Now that Alabama has announced that its leading rusher, Jam Miller, may be out for some time due to an upper-body injury, who does the Tide turn to next at running back?
Daniel Hill is a name that is being bandied around a lot for a possible replacement for Miller.
Like Miller, Hill has had a great fall so far.
“Daniel Hill is a guy we’re getting more and more comfortable with,” head coach Kalen DeBoer said via AL.com. “He’s a big back, but I think he’s deceiving when it comes to what he does from a skillset standpoint because he can catch the ball out of the backfield.”
Hill has been described by coaches as a “bruiser.”
“One of the guys that maybe stood out as much as anybody this spring,” offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said of Hill in April. “Physical runner. Very nimble. For how big he is, he can stick his foot in the ground and get vertical.”
Hill seems to be the guy who will get the call to replace Miller.
Alabama fans may be more familiar with Richard Young.
Young rushed for 146 yards and two touchdowns last year and, at times, displayed the speed that excited fans about his play.
Grubb described in the spring how well Young has improved.
“I was surprised, honestly, when (running backs coach Robert Gillespie) talked to me about Rich, how much pass protection was an issue as far as last year for him just understanding schematically what was going on,” Grubb said.
“I think Rich put in a lot of time and really improved himself as a pass protector.
The dark horse in this race may be Andre Washington, who is a transfer from Louisiana who rushed for 478 yards and five touchdowns last year for the Ragin’ Cajuns. Expect all three to see some playing time versus FSU in the season opener.