Alabama's running back room is beginning to look like a loaded toolbox — plenty of different tools, each capable of doing something different, but one currently sits closest to second-year offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb's reach.
That tool appears to be junior running back Daniel Hill.
While Alabama's backfield remains highly competitive entering the 2026 season, Grubb's latest assessment offered a revealing glimpse into the pecking order beginning to form.
Ryan Grubb believes Alabama's 2026 ground game starts with Daniel Hill
“Daniel Hill is a guy I think people are going to be really impressed at the transformation Daniel’s had with his body," Grubb said Thursday to reporters after the conclusion of Alabama's second practice of fall camp. "He’s been really lean in the 230s, low 230s and even the high 220s. He runs different; he’s got good agility, great command of the offense, super intelligent, excellent pass blocker. I think it starts with him."
"I think it starts with him." The last part may be the most telling.
Grubb may not have officially released a depth chart, but his wording offered a strong indication that it's basically Hill's job to lose. That doesn't mean Hill has the job locked up — far from it
Grubb also continued his evaluation by highlighting talented sophomore backs AK Dear and Kevin Riley as other capable options who could have a major say in how Alabama's rotation ultimately takes shape.
"AK’s been making a ton of progress," Grubb said. "Kevin Riley coming back from the broken jaw has put the weight on; he’s explosive with the football in his hands."
Waiting behind Hill, Dear, and Riley are two younger backs who continue to chomp at the bit for snaps in Alabama's rotation: five-star true freshman EJ Crowell and three-star running back Tre'Shawn Brown. And according to Grubb, both have already done enough to keep themselves in the conversation.
"We talked about EJ, and then TB, Brown’s made an impact as well," Grubb said. "We got a lot of weapons in that room. It’s highly competitive. The guys know that every rep counts and they’ve been prepping that way.”
With that many capable options, the biggest question may not be who wins the job, but how Grubb chooses to use all of the tools at his disposal. That versatility could especially be important for an Alabama offense that is trying to resurrect a run game that struggled to consistently create production last season.
How this ultimately plays out could be less about finding one back to handle everything and more about determining which combination gives Grubb the best answer in different situations. As for now, Hill appears to have the inside track as RB1, but the talent behind him could give the Crimson Tide one of its deepest and most versatile backfields that the program has had in several years — and perhaps the personnel needed to finally get the run game moving in the right direction.
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