Taulia Tagovailoa's loyalty to Maryland is apparently worth more than $1.5 million.
The Terrapins quarterback said an SEC program offered him $1.5 million to join them via the transfer portal for his 2023 redshirt senior season. He did not specify which school made the offer.
But after seeking the advice of older brother and Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, Taulia decided to turn down what he termed the "crazy money."
“[The money] can be eye-opening, but I think for my situation — if I was in a different situation where maybe I didn’t have a brother in the NFL or maybe my parents, it’d be a different situation,” Tagovailoa said at Big Ten media day on Thursday, via The Athletic's Audrey Snyder.
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“It would be hard for me to go to another place and not be happy but have all the money in the world. (I’d rather) be at a place where maybe I don’t have as much, but I’m happy and I’m here to work.”
Taulia started his college career in the SEC at Tua's alma mater, Alabama, before transferring to Maryland in 2020. He's led the Terrapins to their first back-to-back winning seasons since joining the Big Ten, as they went 7-6 in 2021 and 8-5 in 2022. They've also won consecutive bowl games for the first time since 2002-03.
Over the last two seasons, Tagovailoa has posted a combined 6,868 passing yards with 44 touchdowns, 19 interceptions and a 68.2 completion percentage. He finished tied for fifth in the 2023 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year preseason media poll.