Alabama Football: 3 bold predictions for Tide against Arkansas State

3. Tua and Jalen both play early

The new trend, and it’s a smart trend, is to make sure that both quarterbacks on your roster are ready to play in case of an emergency or in Alabama’s case in 2017 in case you need one to come in and win Nick Saban his sixth national championship.

Tua Tagovailoa will be the starter heading into the Tide’s home opener but don’t count out first quarter playing time from Jalen Hurts. Hurts is a seasoned veteran and proven winner with a 26-2 overall record as quarterback but that doesn’t mean you let him sit dormant in 2018.

Tagovailoa isn’t quite the accomplished runner that Hurts is but he will run some, and when a passer drops back injuries can happen. That means Jalen Hurts has to be ready to play at a moments notice and Nick Saban understands that. Coach Saban also knows that his defense is good enough to create a turnover and get the ball back if the Hurts led drive stalls.

Having a deep roster with blue chip talent allows Saban, Dabo Swinney, and Kirby Smart to get their young backups important early-game playing time. Expect both Hurts and Tagovailoa to play in the first quarter regardless of what is said or what Saban chirps off to the media. It’s not only a good idea it’s a working trend that could become more popular across college football with the new redshirt rules in play.