There may not be a legitimate quarterback competition in Tuscaloosa, after all, the Crimson Tide do return the reigning SEC Offensive Player of the Year in sophomore Jalen Hurts, but that’s not going to stop Alabama from preparing Tua Tagovailoa as if he was the starter.

Most reasonable analysts suggest Hurts will likely take every meaningful snap for Alabama next season but with no experienced depth behind the Tide’s starting quarterback, someone has to be willing to step up and play if anything were to happen to Hurts. Based on his performance in the spring, that someone looks to be the true freshman Tagovailoa.

Going a step further, Nick Saban said the true freshman will need to play for Alabama next season.

“I think Tua has to play, we’re going to need him to play. There may come a time in the season Tua has to play,” Saban said on the Paul Finebaum Show. “It’s our job as coaches to make a decision about what would help Tua’s development, so if that occurs, he’ll be ready to do it.

“We’re looking forward to — we haven’t decided how — to get him some opportunity to enhance his development as a quarterback by getting some playing time somewhere along the way.”

It would be a mild surprise if Tagovailoa saw the field against Florida State in the opener but home games against Fresno State and Colorado State the following two weeks could serve as ideal training spots for the freshman signal caller. Alabama will face seven consecutive SEC opponents starting with the Week 4 trip to Vanderbilt.

Getting the freshman adjusted to the speed of the game before that stretch could prove to be invaluable should he be called upon earlier than expected in order to help the Tide win yet another SEC West title in 2017.