As the only three-star recruit in the running-back group, Josh Jacobs can often be forgotten in Alabama’s rotation. He has shown, when healthy, he is just as good as any other back in that group.

Offensive coordinator Mike Locksley has been able to hand off the ball to multiple running backs who can run between the tackles or flash outside, but in two unusual cases this year, he has snapped the ball directly to Jacobs.

In Alabama’s shutout wins against LSU and Mississippi State, the 5-foot-10 running back lined up as the quarterback and took the snap. Both times resulted in a first down for Alabama.

“He’s amazing at running [it],” sophomore linebacker Dylan Moses said. “He runs behind his shoulder pads. He does everything he needs to do. He has all the qualities of a great back and he’s hard to tackle. Even in practice he brings it. I have to stay on my A-game. He really does challenge me, and that’s what really helps me against the opposing team.”

The position is nothing new for Jacobs, who like most incredible high school talents, was asked to play all across the field throughout his high school career, capitalizing on his unique athletic ability. Jacobs said he ran the Wildcat offense during his whole senior year of high school.

“It’s fun,” Jacobs said. “That’s the only way I can explain it. It’s just fun.”

While for Jacobs it’s fun, the only thing Saban cares about is results. Whether the team is running read options, flea flickers, fullback dives or 2nd-and-26 prayers, a play is only as good as its end result in the eyes of the head coach.

“I like whatever’s successful, OK?” Saban said. “So as long as we’re successful in it, I like it. As soon as we’re unsuccessful in it, I won’t like it as much. Is that fair enough? And as long as Josh Jacobs does what he’s supposed to do, I’ll like what he’s doing. As soon as he messes it up, then I won’t like it. I’m not really making a commitment one way or another, other than I like it when it works and I don’t like it when it doesn’t.”

Despite his refusal to comment, Saban does understand the problems the Wildcat can present to opposing defenses.

“When you have a guy who can play in the quarterback position, somebody still has to go cover the quarterback if he’s out [wide],” Saban said. “So therefore you have an extra blocker numbers-wise, because you’re taking a guy out of their defense to cover the quarterback. Most of the time you’re not covering the quarterback when he’s getting the ball. So you have one less [defender]. You have the same number of blockers and then have one less man on defense to defend with. That’s math, 10 minus one … 11 minus one.”

The math makes sense for Saban and is why Alabama has slowly added this somewhat unusual offensive scheme to the playbook. The team has been incorporating it more and more into practice.

Moses said the defense was caught off guard and gave up a big run down the middle to the Wildcat last week at practice, showing that if the system can outsmart one of the top defenses in the country, it should be given a shot going forward.

“It’s smooth,” Jacobs said following the game against Mississippi State. “We’ve still got a lot of crinks and wrinkles to it, but it’s two-for-two, so it’s all right.”

With Jacobs emerging as more and more of a threat in big games, Crimson Tide fans should be on the lookout for the team experimenting in all-new ways of getting him the ball.