Josh Jacobs prepares for 'dream' matchup against Oklahoma
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Things might get a little awkward for the Jacobs family back in Tulsa, Okla., this week. Josh Jacobs’ supporting cast has had no problem cheering him on the past three seasons as he ran over SEC defenders. They were ecstatic watching him claim MVP honors following Alabama’s victory over Georgia in the SEC Championship Game.
Saturday, as Jacobs and No. 1 Alabama take on No. 4 Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl, there might be the slightest bit of mixed feelings.
“It’s a bittersweet thing,” Josh’s father Marty Jacobs says with a chuckle. “There’s a lot of family members; they’re rooting for Josh. They might want Oklahoma to win, but they’re going to want Josh and them to run 2,000 yards on them.”
Jokes aside, the Alabama running back isn’t too worried about a lack of support when he takes the field inside Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.
“There’s a lot of people who are Oklahoma fans but they’re fans of me,” Josh said. “So, if we go against them — which we are — they will be rooting for me.”
In some ways, this matchup seems inevitable for the Jacobs family. While the rest of his relatives cheered on the Sooners, Josh grew up admiring Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide from afar. However, the star running back’s path to Tuscaloosa is not as straightforward as some of his fellow Crimson Tide teammates.
Josh was unnoticed for much of his high school career as most passed over the humble back from Tulsa’s McClain High School. Up until late January of his senior year, Wyoming and New Mexico State were the only two Division I schools to offer.
McClain head coach Jarvis Payne said he tried everything to get people to notice his star athlete, even deploying him as a Wildcat quarterback during his senior season to get him more carries. The numbers were there. During his senior season, Josh rushed averaged 15.1 yards per carry and 245.8 yards per game, piling up 2,704 rushing yards and 31 touchdowns. Still, few bought into the hype.
As a last-ditch effort for recognition, Payne helped Josh put together a highlight reel for college scouts to see what numbers couldn’t show them. The idea worked as clips of the powerful back running over defenders spread like wildfire.
Missouri was one of the first to show interest. Indiana came calling shortly after, and so did Purdue. Then came the big guns.
Former Alabama running backs coach Burton Burns made the trip to Tulsa to get a better look at the rising sensation, stirring up even more interest around Josh. When news broke of Alabama’s impending arrival, hometown Oklahoma finally rushed to the scene a few days earlier.
“The in-state schools really didn’t holler at him until late," Marty said. "It was kind of weird.”
“It was right about the same time, probably two or three days before,” Josh added. “Coach Stoops came down and they talked to me at my high school, and that was that.”
By that point, it was too late. Flashing a fist full of championship rings, Burns had no trouble swaying Josh to his dream school. A few weeks later, Josh committed to Alabama over Oklahoma on National Signing Day.
While the crowd inside a packed auditorium burst into applause as Josh donned a crimson Alabama hat moments after announcing his commitment, not all the feedback was as positive.
“He caught a lot of flack on Twitter from Oklahoma fans,” Marty said. “It’s weird, I didn’t understand it. A lot of Oklahoma fans would tell him, ‘I hope you go to Alabama and get hurt,’ and stuff like that. I told him, ‘This is the time you are going to have to learn to filter stuff.’”
Josh brushed off claims that he wouldn’t be able to find playing time on an Alabama roster that already included five-stars Damien Harris, Bo Scarbrough as well as the nation’s top back from the year before in B.J. Emmons. He answered back on the field, combining for 750 total yards and five touchdowns during his freshman season.
“I mean, it was just some people in my hometown that expected me to go (to Oklahoma),” Josh said of the social media abuse. “It’s the same people who didn’t know about me when I was coming out, so it really didn’t matter.”
This season, Josh lead Alabama with 11 rushing touchdowns and is third on the team with 495 yards on the ground. Serving as one of the Crimson Tide’s most versatile weapons, he’s also pulled in 15 receptions for 171 yards and two touchdowns while averaging 30.62 yards per kickoff return, including a 75-yard return for a touchdown during the season-opener against Louisville.
“I still don’t feel like I did enough,” Josh said. “So, that’s my goal right now just focus on getting to where I feel like I should be.”
Despite his humble approach, this time Josh’s numbers haven’t gone unnoticed. Walter Football ranks him as the No. 6 running back in the 2019 class if he elects to forgo his senior season next year.
When asked about the possibility of leaving early, Josh said the topic “kind of stressed me out,” and stated, “I honestly ain’t really thought about it.”
“He’s got so much stuff going on, I don’t want him to focus on a possibility of what could happen," Marty said. "The biggest thing is we’ve got a game coming up. We’ll take everything one day at a time. One thing we learned is that if a door opens, God’s going to open it for him.”
After all, that game Josh has coming up is a pretty big one for him.
“It’s a game you always dream of,” Josh said. “If not going there, playing against your hometown. I’m going to treat it like every other game. Hopefully, we come out here with a victory.”