And he sealed it with a kiss.
Alabama running back Damien Harris muscled 5 yards through Colorado State defenders into the end zone. It was his only touchdown of the Crimson Tide’s 41-23 win over the Rams on Saturday, but the junior has now scored a touchdown in all three games this season. After his latest, he blew one to the UA student section.
“I love playing with Damien,” Alabama offensive lineman Jonah Williams said. “He’s one of my good friends, really solid running back. … They’re all great, but it’s a good feeling to just turn around and know you have a guy like that who’s going to do a good job.”
The only other person who has notched as many rushing scores as Harris is quarterback Jalen Hurts. This time, Hurts — once again — put the first points on the board. He rushed up the middle 27 yards to add six after the Crimson Tide’s first offensive series.
That was the longest run. There were only seven rushing plays capable of picking up a first down on their own. Alabama averaged 6.1 yards per carry.
Still, Hurts didn’t reach the end zone as a runner during Alabama’s season opener. He did twice last week. Therefore, Harris is the only Crimson Tide member to have scored on foot every game.
Bo Scarbrough got his first tally next to his name now, too. He plowed through the middle to score from 9 yards out.
“It felt pretty good to know we were winning,” Scarbrough said. “Just a job getting done.”
As a whole, the Crimson Tide rushed for 239 yards, its second-highest mark of the season. Hurts led the way with 103 yards on 11 carries.
For Alabama coach Nick Saban, Scarbrough and Harris stood out most. The former finished with 12 runs for a total of 66 yards. The latter had 12 breaks for 53 yards.
“I think Bo was probably as explosive as he’s been all year,” Saban said. “I think Damien ran with a lot of passion, a lot of toughness. Did a good job.”
There were only two running plays that went for negative yardage: Scarbrough was tackled a yard behind the line of scrimmage twice during the final two quarters.
Josh Jacobs, who didn’t play the last two games due to a hamstring injury, made his first appearance. The sophomore entered during Alabama’s second series in the third quarter. He carried the ball for 6 yards. That was his only touch. Immediately after, Harris knocked out his touchdown.
“It’s great to have everybody in the game, everybody playing,” Scarbrough said. “It’s a big plus for the offense. It’s a big plus for the runnings back to have three, four guys playing. It keeps the defense on their toes.”
Overall, Saban was pleased with the UA running game. The offensive line did better, and there was more protection. The running backs had what Saban considered pretty good holes to run through.
The line itself, along with the running backs, agreed.
“We did a good job up front,” Williams said. “We’re a really solid offensive line with really solid running backs.”
