Tagovailoa to have ankle surgery, likely to return for college playoffs

Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will have surgery on his right ankle and recovery is expected to take about two weeks.

Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban told ESPN that Tagovailoa has a high ankle sprain and will have it scoped. He says recovery time for most of his players for this procedure has typically been “a two-week deal.”

Saban is hoping Tagovailoa will be back by the time No. 1 Alabama starts practice for the Orange Bowl semifinal game against No. 4 Oklahoma on Dec. 29.

Tagovailoa hurt his right ankle when an offensive lineman stepped on it in the fourth quarter of the Southeastern Conference championship game against No. 6 Georgia. The Heisman Trophy candidate was helped off the field and didn’t return to the game. Jalen Hurts, whom Tagovailoa replaced in last season’s national championship and displaced as a starter this season, entered and rallied the Crimson Tide to a 35-28 victory over Georgia.