Alabama football has an offensive coordinator that believes in physicality, creativity, and running the football.
He is in a nonstop, evolving industry of analytics, but Tommy Rees keeps football simple at 30 years old. In three seasons as Notre Dame’s offensive coordinator (2020-22), Rees had six players have 100 or more rushing attempts. The Fighting Irish finished with a 9-4 record in 2022, posting three players that carried the ball at least 100 times. Audric Estime led the charge, totaling 920 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns on 156 carries. Logan Diggs had a team-high 165 carries while Chris Tyree had 100 rushing attempts. Notre Dame executed more running game than passing attack last year, especially with its backs averaging over four yards per carry. Estime, Diggs, and quarterback Tyler Buchner averaged 12 or more rushing attempts per matchup.
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Alabama has not had a back over 200 carries in a single season since Derrick Henry (229) in 2015.
Kyren Williams, a Fighting Irish alum, had back-to-back seasons of 200+ carries under Rees in 2020 (211) and 2021 (204).
Rees’ dedication to the run game propelled Notre Dame to the College Football Playoff in 2020. He did not have the four and five stars on the field in South Bend (Ind.) that he will have in Tuscaloosa (Ala.), but Rees made Notre Dame’s offense effective.
The Irish nearly averaged as many rushing yards (189.08) as passing yards (207.1) in 2022 under Rees. Notre Dame had a winning season and had five games of 40 or more points. Rees will have a stable of running backs and a quarterback (Jalen Milroe) to make his offense work for the Crimson Tide. Alabama fans want to return to a dominant run game, and Rees provides it.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
