Football fans from high school to the NFL have compared Derrick Henry and Najee Harris throughout their careers. There are many striking similarities between the two players, and the comparisons continue today.
Let’s look at how similar their football paths have been and what separates the two talented backs.
Were Derrick Henry and Najee Harris Teammates at Alabama?
Although many talented backs have crossed paths during their collegiate careers playing for Alabama, Henry and Harris played for the Crimson Tide in two eras. Henry dominated the ground-and-pound Alabama offensive philosophy from 2013-2015, while Harris took the reigns from 2017-2020.
High School Phenoms
Henry had as impressive as a high school career imaginable. “King Henry,” as he would later be known due to his illustrious performance on the gridiron, took off as a true freshman, running for 2,645 yards and 26 touchdowns. The future Tennessee Titan was officially on the recruiting radar.
As a sophomore, Henry bettered his freshman campaign, running for 2,788 yards and 38 touchdowns. The production dipped slightly as a junior, but Henry did set a Florida high school state record by rushing for 510 yards in one game — which would stand until 2021.
Henry capped off one of the greatest high school careers in history by running for a state-record 4,261 yards and 55 touchdowns. When his career was over, Henry had rushed for a record 12,124 career rushing yards.
Headed off to college, the five-star recruit was ranked as the No. 1 athlete in the nation.
Few remember Henry committed to play for Georgia before changing allegiances to play for the Alabama Crimson Tide. How history would have been rewritten had Henry played for the Bulldogs.
Harris, meanwhile, plowed a similar path during his high school playing career. The future first-round selection didn’t play much as a high school freshman, but during his sophomore season, his career began to take off.
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As a sophomore, Harris ran 2,263 yards, then 2,744 yards as a junior, and ending with 2,776 yards as a senior.
Harris began receiving “King Henry” comparisons given his other-worldly high school production. The future Steeler was considered the No. 1 player in the country coming out of high school by most outlets.
College Careers Intertwined
Although Henry and Harris didn’t play together at Alabama, their collegiate paths were as similar as their high school careers. Henry started slowly, with only 382 rushing yards in his freshman season. Yet, the behemoth’s role grew during his sophomore season to the tune of 990 rushing yards, but it was his junior season that would shock college football.
King Henry became the cog of the Alabama offense, rushing for 2,219 yards and 28 TDs on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy in 2015 as the best player in college football. Henry took home additional hardware as the winner of the Doak Walker Award, Maxwell Award, and Walter Camp Award.
Harris experienced similar growing pains in Alabama. He began his career sharing the backfield with other future NFL-caliber backs, Josh Jacobs and Damien Harris. His sophomore season was more of the same, as he was third on Alabama’s depth chart behind Jacobs and Damien.
Like Henry, though, Harris’ career took off in his junior campaign. With Jacobs and Damien Harris off to the NFL, Najee took over the Crimson Tide backfield. He ran for 1,224 yards and scored 20 touchdowns in his junior season. The bruising back capped off his college career with two national titles and a Doak Walker Award following his senior season.
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