On3 Roundtable: Alabama has focused on running game since Bryce Young's departure

Alabama had quite the luxury over the past two seasons with Bryce Young at quarterback. However, with him off to Charlotte, BamaOnline’s Jimmy Stein says Nick Saban is very obviously locked in on getting back to putting the Tide’s focus back on the run game.

Stein explained his stance while speaking with Clint Lamb on the ‘On3 Roundtable’. To start, he said that Young, while sensational in college, allowed ‘Bama to get very trigger happy with passing the football more than anything else.

“(Alabama) got so dependent on Bryce that I think that on 3rd and three? You’re gonna throw it instead of run it. And that’s probably not best for the health of the overall program,” said Stein.

Now, with the former Heisman with the Panthers, Stein said Saban is clearly aiming his philosophy back toward running running the football over the offseason. Several moves that he points to indicate that the Crimson Tide are looking to get a great rushing attack back going again within their offense.

“You can tell, day one, Bryce Young moves on. Day one, Nick Saban is like, ‘Bryce, we couldn’t have been happier with what you did for us. Thank you. Now we’re getting back to running the football’,” Stein said. “Every decision Nick Saban has made since Bryce Young left has been about going back to running the football.”

“He hired an OC with the reputation for it. He went and got a run block first tight end out of the portal. You sign Justice Haynes and Richard Young at running back. You’ve got quarterbacks that are great at the RPO,” Stein pointed out. “Everything Nick Saban has been about since Bryce Young and Bill O’Brien have left is going back to running the football.”

2022 was the fifth straight season where Alabama averaged less than 200 rushing yards per game. That stretch comes after a seven year run where they averaged at least 200 per season. In total, Alabama reached that mark in eight of Saban’s first 11 seasons with the Tide.

A big part of that was their offense and the list of quarterbacks that have played there over that time. Saban had O’Brien calling the offense with Tua Tagovailoa, Mac Jones, and Young all playing quarterback in that half decade stretch of less impactful running.

That all seems set to change, though, with Tommy Rees wearing the headset and with the pieces at Alabama’s disposal. That’s at least how Stein sees it considering the direction that the spring has gone in down in Tuscaloosa.