Kenneth Darby

Darby was a model of consistency for the Crimson Tide. The starter at tailback for the team's last 23 games, he was one of the few bright spots for the Alabama offense in 2006, despite in August camp suffering a left knee bruise and being forced to leave the squad briefly to deal with his father's illness. He went on to become only the third player in school history to rush for over 3,000 yards for his career, joining All-Americans Shaun Alexander (1996-99) and Bobby Humphrey (1985-88) atop the school's all-time rushing list. Darby was regarded as Alabama's top prep running back during his senior year at S.R. Butler High School. He earned Super Prep All-American honors, in addition to being named to The Tuscaloosa News Sweet Sixteen, The Birmingham News Dandy Dozen, The Montgomery Advertiser Elite Eleven, The Mobile Press Register Elite Eighteen and The Birmingham Post-Herald Ten Most Wanted. He was rated the ninth-best running back in the Southeast by Prep Star. Darby rushed for 4,674 yards during his prep career. As a senior, he amassed 1,591 yards and 20 touchdowns, when he also had 2,367 all-purpose yards and scored 24 times. As an outside linebacker, he recorded 77 tackles, giving him 281 tackles in his career. Darby enrolled at Alabama in 2002, spending the season on the scout team. He appeared in 10 games as a reserve tailback in 2003, producing 185 yards on 34 carries (5.4-yard average) and caught three passes for four yards. The following season, Darby started five times for an injured Ray Hudson. He led the team with 1,062 yards on 219 attempts (4.8 avg) with eight touchdowns. He snared 15 passes for 74 yards (4.9 avg), including one score, and made one solo tackle, earning All-Southeastern Conference (second team) honors. Darby took over the tailback chores in 2005. He was named to the coaches' All-Southeastern Conference team, as he ranked second in the SEC with an average of 103.5 rushing yards per game. He led the Tide with 1,242 yards and three touchdowns on 239 attempts (5.2 avg), was third on the team with 29 catches for 132 yards (4.6 avg) and recorded one solo tackle. A knee bruise suffered in August camp combined with his father's illness cost Darby considerable practice time prior to the 2006 season, but he went on to start every game. He led the team in rushing for the third year in a row with 835 yards on 210 carries (4.0 avg), but did not score a rushing touchdown. He added 130 yards and one score on 23 catches (5.7 avg) and recovered two fumbles. In 47 games at Alabama, Darby started 31 contests. He ranks third in school history with 3,324 yards on 702 carries (4.7 avg) and 11 touchdowns. He also made 70 catches for 340 yards (4.9 avg) and a pair of scores, adding four solo tackles with two fumble recoveries.

positives

Has a short, compact frame with good upper-body thickness, muscular arms and legs, broad shoulders, big bubble and thick thighs and legs...Creative open-field runner with that sudden burst of speed that allows him to immediately gain an advantage through the rush lanes...Elusive cutback runner with precise plant-and-drive agility. He has the body control and lower-body flexibility to stop and go with no wasted motion and is effective at utilizing head fakes and his hip wiggle to set up the opponent...Alert athlete, especially when it comes to recognizing and locating the blitz and bull rush...Needs only minimal reps to retain and takes the plays from the chalkboard to the playing field...Most featured backs shy away from blocking assignments. Darby relishes playing the role of blocker, as he is a tough, fiery type who will not hesitate to mix it up in the trenches...Explodes out of his stance through rush lanes and is very decisive attacking the holes...Has the loose hips and wiggle to make the initial tackler miss and stays low in his pads to burst through the pile...Runs with short pitter-patter steps and is very fluid redirecting...Very deceptive varying his speeds to break free along the perimeter...Has the burst to outrun defenders when working in space and most of his long runs have been the result of his explosive second gear...Shows a very good feel for rushing lanes and the vision to quickly locate cutback routes...Excels at anticipating even the slightest of creases and, based on the poor performance of the Tide's 2006 offensive line, most of his yardage was the result of his own hard work, as solid blocks rarely developed for him...Has that explosive second gear, hip snap and balance to be much more effective turning the corner than running between tackles...His hip shake and wiggle allow him change direction in an instant and run through cutback lanes...Slippery runner who is very difficult to bring down in isolated coverage...Possesses an array of moves to elude, especially when changing direction...Protects the ball well by keeping it close to his body, usually carrying it away from the defender (is ambidextrous)...Quick to uncover and has the anticipation skills to work back to the ball...Effective cut blocker with enough hand strength to lock on and sustain...Quick in the open, using angles properly to locate second-level defenders...He shows good alertness picking up the blitz and has a quick kick-slide in pass protection.

compares to

DeANGELO WILLIAMS, Carolina Panthers (Memphis)...Darby is bigger than Williams, but both rely on their exceptional burst, outstanding field vision and instincts with the ball to be slippery outside runners. Darby has a great feel for the crease and cutback lanes, but relies more on his elusiveness, as he doesn't have the ideal strength to be a power runner.

negatives

Frame could carry some additional bulk, but he is too close to maximum growth potential to add without it affecting his quickness...Was forced to create on his own, as he could not be patient waiting for blocks to develop, which resulted in 23 negative-yardage runs by Darby in 2006, uncharacteristic for this player...Will not hesitate to take the ball up the gut but, because of some size limitations he had to rely on his line to create space and they failed to do so in 2006....Type of player that needs room to run and can get bottled up inside, where his leg drive is only adequate...His 2006 early-season knee bruise contributed to Darby being tackled behind the line of scrimmage 13 times in the team's first four games; he was also stopped five times for no gain during that span...Executes excellent jump-cut moves, but just seemed a bit frustrated that he had little or no room to execute these moves in 2006...Will run the ball hard up the gut, but unless he redirects or bounces wide, he is not the type that can break many tackles taking the ball up the middle...Has good weight-room strength, but needs room to operate and seems to get too narrow with his base when having to power through arm tackles...Doesn't have the long arm reach to compete for the ball at its highest point (29 5/8-inch reach) in passing situations.

2003: Sat out the Arkansas (9/27), Southern Mississippi (10/11) and Tennessee (10/25) games with bruised ribs and sprains to both shoulders. 2004: Underwent surgery in January to repair a sports hernia after suffering a pelvic injury early in the first quarter vs. Minnesota in the Music City Bowl (12/31). 2005: Bothered in August camp (8/12) with a sports hernia that prevented him from participating in spring drills. 2006: Suffered a left knee bruise in practice (8/21).

Campus: 4.43 in the 40-yard dash (indoor track)

4.5 in the 40-yard dash (outdoors)

320-pound bench press

460-pound squat

32-inch vertical jump

29 5/8-inch arm length

9-inch hands

Ambidextrous

Wears contacts

12/27 Wonderlic score.

Attended S.R. Butler (Huntsville, Ala.) High School, playing football for head coach Ron Danley

Regarded as the state of Alabama's top running back during his senior year

Earned Super Prep All-American honors, in addition to being named to The Tuscaloosa News Sweet Sixteen, The Birmingham News Dandy Dozen, The Montgomery Advertiser Elite Eleven, The Mobile Press Register Elite Eighteen and The Birmingham Post-Herald Ten Most Wanted

Rated the ninth-best running back in the Southeast by Prep Star

Rushed for 4,674 yards during his prep career

Amassed 1,591 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior, when he also had 2,367 all-purpose yards and scored 24 times

As an outside linebacker, he recorded 77 tackles as a senior, giving him 281 tackles in his prep career.

Communications major

One of three children of Alfredia Darby and Winston Woods

Born 12/26/82

Resides in Huntsville, Alabama.