Alabama Crimson Tide: Running Back Log Jam with All This Talent?

Larry Burton (Panama City Beach, Fl) - Of course, everybody on the planet knows that Mark Ingram won the Heisman Trophy this past season. What many may not know is that he will be challenged for playing time this coming year and may not see the same 741 carries that he had last year.

"Why?" you may ask, "Why would Alabama not ride this horse as long as it will go?" Maybe because they'll have at least two other runners with the capability of beating his yards per carry this coming year.

"That could never happen," you say, "This is a Heisman Trophy winner!"

Actually, Ingram was second on the team last year in yards per carry. Third string running back Roy Upchurch actually had a better yard per carry average. And Richardson wasn't far behind while playing as a true freshman.

And now dumping Eddie Lacy into the mix, an explosive redshirt freshman who gave the first team defense fits last year trying to stop him while he was the running back on the scout team. 

It may mean less carries for Ingram in order to try to keep the others happy; it may also make Alabama an even more deadly team to opponents.

The only thing that may be standing between second-teamer Trent Richardson and a Heisman of his own is not the defenders who would tackle him, but his own teammate, Mark Ingram.

Will Ingram get the number of carries necessary to get another Heisman? If Trent Richardson or Eddie Lacy have a true breakout early game stealing performance, does that create a running back controversy in Tuscaloosa?

Not in a million years. With a growing interest in how Saban will deal with such explosive backs and mead out playing time, he has fired the first shot across the bow of the reporters by saying that everybody will have their opportunities.

In other words, don't try and make a controversy over something that is a blessing for a team, not a problem.

I've had the opportunity to speak to both Richardson and Ingram. Among those two, at least, there is no quarrel; there is no depth chart in question and no problems.

"Mark is more than a teammate, he's like a brother to me," said Richardson. "He's the starter and I'm the backup. Everyone has a role on this team, and everybody is ready to step up when their opportunities come up. I'll get my carries and help the team as much as I can."

And the other side of the story from the other main player?

"Trent and I are like brothers. We spend time together away from football and are very close. I know what he went through coming in as a freshman with another person entrenched as a starter. Glenn (Coffee) was very good to me when I came here and I know how much I appreciated it. Trent's an awesome running back and he's got nothing but but the brightest future ahead of him and I pull for him every time he runs the ball."

Is there room for three? How will Eddie Lacey and maybe the others fit in?

Last year in a game where Richardson was nicked up and Ingram was recovering from the flu, both were delighted to see Roy Upchurch get his first start of the year. As fate would have it, Roy got banged up and a very weak Ingram had to play. He was good for only two or three plays at a time before being so winded that he couldn't continue.

Ingram played a good game anyway, and other running backs filled the gaps when he was recovering on the sidelines.

After the game, I had a chance to interview him. His voice was weak and his eyes were still watering from the flu symptoms, but just as the trooper who played when he needed to, he also came up to the press room despite his ailments and filled that job, too.

In that interview when I asked about playing under the weather, he said, "We were excited to see Roy get a start. He's a great running back and the rest of us were glad for him to get the opportunity to shine. We knew there wouldn't be a fall off. There is no jealousy among the running backs and we all pull for another. We're a very tight bunch. Tonight people were down and I had to stand up. Tomorrow it could be someone else. That's the great thing about this team."

So, I think there's plenty of room for the new backs. Whatever else Alabama has on this team—talent, coaching, confidence, and so on—there is also comradeship, brotherhood, friendship, and love.

Whatever Nick Saban's done in mixing all these ingredients, he's certainly gotten it right, and no Heisman Trophy or media headline can undo it.

While it's easy to become jaded in a world of "It's all about me" athletes, it's refreshing to meet such players as these. A log jam of running backs? I prefer to think of it as a log downstream avalanche; if one doesn't get you, the next one will.