Justice Haynes spent his summer ‘fully’ learning Alabama’s new offense
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama has a new offense with Kalen DeBoer taking over as the head coach this offseason. But the responsibilities of the running backs have not changed.
“We’ve gotta run the ball. We’ve gotta pass protect. We’ve gotta do things out of the receiving game,” Justice Haynes said. “We’ve gotta do everything we can to help this team win.”
The Crimson Tide may have lost its top two runners from last year’s team, but the running back room currently in Tuscaloosa is still viewed as a strength for the 2024 season. Haynes is a big reason, as the sophomore gets set to take on a larger role in Alabama’s offense.
To prepare for an increased role, Haynes spent his summer break studying DeBoer’s system.
“I took pride in this summer, learning the offense completely, fully,” Haynes said. “Knowing what the offensive line is blocking, know what the receivers are doing, but also with my progressions – learning different keys I can look at before pre-snap, trying to win the pre-snap.
“Not just going out there and reacting as a football player but learning the mental aspect of the game.”
This spring and summer, Haynes has been at or near the top of the pecking order in individual and team drills at practice. Last year as a true freshman, he played in 13 games and finished fifth on Alabama’s roster in rushing with 168 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries. A lot of those touches came late in games, but Haynes flashed in the Rose Bowl.
That carried over into the offseason, where Haynes is battling to be the Tide’s top option out of the backfield. He prides himself on his versatility, which he hopes keeps him on the field.
Alabama RB Justice Haynes (Courtesy of UA Athletics)
“You wanna be able to do it all,” Haynes said. “You don’t wanna be a guy that’s out there first, second and then third down, they’ve gotta bring someone else in. You wanna be a guy that stays on the field all three downs and goes and makes plays each and every day.”
Haynes and junior Jam Miller have been leading Alabama’s running back group in fall camp. It’s a group that is five-deep in terms of scholarship players with Richard Young returning and true freshmen Daniel Hill and Kevin Riley joining the Tide program this offseason. While they are all competing, particularly Haynes and Miller, they are also a close-knit unit.
“We’re looking to accomplish big things as a running back group,” Haynes said. “We push each other each and every day. But as for relationship-wise, we have a great relationship.
“We don’t just hang out on the football field, we don’t just hang out here at the facility. We’ll go out and go eat. We’ll got to each other’s houses. We had an NCAA tournament all together, something just cool that we did throughout the summer. Just hanging out, bowling together. We do things like that just to build chemistry. We love being around each other.
“We have a great relationship. But we also know it’s genuine, so when we push each other on the field, we’ve got that relationship off the field. So we can go push each other on the field and we know it’s out of love.”
Relentless pursuit of continuous improvement. That’s a new mantra heard around the facility as DeBoer gets ready for his first season as Alabama’s head coach. And it’s one that Haynes will have no trouble following. Even as a former 5-star recruit and the son of a former football player, the sophomore knows there are still plenty of areas where he can get better.
“I just try to improve each and every day,” Haynes said. “Each day is a new challenge, it presents a new challenge of its own. Go back and watch the film, whatever I need to correct, go out the next day, correct that.
“One thing I say – when you stop learning, your life should be done. So you never stop learning. Just always try to continue to keep learning. I can learn every ounce of football every chance I get. I’m gonna try to do that.”
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