Report: Damien Harris not joining Alabama football radio broadcasts during 2024 season

Last week, the Crimson Tide Sports Network (CTSN) announced that former Alabama running back Damien Harris would be joining as a sideline reporter for games this Fall. Now, it appears that won’t be happening.

Chris Stewart, the play-by-play announcer, revealed on Wednesday that Harris won’t be joining as a sideline reporter. That’s because, as Stewart explained on The Opening Kickoff, he’ll be pursuing another opportunity instead.

With the season just weeks away, CTSN is going to need to come up with a new option at sideline reporter now.

Christian Miller served as the sideline reporter for home games last season on CTSN. Then, for road games Roger Hoover, who is also the host, acted as the sideline reporter. Tyler Watts as the analyst and Tom Stipe as an engineer round out the current broadcast.

Damien Harris was a star running back at Alabama during his college career. He was there from 2015 through the 2018 season, playing for head coach Nick Saban and offensive coordinators like Lane Kiffin, Brian Daboll, and Mike Locksley. 

In 2018, Harris was a captain of the football team. He would also be named a Second-Team All-SEC selection that season. For his career at Alabama, Harris played in 56 games and he carried the ball 441 times for 2,779 yards and 21 touchdowns. That’s 6.3 yards per carry. He also had 52 receptions for 407 yards and another two touchdowns.

Damien Harris was then selected by the New England Patriots in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft and he would play four seasons with the Patriots. After that, he spent the 2023 season with the Buffalo Bills. There, he only played in six games before a neck injury ended his season. He later retired from the NFL in March of 2024.

His best season statistically came in 2021 when he played in 15 games and had 929 yards on the ground with 15 touchdowns.

The Alabama Crimson Tide start their season on August 31st with a home game against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. That gives CTSN just a couple of weeks to find a replacement for Harris.

This is going to be a very important and interesting season for Alabama as a whole. Kalen DeBoer is coming to Alabama as the replacement for the legendary Nick Saban and is coming off a College Football Playoff run himself at Washington. Now, as the SEC and College Football Playoff expand in 2024, he’s going to be dealing with a lot of pressure immediately.