Nickname: Bull
High School: Fayette County
HS Number: 12
Official Visits: Alabama
Second Choice: Kentucky
Host During Alabama Visit: Paul Hogan
Committed: January 13, 1998
Family Ties: Brother of Lance Tucker
Academic Status: Qualified

Stats

HS Junior Season

Passing

264 attempted
149 completed
56% completion ratio
2921 yards
25 TDs

HS Senior Season

Passing

332 attempted
161 completed
48% completion ratio
2697 yards
22 TDs

Career

Passing

870 attempted
430 completed
49% completion ratio
7428 yards
53 TDs

Honors

Two-time All-Distirct
Two-time All-Area
Two-time All-State
Tuscaloosa News Sweet 16
Tuscaloosa News Preseason Sweet 16
USA Today Honorable Mention All-American

Stories

Tucker Chose Tide Over ‘Cats

All he’s ever done is throw the football. That’s why Luke Tucker seemed like a natural for Hal Mumme’s offense at Kentucky.

"I feel like I would’ve fit into his offense," Luke says. "It’s a fun offense to watch and it’s fun to play if you’re a quarterback."

During his career at Fayette County, Luke’s numbers looked like those of a Tim Couch. In his last two seasons Luke passed for 3,600 yards and 47 TDs.

Early last Fall Luke made an unofficial trip to Lexington. Rumors were that Mumme told Luke that, if he would commit to Kentucky, he would be the only quarterback the Wildcats would sign this year.

But Luke’s brother, Lance Tucker, played for the Tide, and Tuscaloosa is only 45 minutes from Fayette. That made Alabama the natural choice.

"I kept an open mind for a little while, but I knew I was going there. I know the coaches real well. I know the tradition. There was not much chance that I wasn’t going to Alabama."

One of Luke’s position coaches at Alabama will be his brother. Lance is expected to become a graduate assistant and help Charlie Stubbs with the Tide quarterbacks.

"I’ll enjoy that a lot," Luke says. "Lance is a great teacher. He knows how to relate his knowledge to others."

What kind of advice has older brother turned coach given his younger brother turned Tider?

"He says that I’d better be ready, because the college game is a lot faster. But he says that I’ll be okay."

Spoken like a true brother, or coach.

Luke Outshines Lance

Luke Tucker admits that he was nervous. It was the state championship game against T.R. Miller during his junior season. Fayette County trailed 7-6 late in the third quarter.

Starting from his 20, Luke hit on 7 of 10 passes to lead Fayette County to a first down at the T.R. Miller 10-yard line. It was from that point that Luke made the biggest throw of his life.

"I wanted to go to Sam Collins, but he was triple-covered. I looked back to my right and saw Brandon Stocks wide open. I knew there was no way I wouldn’t make that throw."

Luke completed the pass for a TD, and Fayette County went on to a 26-7 victory and the school’s first-ever state championship.

"For a change I did something that Lance didn’t do. I led my team to the state championship."

Q&A

TI: You said that you liked Kentucky’s offense. What type of offense do you expect at Alabama?

LT: You’re going to see more passing. I think it’ll be mostly one-back and three-wide.

TI: Do you think the offensive change is a move in the right direction?

LT: Definitely. Defensive players are just too big and fast nowadays. You’ve got to be able to keep them off balance with the passing game so you can run it. I think that a balanced offense is the direction Coach Stubbs and Coach Callaway want to go.

TI: What are your strengths as a quarterback?

LT: I’ve got a good arm and I know the game. A lot of being a good quarterback is anticipation. You have a feel of what the defense is going to do or what you need to do. That’s one of my strong points.

TI: Do you expect to play or redshirt next season?

LT: I plan to play. But if I’m not good enough next season, then I’ll go back to the weight room and film room and make myself a better player.

TI: Luke, we’ve heard some contradictions about your size. What’s your size right now?

LT: I’m 6’1 and 190 pounds. Before baseball started I was working out a lot. I’ve gotten stronger and gained some weight.

TI: Speaking of baseball, we hear you’re a pretty good left-handed pitcher.

LT: I guess I’m okay. I’ve got a good fastball. I’m using a curve and circle change some.

TI: Are you going to play baseball at Alabama?

LT: If Coach Wells thinks that I’m good enough I will.

TI: I’m sure he could use a lefty who has a good fastball.

LT: Being a lefthander will be a big advantage. And I throw pretty hard. In the last game I was clocked at 84 mph. But there was a bad wind that day and it was 25 degrees. It was so cold that I could not really get loose. I think I’m consistently around 86 to 87.

TI: Back to football. Where do you see the Alabama program headed?

LT: I think it’s headed for a turnaround. The changes that are being made, especially in the passing game, are things that have to done. It’s going to take a little time, but things will be back to normal. I’d say that within the next four or five years we will win a national championship.

Please visit our sponsors.