Damien Harris developing into elite talent
Damien Harris came to Alabama as the No. 1 ranked running back recruit in the country but he had to wait his turn to become the feature back. Harris, now a junior, is the feature back, supplanting Bo Scarbrough as the lead back in the offense and he’s making the most of his opportunity.
Harris has 500 yards on only 59 carries for a whopping 8.47 yards per carry average, the fourth-best average among backs with at least 50 carries. His game-breaking ability to go the distance every time he touches the ball is a nightmare for defenses to worry about with the other weapons on the offense. Harris would have even bigger yardage totals if not for Hurts being an excellent runner in his own right and the presence of Scarbrough.
Scarbrough and Harris are basically splitting carries (65-59) but Harris is doubling up Scarbrough each time he touches the ball so look for him to take a bigger load of the carries in the second half of the season. That would leave Scarbrough in a role that better suits him as a closer late in games, much like Derrick Henry did before he was a Heisman-winning back.
Alabama has the best rushing backfield in the country that the No. 1 recruit in the country last year, Najee Harris has only carried the ball 37 times. Talk about an embarrassment of riches.