Comeback Complete, Crimson Tide's Kenyan Drake Could Be Poised for a Big Season

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — If you were at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium that day last October, you might have heard the screams coming from the field. The players and coaches on the sidelines sure could and won't forget.

Early in the second quarter, when Alabama was looking at 3rd-and-9 from the Ole Miss 29-yard line, Crimson Tide offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin called Kenyan Drake’s name for the first time that day, with the running back catching a screen pass and working his way up the middle for a first down. 

But at the end of those 10 yards, Rebels defensive lineman Bryon Bennett hit him high, as safety Tony Conner connected low, with Drake’s pinned leg unable to withstand the enormous pressure. The next thing the player wearing No. 17 knew, he was on the ground with a leg and foot bent in ways they weren’t meant to go.

Having experienced the horrific career-ending injury to wide receiver Tyrone Prothro a few years prior, Alabama fans naturally feared the worst, a concern that really didn’t go away until this past spring. Not only did Drake practice every day, but Nick Saban said he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds during Alabama’s version of pro day for underclassmen (which is closed to NFL scouts and media).

Nevertheless, coaches kept him in a black no-contact jersey, and Drake got a little frustrated that defenders only had to touch him for officials to blow the whistle during A-Day, Alabama’s final scrimmage of spring.

“I thought he played great,” Saban said afterward. “I think that we are trying to make a business decision about what’s best for Kenyan Drake and his future, as well as what’s best for our team. I don’t think he had anything to prove out there today by going out there and getting tackled and us putting him in a situation where he’d be at greater risk of injury.

“He’s pretty much full speed.”

Word around Tuscaloosa is that Drake is even faster heading into training camp, and on Wednesday, when the Southeastern Conference announced which players will represent their schools during next week’s media days, Drake’s name was listed alongside fellow seniors Reggie Ragland and Ryan Kelly.

Not Derrick Henry, not Jacob Coker (who has yet to be named the starting quarterback) and not any of the other defensive standouts who have already made contributions.

Saban didn’t do it because Drake is arguably the best story on the team, and the coach almost never lets players who have been dealing with an injury do interviews until they’re a full go on the field.

That’s why the release was so big, because it was the equivalent of announcing that Drake’s comeback is essentially complete.

Brynn Anderson/Associated Press/Associated Press/Associated Press/Associated Press/Associated Press

If the SEC had a "Comeback Player of the Year" award, the two who would be getting the most attention would be Drake and Ole Miss wide receiver Laquon Treadwell, who in heartbreaking fashion sustained a similar injury while trying to score a game-winning touchdown against Auburn last November.

A big-time NFL prospect who will almost certainly be named All-SEC next week, Treadwell had 48 catches for 632 yards and five touchdowns in nine games last season. He’s an incredible athlete headlining an impressive receiving corps who not too long ago posted videos of himself doing backflips on a trampoline.

Treadwell will play an important part in determining the Rebels’ fate this fall, but with his speed and versatility, Drake could be the difference in Alabama making another title run—as those who witnessed his 87-yard touchdown reception on Alabama’s first play from scrimmage against Florida last season well know.

In addition to lining up all over the backfield, Drake occasionally ran drills with the wide receivers during the spring. You spread the defense out and either hand the ball off to Henry or throw to Drake in space. Either way, it’s a major problem for the opposition.

Kiffin’s already had enormous success using a player like that—Reggie Bush at Southern California, who won the 2005 Heisman Trophy (later vacated) with 1,740 rushing yards and 478 receiving yards as a junior.

It’s unfair to suggest that Drake could post those kinds of numbers, especially when he hasn’t taken a hit since the injury, but there’s no doubt their styles are comparable.

"Coach Kiffin, I can tell you, loves him,” Alabama wide receiver Chris Black said in the spring while making the Bush comparison, according to AL.com's Michael Casagrande.

Despite having signed numerous players at running back, Alabama doesn’t have a lot of depth in the backfield.

Altee Tenpenny and Tyren Jones have both left the program, and an academic issue with true freshman DeSherrius Flowers was discovered after the spring, resulting in his departure for a junior college. True freshman Bo Scarbrough sustained an ACL tear in the spring but hopes to play at some point this season, while converted defensive back Ronnie Clark is coming off a torn Achilles.

Like Scarbrough, true freshman Damien Harris was considered a top-level recruit but has yet to practice with his new team.

That's all the more reason for coaches to be cautious with Drake in the spring—in hopes they won’t have to be once games begin in the fall.

Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Christopher Walsh is a lead SEC college football writer. Follow Christopher on Twitter @WritingWalsh.