Alabama's QB suffers 'freak accident' to throwing hand, rushed to surgery to repair
Tua Tagovailoa saved Alabama’s title hopes when he came off the bench against Georgia in January’s national championship game to throw three touchdown passes, including the winning score in overtime.
But the soon-to-be sophomore had a scary moment in Tuesday’s practice, leading to surgery for the quarterback.
His father, Galu Tagovailoa, told KHON in Hawaii that Tua suffered a “freak accident” when he broke the index finger on his throwing (left) hand.
The incident occurred when his hand hit a teammate during a drill.
Galu reported that his son underwent surgery Tuesday night to repair the finger.
Never one to provide details, Alabama coach Nick Saban said only that his quarterback had suffered an unspecified injury, and it was too early to speculate on the severity of it.
Still, AL.com posted video of Tagovailoa at practice on Thursday — not even two full days after surgery — going through non-passing drills.
“I asked how his hand was, and he said God is good and that the Holy Spirit is healing his hand,” Galu said of his son’s condition.
Tagovailoa played mostly as a backup last year behind incumbent starter Jalen Hurts.
Hurts, a sophomore, led the Crimson Tide to the title game for the second year in a row.
But when Hurts struggled in the national championship against Georgia, Saban shocked the world by bringing in Tagovailoa, who led the team to victory.
Saban has said Tagovailoa and Hurts will compete for the starting job heading into next season.
Tagovailoa is expected to be back in action in time for Alabama’s spring game, according to his father.
“We want to thank all our pastors, families, and friends in both Alabama and Hawaii for all the prayers and well wishes. We love you all,” said Galu.
While we aren’t sure which quarterback will line up under center when Alabama faces Louisville on Sept. 1, it seems likely that both men will see plenty of action this season.
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