Where Kentucky, Ohio State Turn After Missing on 5-Star RB Damien Harris

Kentucky and Ohio State came up short in their bids to land 5-star running back Damien Harris, who committed to Alabama on Friday, according to Andrew Bone of Rivals.

The loss of Harris stings, particularly for the Wildcats since he is rated as the Bluegrass State’s top prospect in the 2015 cycle. 

After missing out on the nation’s No. 2 running back, both the Wildcats and the Buckeyes will have to re-evaluate their boards in the final weeks before signing day. 

What is the next step for head coaches Mark Stoops and Urban Meyer with regards to the running back position at each school? 

For starters, don’t expect either Kentucky or Ohio State to stop pursuing Harris until the ink is dry on his letter of intent.

As Chris Fisher of CatsPause notes, Harris is one of the most prolific recruits from the state of Kentucky to emerge in recent years.

However, a close look at the depth chart in Lexington and their crop of potential replacements shows that the Wildcats may not necessarily need to go after another back aggressively. 

Per CFBstats, the Wildcats are scheduled to return their top four running backs from 2014—including leading rusher Stanley Williams, who will only be a sophomore.

Plus, the Wildcats already have a pledge from 4-star Ohio rusher Andrew Dowell in the 2015 class. 

One player that could emerge late is 3-star Alabama running back Jamarius Henderson. 

According to John Talty of AL.com, Henderson was high on the Wildcats entering the fall, with Wildcats ace recruiter Derrick Ansley having made a strong impression on him: "He played football at Troy with (Dale County) coach (Pate) Harrison. He keeps it straight up and real with you. He's one of those coaches I could see coaching me one day."

Henderson set the Alabama single-season state records in rushing yards (3,483) yards and touchdowns (44), per Daniel Boyette of AL.com.

As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes will likely turn their focus to keeping 4-star running back pledge Michael Weber, who committed to Meyer and his staff in December.

As Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports notes, Meyer was able to land a pledge from Weber the day after he had his in-home visit with Harris.

However, the former Michigan commitment and Detroit native is being pursued by new Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh. 

Per Wiltfong (subscription required), Weber mentioned he planned to speak with Harbaugh after the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. 

If Weber does flip back to Michigan, the likely target for the Buckeyes would be 3-star Tennessee running back Ke’Shawn Vaughn, who was offered by Ohio State back in October, according to Bill Kurelic of Bucknuts.

Even though he cancelled his visit to Ohio State following Weber’s commitment, Vaughn noted the Buckeyes could re-enter the picture if circumstances changed, as noted by Barton Simmons of 247Sports: "Ohio State will keep in touch because you never know how recruiting works."

While missing out on a potential game changer such as Harris is a blow, both Kentucky and Ohio State are still in position to meet their needs in the backfield, and both schools still have a great chance of closing strong in the 2015 cycle.

Sanjay Kirpalani is a National Recruiting Analyst for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.