggart was expected to hop on a plane “soon” and head southwest to the islands for a visit with the nation’s No. 4 quarterback.

“If I got offered from Oregon… oh, geez,” Tagovailoa said in an interview two years ago. “I’ve been waiting for that for the longest.”

Tagovailoa initially wanted to follow in Mariota’s footsteps to Oregon, but the Ducks coaching staff didn’t offer him until after he had committed to Alabama.

With the dead period just days away and National Signing Day now less than two months out, Taggart will have to work quickly in order to reopen Tagovailoa’s previous love for the Ducks, and he’s facing arguably the toughest competition in Alabama head coach Nick Saban.

“I committed to Alabama,” Tagovailoa said in a recent interview after receiving an LSU offer.  “I gave them my word. That’s that.”

“I speak with Coach Saban on FaceTime every Sunday, and it does make me feel good that he’s committed to that with me and we have connected so much.”


UPDATE – 12/9 – Taggart has touched down in Hawaii.


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