It’s clear to see what Alabama’s biggest position of strength is this season. The Crimson Tide has six running backs on its roster who would compete for playing time at nearly any school in the nation. Right now, the only worry Alabama has about its backfield is how it is going to spread the ball around to so many talented backs.
Looking down the depth chart, the Tide boasts three five-stars (Damien Harris, Bo Scarbrough and Najee Harris), two four-stars (B.J. Emmons and Brian Robinson) and a three-star in Josh Jacobs. If that’s not enough to keep opposing defenses up at night, Alabama also returns starting quarterback Jalen Hurts, who rushed for 954 yards and a team-high 13 touchdowns last season.
Alabama has had a 1,000-yard rusher in five of the past six seasons, the only exception being in 2014 when Derrick Henry finished with 990 yards and was followed by T.J. Yeldon with 979 yards. Damien Harris even managed the feat last season despite splitting time with Scarbrough and Jacobs while seeing Hurts take away some of the carries as well. Alabama will most likely use at least four running backs this season, so it will be interesting to see if one back steps up as the go-to guy in the run game.
* Take a look at our projected depth chart for the 2017 season
* Alabama spring practice position preview - Quarterbacks
Below is a breakdown of how the race will play out and who will come out on top:
