TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — As for as homecomings go, it obviously could have gone better.

University of Alabama running back Najee Harris had enjoyed a stellar prep career in the San Francisco area, one the of the finest that area had ever seen. At Antioch High School he finished with 7,948 career rushing yards, the fourth-most in California high school football history, capped by 2,776 rushing yards and 36 touchdowns during his senior season.

He was all-everything. Harris was considered the No. 1 recruit in the nation by Rivals, Scout and PrepStar, and with a 5-star rating was considered a can’t miss prospect for the Crimson Tide.

“Shout out to the Bay,” he said when swarmed by local reporters during Alabama’s media day at the National Championship Game.

Only the Crimson Tide lost, and the more Clemson pulled way the less Alabama utilized the running game even though it was still moving the ball.

Harris only touched the ball nine times, including just twice in the second half, during the 44-16 setback.

But here’s the thing that most people missed: He led the Crimson Tide in rushing.

Harris figures to do that a lot next season.

“Najee is a very talented player,” Nick Saban said. “He's got great size and speed. He's very effective when he has the ball in his hand, and he's a complete player in terms of being a good receiver as well as a good runner with the ball.

“I think the improvement that he's made has come because of the experience that he's gained as a player, and he's a more complete player now.”

Even with Alabama losing three running backs in Damien Harris, Josh Jacobs and role-player Ronnie Clark, the Crimson Tide’s running game may not see much of a dip, if at all.

In terms of talent, the backfield will still be loaded. However, even with Saban reconfiguring the coaching staff there should be more of a hierarchy with the position group.

Behind Najee Harris, who already has 29 games of experience, there’s junior Brian Robinson and sophomore Jerome Ford, with incoming 5-star talent Trey Sanders.

There’s not a lot of depth in terms of numbers, which will be a concern considering it’s the position where players get beat up the most. But there’s no doubt about who the top player will be.

It’s the guy who’s been known to hurdle defenders and make it look easy.

“He really makes plays like that all the time in practice,” former tight end Hale Hentges said.

At times, Harris has seemed nearly unstoppable. This past season 17 of his carries went for 12-plus yards and 37 of his rushes resulted in a first down or a touchdown.

However, his 135 rushing yards against Arkansas State, his first career 100-yard game, was Alabama’s season high. His longest carry of the season was just 32 yards against The Citadel. He also scored just four touchdown, and none after the Louisiana game on Sept. 29.

For those who have been wondering what’s been wrong with Harris, the answer for the most part is nothing.

In 2018 especially, Alabama had a loaded backfield. It was the only program in theFootball Bowl Subdivision to boast four career 1,000-yard rushers on its current roster., with Damien Harris the established starter, Jacobs and reserve quarterback Jalen Hurts.

All three running backs averaged more than 5.3 yards per carry, and one could make the argument that none of them got the ball enough. Had Damien Harris gotten maybe one more carry per game he might have become the player in Alabama history to have three 1,000-yard rushing seasons.

Although Jacobs got a lot of attention down the stretch, and is now being hailed as maybe being the best running back in the 2019 NFL Draft, Najee Harris finished second in team rushing with 783 yards, and led the team in yards per carry at 6.7.

He did so while getting the third most carries with 117.

His biggest problem was everything else, and what to do when he didn’t the ball. The other guys had more experience had a better feel for things like picking up blitzes.

The key word there is was, which is primarily why Harris figures to be a much bigger part of the offense moving forward. He may even be a preseason All-SEC selection.

“You get better as the year goes along, and that's the way the program is kind of set up,” former offensive coordinator Mike Locksley said before departing to become the head coach at Maryland. “We develop our roster from top to bottom with the way we practice, and you know, I've seen Najee make tremendous improvements in the pass protection. I've seen him become a better receiver out of the backfield.

“He's a guy that has a knack for making people miss, unblocked guys miss in the hole. I think he'll be a big-time player here.”