Running Back Depth and Playing Rotation

BamaMoon

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We are beating the QB debate to death (which I admit I love) but the running back position's depth is nothing like I've ever witnessed at Bama (or any other team?)!

We are kinda drooling over Najee Harris right now (like we are Tua) because we'd heard the rumors about his exploits in spring practice and then we see what he's able to do on Saturday, and it was impressive!!!

So where do you see this thing shaking out in terms of depth chart, rotation and touches assuming BS, DH, JJ and NH are all healthy going against FSU next fall???
 

Bamabuzzard

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I've come to learn there's no such thing as enough depth at RB. With the depth we have right now it isn't enough. You can never have enough or too much depth at the RB position. Literally in one game you can go from a lot of depth at RB to none.

Regarding the playing time of the guys we have. What a player does without the ball seems to be the key factor in getting on the field under Saban. If a RB can't pass protect or do his assignment when he's not carrying the ball he doesn't touch the field.
 

RTR91

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Looks like we're going to throw to the RBs more than we did under Kiffin, so depth is going to be pretty vital. Not only do we need to make sure we have backups in case a guy gets injured, but we need fresh guys for the passing game.
 

B1GTide

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I see Najee like Henry a few years ago. You have him for 3 years, so you need to play him NOW. He may not be able to block - I didn't pay attention to that in the spring game - but by the end of the season he will be your best RB. That said, Saban is Saban. He is going to give the older guys the early reps. That's just the way that he does things at RB. So Najee is likely to be your 4th RB for a while - maybe the entire season.
 

RollTide_HTTR

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Looks like we're going to throw to the RBs more than we did under Kiffin, so depth is going to be pretty vital. Not only do we need to make sure we have backups in case a guy gets injured, but we need fresh guys for the passing game.
Yup. It helps that most of our RBs are talented pass catchers too.

I see Najee like Henry a few years ago. You have him for 3 years, so you need to play him NOW. He may not be able to block - I didn't pay attention to that in the spring game - but by the end of the season he will be your best RB. That said, Saban is Saban. He is going to give the older guys the early reps. That's just the way that he does things at RB. So Najee is likely to be your 4th RB for a while - maybe the entire season.
I get the Henry comparison because of his size but I think he is more elusive and better pass catcher than Henry. I haven't decided who he reminds me of yet. Also, while I think he is going to be a special player I think saying he will be the best RB by years end is premature. First, Bo is a stud and if he didn't have injury issues he would be talked about in the same way as Fournette IMO. I think Bo could very easily end up as the most highly regarded NFL Prospect RB under Saban if he can stay healthy for an entire season. Obviously, that seems unlikely with him though. Second, Harris and Emmons are nothing to sneeze at. I think Emmons is the forgotten man right now and if he can get healthy he might surprise some people. Finally, I may be alone in this but I think Jacobs might be the best RB we have after Bo. He doesn't have the same traits has Henry, Bo, and Najee do but he just looks impossible to tackle in the open field. If I were to bet on a RB besides Bo going off and taking more and more carries I would put money on Jacobs. Again, I get that I am seemingly way higher on Jacobs than a lot of others.

Overall, I have no idea how the RB depth will work out. It seems most likely that injuries will be the real decider here. If Bo is healthy and ready to go I think its going to be hard to take him off the field in big games. He is a game wrecker. But I also don't expect Bo to say healthy and I'm sure at least one other RB will have injury issues. I also think its possible we see a RB transfer at some point.
 

bamaslammer

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If history is a guide Saban will not prepare more than 4 RB's to play. If available one of them will be more of a 3rd down specialist. Last year prior to injury BJ Emmons was doing that roll but it's not known when or if he will recover from that foot injury.

You have to figure Bo and Damien are locks to begin the season and probably Jacobs. So if BJ can't go then that leave the door open for some of that. From there I believe injuries may dictate who is prepared to play every week. The one luxury you have is that if Najee Harris and or Jacobs are truely ready for prime time and Bo or Damien tweek an ankle. They really should consider benching them and getting them healthy. Losing Bo in the Title game may have been the door that Clemson slipped through. If Harris or Robinson were available to take on that hammer roll, could it have made the difference? We will never know.

In any case the Vegas odds are that none of the freshman see PT against Florida State, gotta know if they can take a hit without fumbling first.
 

B1GTide

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I get the Henry comparison because of his size but I think he is more elusive and better pass catcher than Henry.
Henry is actually a GREAT receiver out of the backfield. He was never used that way at Alabama, but did you see him at your pro day? all of your receivers were hurt so Henry played receiver for Coker and he looked like a veteran receiver, even making really tough catches.

That said, my main point is that we knew that Henry was a 3 year player when he signed. He was the best RB in the history of High School football - as in, ever. He owns all of the records worth owning. He was barely played as a freshman and it was a shame because he was better than anyone else on your team. In your bowl game he was the best player on the field. Then he plays 2nd string to Yeldon his sophomore year. Really? Cost you a championship, IMO. So you really only had one year with him at RB, and he broke the SEC record books.

Well, Najee may not be Henry, but his is a 3 year player. He is one of those rare players who would probably be drafted in the top 3 rounds today, without ever playing a college game. So, IMO, you need to get him on the field and get more out of him that you did Henry.
 

RollTide_HTTR

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Henry is actually a GREAT receiver out of the backfield. He was never used that way at Alabama, but did you see him at your pro day? all of your receivers were hurt so Henry played receiver for Coker and he looked like a veteran receiver, even making really tough catches.

That said, my main point is that we knew that Henry was a 3 year player when he signed. He was the best RB in the history of High School football - as in, ever. He owns all of the records worth owning. He was barely played as a freshman and it was a shame because he was better than anyone else on your team. In your bowl game he was the best player on the field. Then he plays 2nd string to Yeldon his sophomore year. Really? Cost you a championship, IMO. So you really only had one year with him at RB, and he broke the SEC record books.

