We do this thing in college football when we hear about a new rule.

We freak out, debate the pros and cons, rinse and repeat.

Well, there’s another thing that happens. Fans try to figure out situations in which the new rule could have an immediate impact on their team.

Something tells me that Alabama fans did that when they heard about the new redshirt rule. In case you’re in baseball mode instead of college football mode — learn how to multitask — the NCAA passed a rule that states a player can keep his redshirt season if he plays in 4 games or fewer in a given year.

So naturally, Tide fans had some Jalen Hurts-related thoughts on the subject. Tide beat reporters/columnists had some thoughts on the subject, too.

I have a thought on the subject, too.

There’s no freaking way that Hurts should change any of his plans based on this new rule. And if Alabama is expecting him to want to capitalize on this rule, that’s ridiculous, too.

But wait. Isn’t this a slam dunk for Alabama?

Under this new rule, couldn’t a player like Hurts who never took a redshirt season play in 4 games in 2018 and then transfer at season’s end with 2 years of eligibility without sitting a year?

Yes. Those are all real ways in which the system could benefit Alabama in this bizarre but inevitable year of extreme quarterback scarcity. It would be the most Alabama thing ever to somehow sidestep that and still wind up with a former SEC Offensive Player of the Year in a backup role.

About that, though.

It’d be surprising if things actually played out that way. I don’t think there’s a chance that Hurts is going to sign up for a situation in which he knows he can only play in 4 games. Averion Hurts’ comments from Matt Hayes’ story on his son’s future said a ton. At least they did in my opinion.

“My job is to do what’s best for Jalen — and make no mistake, Jalen is a quarterback, and he wants to play quarterback. He loves Alabama, loves Coach Saban and everything about that place. But he wants to play, and he will play…”

That of course led to the dad’s comment about Hurts being “the biggest free agent in college football history” if he were to miss out on the starting job. There was another comment from that story that stuck with me about Hurts. Damien Harris said “this whole thing about Jalen is going to be a backup or he’s going to give up, it’s all just completely bogus.”

I’ll be honest. When the hot takes were flying during and after the national championship, I thought Hurts was going to do what was best for Alabama, no questions asked. If that meant switching positions or taking a year as a backup and leaving as a grad transfer at season’s end, I thought Hurts would do it.

Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

But after seeing those comments, I punted on that idea. I think Hurts will make the decision that he thinks will benefit his future, and as much as he loves Alabama, he isn’t about to become a piece of the Tide’s puzzle as a backup. Nor should he.

This isn’t about Hurts “owing Alabama” something or vise versa. This notion that Hurts should accept a backup role for the good of the team is completely nearsighted. Nobody was saying Jacob Eason owed it to Georgia to stick around. That’s because the Dawgs already had multiple former blue-chip quarterbacks set to suit up in 2018, which obviously wouldn’t be the case for Alabama if Hurts left.

Besides, this is the time in Hurts’ career in which he needs to develop as a passer if — as his dad said — he wants to play quarterback.

Call me a skeptic, but I don’t think Hurts is developing by playing in 4 games or fewer with yet another new offensive coordinator. If he really does miss out on the starting job — my guess is that Tua Tagovailoa gets the first snap vs. Louisville — wouldn’t it make more sense for Hurts to transfer immediately, sit in 2018 and have 2 years of eligibility left?

Hurts needs to get on the same page with his new coaching staff beyond 2018. Sticking around Tuscaloosa with a coaching staff that he doesn’t have a future with doesn’t make any sense.

Ultimately, that’s how I see this thing playing out. I believe Hurts’ father that if he isn’t the starter, then he’s not staying at Alabama. I don’t think anyone in the Hurts camp looked at that new redshirt rule and thought, “hmmmmm, now we have our backup plan!”

Hurts is going to do what’s best for Hurts, and Alabama is going to do what’s best for Alabama.

By the way, what would stop Alabama from putting Hurts in for more than 4 games? What sort of agreement would Alabama have with Hurts if and when that 4-game threshold was met? And if the new intra-conference transfer rules favor the student-athlete, it would actually make more sense for Alabama to want to exceed 4 games for Hurts as the backup in 2018. I’m not saying they would, but that’s an overlooked wrinkle to all of this.

I’m sure that the redshirt rule is going to make a significant impact in college football in 2018. We’ll see young players get chances they wouldn’t have normally gotten while keeping their eligibility, and coaches won’t have to turn to undersized walk-ons to fill out the November depth chart. The benefits with this new redshirt rule will be there.

I’m just not buying the belief that it’ll benefit the quarterback situation in Alabama.