The loss of running back Kenyan Drake means the Alabama offense will lose some of its spark.

Drake, a junior who suffered a gruesome leg injury on a catch in the second quarter against Ole Miss, will be unable to start rehabilitation for 8-10 weeks according to Alabama head coach Nick Saban.

Saban didn't provide an official diagnosis on Monday but mentioned injuries to both Drake's leg and ankle, comparing it to the dislocated ankle suffered by running back Derrick Henry in the spring of 2013.

"Everybody was just sad because they knew how hard Kenyan worked during the week" said Alabama fullback Jalston Fowler, who will write Drake's No. 17 jersey on his tape to honor his fellow running back. "We also know that he's a big part of our offense."

Known for his scorching speed, elusiveness and versatility - Drake lined up as a wide receiver multiple times in offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin's scheme - the statistics back up Drake's positive impact.

Drake totaled 271 yards and six touchdowns on 27 touches this season, a gaudy 10 yards per touch, scoring both as a running back and when lined up wide as a receiver. Drake also led the team in receiving yardage in both of the team's scrimmages in fall camp according to stats provided by the school.

Drake was impactful even without the ball as well. In the 51 offensive snaps Drake played this season - about 13 percent of Alabama's overall snaps - Alabama accrued 481 yards of offense, an average of 9.4 yards per play. That's a significant boost to the 6.8 yards per play the offense averaged without Drake in the game.

All totaled, Alabama is averaging 7.2 yards per play this season.

"Kenyan's got a lot of production for us and he's done a really good job all year long. I don't think there's any question about the fact that when you lose a player like that it does have some impact." Saban said.

"But I do think we have other players that can do those things. Now they're going to get the opportunity to do it and we're going to have to have some other people to step up."

That next man up is expected to be sophomore Altee Tenpenny from Little Rock, Ark. who has 29 career carries for 124 yards. Tyren Jones, another reserve running back who had seen carries in mop-up duty this season, is out "several weeks" after surgery to repair a torn tendon in his finger last week.

The top two options will remain T.J. Yeldon and Derrick Henry, who may end up carrying a larger percentage of the workload than before.

"I'm still very confident in what we have in the backfield," left guard Arie Kouandjio said. "The backs we have back there are physical specimens. The guys run hard."

-Reach D.C. Reeves at 205-722-0196 or dc.reeves@tuscaloosanews.com.