Well, Najee may not be Henry, but his is a 3 year player. He is one of those rare players who would probably be drafted in the top 3 rounds today, without ever playing a college game. So, IMO, you need to get him on the field and get more out of him that you did Henry.
He's solid but I think Najee has much better hands. But I get your point overall
 

CrimsonProf

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Henry is actually a GREAT receiver out of the backfield. He was never used that way at Alabama, but did you see him at your pro day? all of your receivers were hurt so Henry played receiver for Coker and he looked like a veteran receiver, even making really tough catches.

That said, my main point is that we knew that Henry was a 3 year player when he signed. He was the best RB in the history of High School football - as in, ever. He owns all of the records worth owning. He was barely played as a freshman and it was a shame because he was better than anyone else on your team. In your bowl game he was the best player on the field. Then he plays 2nd string to Yeldon his sophomore year. Really? Cost you a championship, IMO. So you really only had one year with him at RB, and he broke the SEC record books.

Well, Najee may not be Henry, but his is a 3 year player. He is one of those rare players who would probably be drafted in the top 3 rounds today, without ever playing a college game. So, IMO, you need to get him on the field and get more out of him that you did Henry.
Playing Yeldon over Henry likely cost two championships - if we're judging all this in a vacuum. No way Henry gets stuffed at the line against Auburn.


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CrimsonProf

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Every year people mouth the same dumb stuff about freshman RBs. Yes the guys need to learn pass pro and yet almost every single year we have at least one freshman running back contribute meaningful snaps to the offense.


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BamaMoon

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I was excited to see Tua hit Najee on that little flare route out of the back field several times! Of course, it was this route that got intercepted and returned for a TD too with that great play!

I hope we see the running back screen game return to our arsenal as well (remember AJ to TJ against LSU???).

Since nobody has taken a stab at this, I'll offer my guess for FSU:

1. BS and DH as 1a and 1b
2. Jacobs
3. Harris - this is assuming he picks up blocking assignments.
4. Emmons and Robinson - listing Emmons here because he's more of an unknown right now because of injury
 

CrimsonForce

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Yup. It helps that most of our RBs are talented pass catchers too.



I get the Henry comparison because of his size but I think he is more elusive and better pass catcher than Henry. I haven't decided who he reminds me of yet. Also, while I think he is going to be a special player I think saying he will be the best RB by years end is premature. First, Bo is a stud and if he didn't have injury issues he would be talked about in the same way as Fournette IMO. I think Bo could very easily end up as the most highly regarded NFL Prospect RB under Saban if he can stay healthy for an entire season. Obviously, that seems unlikely with him though. Second, Harris and Emmons are nothing to sneeze at. I think Emmons is the forgotten man right now and if he can get healthy he might surprise some people. Finally, I may be alone in this but I think Jacobs might be the best RB we have after Bo. He doesn't have the same traits has Henry, Bo, and Najee do but he just looks impossible to tackle in the open field. If I were to bet on a RB besides Bo going off and taking more and more carries I would put money on Jacobs. Again, I get that I am seemingly way higher on Jacobs than a lot of others.

Overall, I have no idea how the RB depth will work out. It seems most likely that injuries will be the real decider here. If Bo is healthy and ready to go I think its going to be hard to take him off the field in big games. He is a game wrecker. But I also don't expect Bo to say healthy and I'm sure at least one other RB will have injury issues. I also think its possible we see a RB transfer at some point.
I doubt we ever have a RB prospect graded higher than Trent. In addition to his insanely high prospect grade and combine/workout numbers he was the #3 overall pick of the draft. Highest drafted running back in a long time. I don't see Bo eclipsing that..
 
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TideEngineer08

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Assuming all are healthy:

1. Bo
2. JJ/DH
3. NH

I think NH's role will grow more and more throughout the year. I don't think any of these guys are going to have more than 20 carries in a game all year. Again, assuming their health holds up.
 

RTR91

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In another thread, someone made a good point. We very well could use Bo and DH less in most games in order to save them for the "bigger" games. Would make sense given both's injury history.

I see three tiers among the six guys:

1A/1B - Bo and DH
2A/2B - Jacobs and Najee
3A/3B - Emmons and Robinson

Bo and Damien will be the featured backs with Jacobs and Najee be the first to give either breathers. Robinson seems to be likely to redshirt, but who knows. He might not. Emmons is still unknown at the point based on his injury last year.
 

RollTide_HTTR

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I doubt we ever have a RB prospect graded higher than Trent. In addition to his insanely high prospect grade and combine/workout numbers he was the #3 overall pick of the draft. Highest drafted running back in a long time. I don't see Bo eclipsing that..
True, how about I change it to most highly regarded RB coming out that actually works out in the NFL.
 

Tug Tide

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I've often wondered,how much influence Coach Burns has in game situations as it relates to splitting the workload between backs. I know he has had an unbelievable amount of talent to work with, but I truly believe he's the unsung hero of the staff. It seems like every back to come through UA since his arrival comments how he is such an influence outside of football.
 

TiderJack

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In another thread, someone made a good point. We very well could use Bo and DH less in most games in order to save them for the "bigger" games. Would make sense given both's injury history.

I see three tiers among the six guys:

1A/1B - Bo and DH
2A/2B - Jacobs and Najee
3A/3B - Emmons and Robinson

Bo and Damien will be the featured backs with Jacobs and Najee be the first to give either breathers. Robinson seems to be likely to redshirt, but who knows. He might not. Emmons is still unknown at the point based on his injury last year.
I agree with this 1A/1B and 2A/2B. I would not be surprised to see Emmons redshirt also since he is recovering from injury and it appears we won't need him this year.
 

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