Given the talent in its backfield, no one is going to feel sorry for Alabama when it comes to missing out on a top running back. However, this week is still going to sting a bit for the Crimson Tide as it prepares to face the nation’s top freshman rusher in Quinshon Judkins.

The former three-star recruit has been one of the biggest surprises in college football this season, leading Ole Miss with 1,034 yards and 13 touchdowns on the ground. Judkins has eclipsed the century mark six times through nine games and is coming off a season-high performance against Texas A&M where he carried the ball 34 times for 205 yards and a touchdown.

“He’s a good player,” Nick Saban said during Wednesday’s SEC teleconference. “He’s had an outstanding year. He’s had a lot of production. Guy’s a really, really good competitor. He does a good job of executing the plays that they ask him to run. He’s relentless in the way he carries the ball. He’s tough. He can run behind his pads. He can make you miss. He’s got pretty good speed.”

It’s hard to fault Alabama for missing out on Judkins. Plenty of top programs overlooked the 5-foot-11, 220-pound back coming out of high school. However, this miss is particularly tough to swallow for the Crimson Tide, considering the Pike Road, Ala., native grew up just a couple of hours away from its campus.

Judkins starred for Pike Road High School, rushing for 4,220 yards and 67 touchdowns over his varsity career. That included an MVP performance in last year’s Alabama Class 5A state championship game as he carried the ball 33 times for 173 yards and three touchdowns. Rivals ranked Judkins as the No. 21 player in the state of Alabama and the No. 26 running back in the 2023 class. However, that production wasn’t enough to earn an offer from the Crimson Tide.

"We looked at him coming out last year,” Saban said. “In hindsight, it'd be great if he was on our team."

Alabama added two running backs in this year’s recruiting class, bringing in four-star talents Emmanual Henderson and Jamarion Miller. Henderson, a Hartford, Ala., native, made the switch to receiver with the Crimson Tide and has yet to record any stats while primarily serving on special teams over eight appearances. Miller, a Tyler, Texas native, has 20 carries for 146 yards and a pair of touchdowns over nine games.

Along with its freshmen additions, Alabama also brought in Georgia Tech transfer running back Jahmyr Gibbs, who has excelled in his first season in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The junior leads the Crimson Tide with 771 yards and six touchdowns on 113 carries and also has a team-high 39 receptions which have gone for 365 yards and three more scores through the air.

"Jahmyr is a really, really good player," Saban said Tuesday. "We try to feature him in the offense. A running back that's a great receiver. He's oftentimes a really good mismatch player. We've been able to utilize him I think extremely well.”

No. 9 Alabama (7-2, 4-2 in the SEC) will face off against No. 11 Ole Miss (8-1, 4-1) on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. in Oxford, Miss. The game will be televised on CBS.