Jam Miller injury: Kalen DeBoer reveals impact of playing SEC championship without RB

Jam Miller being sidelined is one of the biggest storylines entering Saturday’s SEC Championship between Alabama and Georgia. The Crimson Tide running back is dealing with a leg injury that has kept him out of the contest, but he isn’t the only one.

Backup running back Kevin Riley is also out, meaning Alabama will have to rely on a host of other players to fill in the void. Speaking with ESPN’s Holly Rowe in the pregame, Crimson Tuide coach Kalen DeBoer revealed how he expects those other players to step up.

“They’re actually a little bit different, all of them,” he said. “So they’ll get their opportunities and I’m excited to go ahead and see them play.”

Daniel Hill is expected to step in and receive the bulk of the workload in light of the injuries to Miller and Riley. He enters this contest with 57 carries for 217 yards rushing and five touchdowns in addition to 16 catches for 148 yards and a TD on the season.

Freshman AK Dear could also see more work. He has only 16 carries on the year but has turned three of them into touchdowns.

This matchup will mark the third time in the past five years that Alabama and Georgia have competed in the SEC title game. However, it is the first time DeBoer has coached the Crimson Tide in the conference championship after he took over in 2024. He spoke on what the opportunity means to him.

“It’s something you never take for granted,” he said. “We know how much work it took to get to this spot. We’re excited to watch our guys play.”

Kalen DeBoer delivers pitch for Alabama to make College Football Playoff

Following Alabama‘s 28-7 loss to Georgia in the SEC Championship Game, all eyes turned to the College Football Playoff picture. The Crimson Tide sit in dicey territory, entering the weekend at No. 9 in the CFP rankings.

Will Alabama be penalized for playing in an extra game? It’s a valid question and one that coach Kalen DeBoer batted back and forth in a post-game press conference.

“If this game applies to and takes away from our resume, I don’t think that’s right,” DeBoer said. “I really don’t. I think the precedent’s been set, and I don’t know how you can go into a conference playoff game and you’re a No. 1 seed and did all these things throughout the year and playing in this game, against one of the top teams in the country as well, how that can hurt you and keep you out of the playoff when we’ve done what we’ve done all year.”

On3’s Thomas Goldkamp contributed to this report.