Man, talk about a lightning-fast turnaround! Junior Tuihalamaka, a four-year defensive lineman for Notre Dame, just pulled a move that had everyone’s heads spinning. After getting word earlier this week that he was eligible for one more year of college football, the man wasted zero time.
From Portal to Tiger in a Flash
Seriously, how fast was this? Tuihalamaka hit the transfer portal on Thursday. Literally the very next day, Friday, he’s committing to the LSU Tigers! We’re talking less than 24 hours to make arguably one of the biggest decisions of his career. The dude hadn’t signed with an NFL team, so there weren’t many hang-ups, which explains how he could make such a quick pivot. It’s wild to think he’s already planning his SEC debut.
Notre Dame’s Tough Break
This all went down just hours after Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman was at the podium, trying to address the whole situation. Freeman dropped the bomb that because of how late the court decision came through, there was no way to bypass graduate admissions and get Tuihalamaka squared away for the school year. Can you believe it? The timing just absolutely torpedoed any chance of him staying. Freeman even said it himself, if this had happened at the start of fall camp, you’d bet your bottom dollar he’d still be rocking the Irish uniform. It’s a tough break for Notre Dame, no doubt.
Now, Tuihalamaka is set to finish his college career with the Tigers, and you know we’ll be keeping an eye on how he stacks up in the SEC. It’s gonna be fascinating to see him play for LSU after all that went down.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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