This is an opinion column.

The latest wrinkle in this Alabama football season on the far side of the moon came Monday.

If we’re being honest, the fact Nick Saban renamed Jalen Milroe the starting quarterback wasn’t surprising. What happened Saturday in Tampa all but answered that question.

The audition phase is over.

And the original answer revealed itself to be the right one all along.

For all the online hooting and hollering after the Texas game, there was a whole lot of cyber silence after Alabama somehow had to gut out a 17-3 win at South Florida.

Simply consider the following three numbers, if you’re still fighting logic here.

In order: 336, 374 and 107.

Those are the total passage yards allowed by South Florida in its first three games of the season.

That’s 336 for Western Kentucky.

The 374 belonged to Florida A&M (of the FCS).

And the 107 … yup.

Even with that barely-triple-figure day from Alabama’s next two quarterbacks, South Florida ranks 113th of 133 FBS teams in passing defense.

Of course, there’s more to consider than purely the performance of Saturday starter Tyler Buchner and his replacement, Ty Simpson. The Crimson Tide offensive line continues to play down to the lofty expectations set internally this offseason.

USF recorded five sacks but it’s also worth noting a few had shared responsibilities with QBs slow to make decisions in the collapsing pocket.

Some of that blame can go to receivers, too. They struggled last year gaining separation running their routes but had a once-in-a-generation talent in Bryce Young to mask some of those issues.

But he’s gone, so is Bill O’Brien and the personnel they’re pretty much out of quarterbacks to rotate.

So Milroe is, once again, the guy.

This whole Week 3 switcheroo drew a few comparisons to the scenario facing Alabama in 2015. After starting Jake Coker in the first two games, backup Cooper Bateman got the call when Ole Miss came to town. Bateman made it five minutes into the second quarter of what became one of the more bizarre games of the Saban era. Coker entered with Alabama down 17-3 in a four-hour game they’d ultimately lose, 43-37 but solidified the incumbent would survive the challenger.

CASAGRANDE: Texas loss was bad for Alabama, South Florida win was worse

Saban didn’t have to rename Coker the starter the following week because everyone witnessed what happened that night (into the morning) in Bryant-Denny Stadium. Coker’s gutty performance won the locker room and that season ended well for the Crimson Tide.

This time, Milroe didn’t get the in-game call to replace Buchner or Simpson. Despite the close score, there wasn’t the same urgency to step in and end the experiment against South Florida. The ABC-TV cameras, when they were manned, would cut to Milroe from time to time and he appeared to understand the situation.

“Jalen really showed the leadership that I was looking for during the game in terms of supporting his teammates and doing the things he needed to do,” Saban explained Monday. “He’s had the opportunity to play. So have the other guys. Jalen played the best of all those guys, so I think he’s earned the opportunity to be the quarterback.”

Indeed, the risk-reward ratio changes with Milroe. His two interceptions in the loss to Texas were costly but it’s his playmaking ability — both as a deep-ball passer and runner — that makes him the no-brainer pick for Week 4. Because with Ole Miss coming to town, punting on the first five possessions like Alabama did Saturday doesn’t feel like an option.

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Making the trip back east won’t only be former Alabama OC Lane Kiffin, but his new defensive coordinator, Pete Golding. The ex-Tide DC and favorite fan whipping boy has a unique perspective on the internal workings of Alabama’s quarterback derby.

Kiffin should too since he was the offensive coordinator for the 2015 swap but there’s some real distance on the timeline between Coker/Bateman and Milroe/Buchner/Simpson.

It’s fair to say there was considerably more talent surrounding Coker eight years ago with Heisman Trophy-winning Derrick Henry shouldering more of the burden than anyone. He also had Calvin Ridley as a home-run threat in the downfield passing game and a defense/special teams unit that scored 10 non-offensive touchdowns that fall.

Milroe has the talent but just needs the consistency.

And now that the auditions are over, it feels like he has a longer leash to make something without the threat of an early hook.

Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.