Jam Miller taking young Alabama running back under his wings

© Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Alabama football’s redshirt freshman running back, Kevin Riley capitalized on the carries he earned early in the season when Jam Miller was out, and it came as no surprise when he had the second-most carries when Miller returned against Georgia.

Riley carried the football 10 times against the Bulldogs, and he finished the game with 30 yards. It was obvious he was the for sure second option for the Tide out of the backfield.

Miller told reporters after the game he took it upon himself to make sure Riley was prepared for this moment.

“I actually made him sit next to me during meetings, just to help him out, just preparing him for what’s coming,” Miller said “I say I feel like a proud father. I was with him the whole time, just helping him get better each and every day.”

Riley now leads Alabama in rushing with 150 yards on 33 carries on the season.

The Tuscaloosa County product made his first career start against ULM after he started to come on strong after Miller went down.

”He’s done a good job the last probably three weeks, four weeks, middle of camp,” DeBoer said after Riley started against ULM. “He really kind of turned it up and there’s some things that he can do that are a little different than the rest of the group there, like where he picks up his knees and runs hard, inside, outside, and it got a little burst. He does a nice job catching the ball in the backfield. I think he’s really picked up the understanding and responsibility when it comes to pass protection, too.”

The Tide showed they could commit to running the football against Georgia, and this is good news for both Riley and Miller.