The running back room for the Alabama Crimson Tide is a work in progress. 

But during that process, we’re starting to learn more about who’s ready to take snaps whenever senior running back Jam Miller needs a rest.

For a while, that was redshirt freshman Kevin Riley, whose play has slowed down since Week 3.

But after the win against Tennessee, we’re starting to see a lot more snaps for freshman Daniel Hill.

You may remember that prior to Week 1, Hill was among the training camp darlings to coaches, and it was expected that he was going to get plenty of carries as Miller was recovering from his dislocated collarbone.

“Daniel Hill is a guy we’re getting more and more comfortable with,” head coach Kalen DeBoer said at fall camp. “He’s a big back, but I think he’s deceiving when it comes to what he does from a skillset standpoint because he can catch the ball out of the backfield.”

Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb agreed.

“One of the guys that maybe stood out as much as anybody this spring. Physical runner. Very nimble. For how big he is, he can stick his foot in the ground and get vertical.”

But the impact that everyone was expecting didn’t happen when the program needed it.

Hill got a few carries in Week 1, but he only rushed for nine yards on three carries, as well as two receptions for 12 yards.

After that though, he had a few garbage-time carries against UL-Monroe and then he went absent for two games.

So what gave?

Apparently, according to quarterback Ty Simpson, Hill was battling a quad injury during the season, and it quickly explains why we didn’t see No. 4 take any carries in Weeks 3 through 5.

Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb had also alluded to the fact that Hill was dealing with some sort of injury, but Simpson confirmed the severity of it.

In Week 7 against Missouri, that’s when we saw his return, still not as effective with 16 yards on six carries, but he did haul in a receiving touchdown at the goal line.

The Week 8 battle against Tennessee though is when we saw the true Hill. He hauled in seven carries on 34 yards and a touchdown, as well as a 16 yard reception.

“...The guy is a tough, tough player,” Simpson said. “Gave us a spark. Rode him all the way. That’s why we scored that last touchdown. Super proud of him man.”

With essentially a full game under his belt, there’s a strong chance that we see the freshman back up Miller once again in Week 9 against South Carolina.

Kickoff will take place in Columbia, SC at 3:30 p.m. ET, 2:30 CT, on ABC