Mississippi Rebels running back Quinshon Judkins Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Nick Saban wishes this Ole Miss freshman played for Crimson Tide

Over the course of the season, Ole Miss freshman running back Quinshon Judkins has gone from an unheralded three-star recruit and second-stringer to a breakout SEC star and one of college football's best rushers.

The great Nick Saban himself wishes he played for the Crimson Tide, who play at Mississippi on Saturday.

“Guy is a really, really good competitor, does a good job of executing the plays they ask him to run," Saban said, via on3.com. "He’s relentless in the way he carries the ball. He’s tough, he runs behind his pads. He can make you miss. He’s got pretty good speed. We looked at him coming out last year. In hindsight, it’d be great if he was on our team.”

LSU head coach Brian Kelly, who recruited Judkins when he was at Notre Dame, was more concise with his praise after the tailback ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns on the Tigers. 

"They clearly have the ability to run the football," he said.

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin became a meme last year when he was spotted sitting all by his lonesome out in the cold, metal bleachers at a high school football game. It turns out he had a pretty darn good reason to be there.

Judkins set a season high in rushing yards (205) two weeks ago against Texas A&M before the bye week. The 19-year-old RB has averaged 5.4 yards per carry while rushing for 455 yards and five touchdowns over his past three games.

Judkins leads all SEC running backs in carries (180), rushing touchdowns (13), first downs (60) and missed tackles forced (61). He ranks second in rushing yards (1,036). 

He'll be a handful Saturday against Alabama, whose rushing defense is third best in the SEC.

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