PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Greg Schiano believes that Taulia Tagovailoa will be playing at the next level, with the Rutgers head coach calling the Maryland quarterback a future professional.
And depending on what Tagovailoa decides to do come Maryland’s Bowl game, Saturday might be the quarterback’s last game as a Terrapin.
Tagovailoa has been nothing short of sensational during his four years at Maryland. Tagovailoa followed head coach Mike Locksley from Alabama to the Big Ten and the move has certainly worked for both parties.
Locksley had been on staff at Alabama and recruited Tagovailoa. Given that Tagovailoa was buried on the Crimson Tide’s depth chart, the reunion with Locksley in Maryland made sense.
Tagovailoa joined Maryland in 2020 and has been a dominant quarterback in the Big Ten over the last three seasons.
On the season, he has 3,016 passing yards with 22 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
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“He does just about everything you would ask a quarterback to do. He throws from the pocket well. He throws the quick game well. He throws the deep ball well,” head coach Greg Schiano said.
“Then when things break down, he creates well. He also, you can tell, runs the offense with precision and ease. He looks very, very comfortable doing it. He’s been doing it for a lot of years. He was with Locksley down in ‘Bama and he came there. He’s been in this system for a long time and you can tell.
“He’s a very dangerous quarterback.”
It is high praise from Schiano, a former NFL head coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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Tagovailoa is a strong presence in the pocket for Maryland, but he is perhaps most dangerous when he moves and throws on the run. While he isn’t a dual-threat quarterback, he certainly can extend plays and he is patient in his progression when given time.
There isn’t a throw he can’t make which means that Rutgers is going to need to dial up the pressure and make Tagovailoa uncomfortable in the pocket on Saturday if they are going to have a chance against Maryland.
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“Offensively, they have got pros on the offensive line, at receiver, at tight end and they certainly have a pro quarterback. He is as dangerous as any quarterback in America, and defensively, they are really athletic. They have got nine takeaways. When you look at a team that has a bunch of takeaways, they get after the passer, they run to the ball. Their two safeties are as good as there is in America and they are a good football team. They hit a stretch in the middle of the year, don’t really know. But they played really well Saturday and had every opportunity to knock off Michigan,” Schiano said.
“So we know what we’re in for and it’s going to be a battle. We both find ourselves in a similar position at 6-5, and a lot of respect for what they do, and looking forward to playing the game,”
