Our 2025 Alabama team preview continues today with a look at the running back group.
As we stated previously in our Quarterbacks preview that kicked off this series, in recent years, we’ve waited until fall camp began to take a look at the upcoming team, giving the coaches every possible second to finalize a pre-camp roster. This has led to content droughts, however, so we’ve chosen to break up the 2025 Alabama team preview into eight segments, following our traditional eight-category game previews.
Fans who are familiar with our preview articles know we rate each unit and place them in one of five categories: Excellent, Very Good, Average, Fair and Poor. New for 2025, we do a little advance scouting at the player level as well; if there is something that stands out, good or bad, it is noted for the players.
No walk-ons are rated in these articles – outside of the Special Teams preview, which will be the final in this series – unless we believe the walk-on in question has a real chance of making the actual playing rotation, not just playing in blowout situations. Players are listed below in the way we believe they finished spring camp. For players who were not yet on the team in the spring, they are listed at the end of their respective categories.
RUNNING BACKS (Rating: Av)
1. #26 Jamarion Miller (Sr., 5-10, 220)
Strengths: Good third-down profile as a receiver and blocker, experienced, shows good one-cut ability
Weaknesses: Didn’t break enough tackles in 2024, not a dynamic runner, can get redirected too easily by second-line defenders
Analysis: Miller split the position in 2024 with Justice Haynes, who elected not to return to the team. Miller is a compact runner who is quick to achieve top speed from a standstill break, but for whatever reason, was not able to show the kind of top-level consistency Alabama demands from its running backs. Miller reportedly had a solid spring practice and improved in drills, although A-Day looked like more of the same. A lot of Bama’s RB troubles last year were due to an offensive line that couldn’t stay healthy and lacked consistency, especially off the right side. Miller has the speed to get outside, but he doesn’t break a lot of tackles and his skillset is best tuned to a one-cut style when a hole develops. He needs to show better ability to stay upright after first contact. At worst, he’s one of Alabama’s best options as a third-down back, as his blocking and receiving skills are top-notch. He’s out of eligibility after 2025 so if he wants to show NFL teams that he has a future beyond the collegiate level, now’s his last chance.
2. #4 Daniel Hill (So., 6-1, 242)
Strengths: Power to burn, breaks contact easily, underrated as a receiver
Weaknesses: Hesitant getting to the hole in ’24, blocking skills are unknown, not a lot of overall experience
Analysis: This is probably our first big surprise of our preview articles, as Hill nearly redshirted in 2024 and was never a key part of the rotation. But he had a terrific (albeit abbreviated, due to injury) spring practice and showed the ability to break tackles and get away from first contact, something Jam Miller struggled with in 2024 and something Justice Haynes absolutely couldn’t do, ever. The key for Hill will be getting the nuances of the running back position down, meaning catching the ball and blocking. He drew raves from observers this spring for his ability to pick up the finer points of catching the ball, to the point that some believe he’ll ultimately challenge Miller for the primary RB job. The second through fifth positions on the depth chart are highly contested at this time, but Hill seems to have a leg up due to his superior size and ability to break tackles. He just needs to stay healthy, as he has suffered two injuries in two years already.
3. #20 Dre’Lyn Washington (Sr., 5-9, 218)
Strengths: Accomplished third-down back for Louisiana in 2024, good initial quickness, runs bigger than he is
Weaknesses: Used sparingly as a receiver, needs a lane to get moving and does his best work as a changeup option
Analysis: Alabama took Washington before seeing the improvement this spring from Hill and Kevin Riley, but Washington has already drawn praise for his leadership and a good base of skills. What is not yet known, of course, is whether he can make the jump from Louisiana-Lafayette to Alabama. In the spring, Washington looked similar to Miller at times as sort of a jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none kind of back; his ultimate value is going to come down to how well he can integrate his receiving skills. He’s not going to be the guy who breaks a lot of tackles at the line but he can make moves in the open field once he gets to daylight. His role at Alabama will likely be a supplemental option to whoever wins the job, not necessarily as the starter himself.
4. #9 Richard Young (So., 5-11, 210)
Strengths: Runs downhill out of the chute, physical makeup, production tends to go up if he gets on a hot streak
Weaknesses: Not as much top-gear speed as you might think, receiving skills need work
Analysis: When Justice Haynes opted out of Tuscaloosa, his classmate seemed to be the obvious choice to replace him. Then Alabama added Washington, and watched Hill emerge during spring drills. Young is one of those backs whose effectiveness tends to go up with multiple carries, but unless Alabama is going to run the ball more than we think it will, he’s going to have to be happy with 5-9 carries a game – and that’s if he comes out of fall camp as Miller’s primary backup. Young’s hands aren’t bad, but he’s not the receiver that the three guys ahead of him on this list are. He can also occasionally fight ball-security issues. It wouldn’t surprise us to see him slot in anywhere between starter and fifth-string; fall camp is crucial.
5. #28 Kevin Riley (RFr., 5-11, 190)
Strengths: Major-league speed, tougher than his size indicates, could be key special teams contributor
Weaknesses: Needs schematic help to run between the tackles effectively, durability will be a question mark
Analysis: It didn’t take many snaps for fans to see why Riley had been a priority recruit, even though skeptics mostly considered him just a local talent who was signing with the hometown school. When Riley gets the corner, you know it because the collective “Oh no” that rises from the opposing sidelines can be heard across the field. You know what he is from the first snap: He’s a home-run hitter, a guy always looking for the edge of the formation. Whether that profile can allow him to excel against SEC defenses is a matter for another day, but for now all he needs to be is the guy who comes off the bench with fresh legs late in the game and makes tired linebackers want to question their choice of profession.
6. #0 Akylin Dear (Fr., 6-1, 210)
Strengths: Good mix of size and speed, productive high school career
Weaknesses: Needs a lot of work on the requirements of college ball – blocking, receiving, defense recognition
Analysis: To put it in one sentence, he isn’t ready yet. Having said that, Dear’s high school tapes show a running back with a lot of potential and natural ability. He got light work in the spring and only a handful of snaps at A-Day. With the depth ahead of him, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Dear take Riley’s path in 2025, getting a little bit of work in a couple of games and then taking a redshirt.
7. #27 Michael Lorino III (WO Jr., 6-0, 190)
Strengths: Better athleticism than you’d expect out of a walk-on, candidate for special teams duty
Weaknesses: Not an SEC-tier running back if called on to be a regular
Analysis: There are only three walk-ons highlighted in our entire team preview (outside of the Special Teams category), and Lorino is one of them. Lorino got to play in a couple of games in 2024, bracketed at the time with another walk-on, J.R. Gardner. Gardner left the team after the conclusion of the 2024 season, and with the addition of Washington and Dear it didn’t seem like we’d be discussing Lorino much. But then spring practice came around, and Lorino got more work at A-Day than Dear did, to include scoring a touchdown on a play where he actually outran some defenders to the corner. Lorino is actually listed on the roster as a senior, signaling that he might not take advantage of his available redshirt year. We wouldn’t be surprised to see him on kick coverage teams, or in Dear’s redshirt intact during blowouts.