30 best Alabama football players to play for Nick Saban
By Nick Villano
Best Alabama football players under Nick Saban: 30. Henry Ruggs III
Henry Ruggs had incredible straight-line speed that made him nearly impossible to cover down the field. He was like a modern-day Desean Jackson. Ruggs could never be caught once he got behind the defense.
His numbers don’t pop off the page when it comes to the comparisons to other great receivers to come through Tuscaloosa but think about all those receivers. Now realize that Ruggs’ 24 career touchdowns are third all-time in school history. He also left after his junior year, so some of those other players had an extra year on him.
Ruggs did suffer a few injuries during his career, which is why he never broke 800 yards receiving in a season. However, he was a touchdown machine. He averaged 17.5 yards per reception over his career, and that became 18.7 in his junior year.
In his sophomore year, he was doing a little bit of everything. He had three special teams tackles against Georgia while he tried to prove he was worthy of a spot in the offense. This was a dynamic talent that could have been much greater if he just stayed healthy in that junior year.