3. RB Najee Harris, Alabama
He’s been on a few of our offseason lists already, and there’s a reason.
Talent-wise, he might just be the best running back in college football.
He would’ve gone after the first wave of backs in this year’s draft had he come out early, but the former superstar recruit has the combination of size, athleticism, and all-around talent to be everything Bama got out of Mark Ingram in 2009 and Derrick Henry in 2015.
One more run for 2️⃣2️⃣ in 2020!@ohthatsNajee22 Harris is returning to Alabama for his senior season. 💪🐘 pic.twitter.com/cYkxMHneD4
— Alabama Crimson Tide | AL.com (@aldotcomTide) January 16, 2020
The 6-2, 230-pound Harris came on late in the year when Tua Tagovailoa went down, finishing with 1,224 yards and 13 touchdown runs with seven touchdown catches.
It took a little bit for the switch to be flipped, but he ran for 12 of his scores in the last seven games as he started to run with a purpose. It seemed like he was turning it on in salary-drive time for the NFL, but nope – he’s around for another year.
Alternative: Another RB who won’t get enough love for a QB award
RB Chuba Hubbard, Oklahoma State
The nation’s leading rusher is back after winning for 2,094 years and 21 touchdowns for the Cowboys. Seemingly ready to go off to the next level, he shockingly chose to come back for one more year for what should be another powerhouse of a statistical season.
So why isn’t he on the list of the Top Five Not Obvious candidates? 1) He was amazing last year and didn’t get a whiff of the Heisman – he was eighth. 2) OSU likely won’t be in the CFP chase, and 3) there aren’t a whole slew of huge games to get excited about. But if he blows up against Oklahoma and Texas …