AJ McCarron and Tua Tagovailoa are now part of the same fraternity, that limited number of men who have quarterbacked Alabama to a national championship.

McCarron led the Crimson Tide to national titles in both 2011 and 2012 and also won a ring as a back-up to Greg McElroy in 2009. In an interview on "Sports Drive" on Mobile's WNSP-FM 105.5 Wednesday, McCarron said he not only predicted that Tagovailoa would replace Jalen Hurts at halftime, but said it was a move Alabama coach Nick Saban had to make.

"I figured something had to change at halftime," McCarron said. "The offense was just struggling in the first half, couldn't really throw the ball down the field. Sometimes going against defenses, even if you don't complete it, if you just take a shot to show the team -- hey, we will take this shot, we will take a chance -- they have to respect that and know that's there. It just wasn't happening in the first half. I thought Tua came and did an excellent job. Of course, we had some things go our way, but it's better to be lucky than good sometimes. But he just played his game and took what the defense gave him, and it turned out well."

McCarron, now 27 and having just finished his fourth season with the NFL's Cincinnati Bengals, didn't get the opportunity to start or even play in a key situation until his redshirt sophomore season. Thus, he marveled along with the rest of us as to the poise Tagovailoa showed upon entering a game his team trailed 13-0 at halftime and leading a 26-23 overtime victory.

"I thought he played great," McCarron said. "He had the one bad decision in the interception. On that, even if they were all blocking, there was going to be nobody open in that area anyway. You've just got to throw that ball away, you can't take that bad play. The sack before the game-winning touchdown. The one that really, he got away with -- the touchdown to Calvin (Ridley) to tie the ball game open. He wasn't throwing to Calvin. He never saw him. ... He was looking at Calvin, saw he was double-teamed. When he came off, he saw (Najee) Harris. That's who he was throwing to. Calvin just did an excellent job of being a ball-player and going and going and getting the ball."

Tagovailoa replaced starter Jalen Hurts at halftime, one of the few times Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban had made such a move in his 11 seasons at Alabama. McCarron harkened back to a similar situation involving him during his true freshman year of 2009, when the Alabama coaching staff considered benching a struggling Greg McElroy in favor of the young McCarron.

The Crimson Tide, of course, stuck with McElroy, and went to go 14-0 and win its first national championship under Saban that year. McElroy also started as a senior in 2010, with McCarron taking over in 2011 and starting three full seasons.

"From what I've heard from our coaching staff that year, there were multiple weeks where they were debating putting me in at halftime," McCarron said. "It was three weeks in a row where we had the ball coming out of halftime every week, and if we didn't score they were going to put me in. But we scored every time.

"I remember at one point I was warming up on the sideline (during the BCS national championship game against Texas), because coach Saban told me to get ready. As a competitor, you just want to play. It doesn't matter when it comes, you just make the most of it. But I think everything worked out fine the way it played out."

McCarron will be watching along with the rest of us as to how the Alabama quarterback situation plays out in 2018. Saban has not tipped his hand one way or the other, but most observers expect Tagovailoa to emerge from an open quarterback competition in the spring and perhaps the fall.

McCarron said that if Hurts ultimately elects to transfer, he'll understand his thought process. As he has revealed in the past, McCarron said Wednesday he nearly transferred to Ole Miss at one point early in his Alabama career before deciding against it and going on to be a two-time national champion and arguably the Crimson Tide's greatest-ever quarterback.

"When you're a competitor, you always want to play," McCarron said. "I went through it myself during my freshman year at Alabama. I remember being frustrated and after practice one day, I told my dad I was going to transfer. I was going to go to Ole Miss. But then we sat down and talked about it, and I decided to stay. Obviously, that all worked out for the best.

"I don't know if he will be at Bama, but I know Jalen, he's an unbelievable kid. He's worked his tail off and he's a competitor. He's just going to have to keep competing and see what the future holds for him."

As for McCarron's own future, that's complicated. An arbitrator is expected to rule Feb. 15 on his grievance against the Bengals through the NFL Players Association, which involves how service time was counted during his rookie season of 2014.

McCarron argues that despite a shoulder injury suffered during his senior year at Alabama, he was healthy enough to be on the active roster for at least six games his rookie season and thus accrue a year of service time toward free agency. The Bengals counter that he was healthy enough to be on the roster for only three games that year.

If McCarron's side wins, he'll be an unrestricted free agent, and free to sign with any team of his choosing. If the Bengals win, McCarron is a restricted free agent and any team that attempts to sign him would owe draft pick compensation to Cincinnati.

"The NFLPA has told me that my situation is one they've never really had to deal with. It's definitely new. It's just part of the league."

McCarron has played extensively only in 2015 during his tenure with the Bengals, when starter Andy Dalton was sidelined by a broken thumb late in the year. McCarron saw action in only two games in 2017, both blowouts the Bengals lost.

McCarron's status nearly changed on Oct. 31, the day of the NFL trade deadline. It appeared he was headed to the Cleveland Browns -- where he would have been reunited with former Bengals offensive coordinator Hue Jackson -- but the deal fell through, reportedly because Cleveland filed the paperwork after the 4 p.m. Eastern deadline.

"It was an odd deal," McCarron said. "I got a text from my agent at 3:34 saying 'hey, there's a possible trade going down. Stay by your phone. I'll let you know.' I got another call from him right at 4 saying 'from what I know, it's a done deal. I'll call you back in a minute and let you know.' The next call I got was at 4:03 and he's 'hey, the trade didn't go through. They didn't get the paperwork in on time.' Everybody has a story. I'm sure Cleveland has their own story, Cincy has their own story. But it's just one of those things, when you think you've seen everything, you're shown a little bit more.

"I think the only people who truly know what happened were the ones leading the whole situation on both sides."

Cleveland went on to go 0-16 in 2017, leading many to believe McCarron dodged a bullet by not being traded to the Browns. However, there are only 32 starting quarterback jobs in the NFL, and McCarron said he felt capable he could succeed as one, no matter the team.

"As a competitor, I wanted that opportunity, just to be able to showcase and help a team win ball games," McCarron said. "I think I would have had some success playing for Hue. I would have loved the opportunity to go up there and get them a win, more than one win. As a competitor, that's all you can ask for."