ATLANTA — Another month goes by and Alabama’s quarterback competition stands exactly where we last left it.
The venue for this year’s SEC Media Days may have taken a 150-mile detour east, but the conference’s hottest question remains. Speaking inside Atlanta’s College Hall of Fame on Wednesday, Alabama head coach Nick Saban was asked the same topic he’s been badgered about incessantly this offseason.
Much to Saban’s chagrin, questions concerning his team’s quarterback battle won’t be coming to an end anytime soon. Although by the look of things, neither will the head coach’s decision on a winner.
“It is still to be determined who’s going to play quarterback for Alabama,” Saban said. “You can ask all the questions about it, but it’s still to be determined.”
With the season less than two months away, Alabama finds itself in the enviable position of choosing between former SEC Offensive Player of the Year Jalen Hurts and national championship hero Tua Tagovailoa for the starting quarterback position. While it’s a nice problem for Saban and his staff to have, it’s one that has already caused plenty of drama and should continue to steal headlines from now until Alabama’s season-opener against Louisville on Sept. 1 inside of Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.
Hurts started all 14 games of Alabama’s national-title winning season but was replaced in the second half of the national championship game by Tagovailoa, who rallied the Crimson Tide from two touchdowns down before completing a game-winning 41-yard touchdown in overtime.
The spring was supposed to provide more clarity to the competition. Instead, it offered anything but as Tagovailoa broke a bone in his throwing hand during the first week of practice, limiting him for the remainder of the spring. Without a head-to-head battle to go off heading into fall camp, Saban was asked how much the two quarterback’s previous play would factor into the competition.
“I think it will all be determined,” Saban said. “Everything you just asked me will be determined by what the players do the rest of the summer, how they win the team, what they do in fall camp. I’m not making any predetermined decisions about that. They will need to continue to compete like every other person on every other position on our team is competing.
“I love both guys. They’re both really good competitors. They’re both really good people. They’re good leaders. They both make great contributions to our team. They are very well liked. So, somebody’s got to win the team, and for either of these guys to help the team I hope they’re both ready to do that.”
This offseason, both quarterbacks have in some way insinuated the possibility of a transfer if they fail to win the starting job. Wednesday, Saban was asked point blank if he thought Hurts would be on the team for Alabama’s season-opener.
"I have no idea," Saban said. "I expect him to be there. I think it's our job to give both players a very fair opportunity to have a chance to win the job at their position. ... We'll create a role for one or both of those guys on our team and they'll all have to make a decision based on what that outcome is as to what their future is at Alabama. We certainly want every player to stay at the University of Alabama and graduate. Jalen has a great opportunity to do that in December so we are hopeful he will stay there and be a graduate regardless of his circumstances as a player. But that's not to minimize his chances of making a starter or making a great contribution to our team in some way even if he isn't the starter."
A new NCAA rule adds another wrinkle to the situation as players can now play in up to four games without losing their redshirt status. That, along with an amendment to the SEC’s transfer policy which now allows graduate transfers to play immediately after moving within the conference, creates an interesting path for Hurts, who is on pace to graduate in December.
Assuming Hurts doesn’t win back his job coming out of camp, he could still compete with Tagovailoa over the first four games before deciding to take a redshirt and then transfer to the school of his choice. Tagovailoa, a sophomore, could also take advantage of the new rule. However, a redshirt makes less sense given his increased pro potential.
Despite the several hypotheticals, Saban was adamant the new rulings should not affect the quarterback competition next season.
“I think we should handle the quarterback situation not based on the rules but base on what’s best for our team,” Saban said. “I think I owe that to the other 125 guys on our team. … I think that’s my responsibility and obligation to the players on our team, that I’ll provide them the best opportunity to be successful and every player can do that.
“So if the redshirt rule is a part of all of that, then we’ll certainly consider it in any decision that we make. But otherwise we’re going to make it based on the people on our team and how we can help them be successful.”
Alabama players are expected to report for fall camp on Aug. 2 and will begin practice on Aug. 3. Saban will then have just under a month to decide who will take the first snap behind center for the season-opener against Louisville in Orlando, Fla.
Until then, things are as Saban says — to be determined.
