New Miami Dolphins quarterback has some big aspirations. The Dolphins landed Tagovailoa to serve as the team’s quarterback of the future in large part because of his accolades at Alabama and his success on the field — but there’s also something special about Tagovailoa’s intangibles. He’s not loud and boisterous but he’s universally praised for his leadership abilities and he’s also climbed every mountain there is to scale at the college football level.
Playing for one of the most demanding coaches in college, Nick Saban? No problem. Getting installed into the lineup at halftime of the National Championship game and engineering a comeback win as a true freshman? You got it. Completely reshaping the stereotype of what Alabama football looks like on offense? Absolutely.
Tagovailoa has had great success in changing the program at Alabama. And now, thanks to the Fox Sports video-documentary series “Tua Talks”, we know that the young quarterback wants to do the same for the Miami Dolphins.
“I want to change the franchise. Change the culture. Change the atmosphere. Change the outlook of the fans when they cheer,” said Tagovailoa at the end of Wednesday’s Episode 3 of ‘Tua Talks’.
“You know, just get a whole new feeling of what it feels like to be a fan of the Miami Dolphins now.”
Part of the challenge of all the young quarterbacks who have tried to fill the void of Dolphins legend Dan Marino is that the culture and atmosphere in Miami holds quarterbacks to the highest standard. Between Bob Griese and Dan Marino, the Dolphins enjoyed nearly three decades of Hall of Fame quarterback play between the 1970s to the turn of the new millennium. That is one hell of a set of expectations.
But to hear Tagovailoa talk about his aspirations to do the same after a 20 year struggle with mediocrity — and to know he’s already done everything he’s expressing his desire to do while on the biggest stage in college football, no less? It’s hard to doubt him. He’ll still need to prove he can do it; but at the very least Tagovailoa sounds ready for the challenge ahead. And we know, based on his resume, he’s capable of grasping everything he’s reaching for. Our expectations for Tagovailoa? They’re high. But it sounds as though his expectations for himself are even higher.