Alabama Football: Ranking the Top 5 Running Backs in Nick Saban’s Era
Alabama football always seems to have good running backs that help them win national championships, especially since Nick Saban became the head coach. These running backs are the top five since Saban took the job.
Alabama football always seems to have an abundance of good running backs. However, since head coach Nick Saban took over, those backs seem even better.
Saban took over in 2007 and since then has transformed into one of the greatest college football dynasties ever.
What kind of offense does Saban prefer? A ground and pound offense that makes features a back that can run over the best of linebackers.
Alabama had 12 national titles before Saban took the job, but believe it or not, the Tide didn’t have any Heisman Trophy winners.
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Well, Saban’s running backs brought Alabama its first two Heisman Trophy winners. The only two running back winners since 2000.
The closest another Alabama got to coach a Heisman winner was when Burton Burns had three running backs named to first-team All-American teams.
Deciding which five running backs were the best of the best during Saban’s era was harder than I thought it would be.
Some of the recent running backs are just as good as some of the older ones. One of the things I thought about was who was dynamic and memorable.
Of course, statistics went into consideration, but when a running back is dynamic, they are memorable. And it’s hard to say that the two Heisman winners aren’t part of the five best running backs in Saban’s history.
Some of the backs that deserve mentioning but didn’t make my list are Najee Harris, Bo Scarborough, Kenyon Drake, and TJ Yeldon. Without any more anticipation, here are my top-five Alabama running backs.