AK Dear's Return to Alabama for 2026 Season Confirmed

Dear rushed for 140 yards in five games as a true freshman.

Sep 6, 2025; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide running back AK Dear (0) celebrates his touchdown with teammates wide receiver Jay Loper Jr. (32) and wide receiver Derek Meadows (30) during the fourth quarter at Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Leong-Imagn Images | David Leong-Imagn Images

The player who had Alabama's longest rush of the 2025 season is set to be back for another go-around with the Crimson Tide in the fall. Running back AK Dear, a rising sophomore, will be returning to the program, per a Thursday announcement from Alabama's NIL collective.

"RB AK Dear will be continuing with Alabama for the 2026 season," the statement read. "Speed is returning to the Alabama lineup with AK Dear back for his sophomore season."

Dear's 56-yard touchdown scamper late in a win against ULM in September stood as the longest run by an Alabama tailback all season, even though it only occurred in the second contest of the regular season. He took 19 carries for 140 yards across five games this past season.

A former four-star prospect from Quitman, Miss., Dear's most extended action came opposite Eastern Illinois on Nov. 22. He was given nine carries in that matchup (prior to that game, he had seven total on the season) and averaged five yards per carry with two scores. He recorded 57 all-purpose yards that afternoon, accompanying his stats on the ground with two catches for 12 yards.

He went on to appear in two more games after that, the Iron Bowl and the SEC Championship Game. He had 13 more individual rushing yards against Georgia last month than Alabama finished with as a team; in three attempts, Dear managed 10 yards, and the Crimson Tide finished the day with a rushing output that was in the red by three yards.

There will be changes in Alabama's running back room next season, with Jam Miller and Dre Washington out of eligibility and Richard Young departing via the transfer portal. NC State transfer Hollywood Smothers was once committed to join the team but flipped to Texas over the weekend.

That means Dear, Kevin Riley and Daniel Hill are the only three returners from the 2025 running back corps, which never truly established itself as a consistently potent part of the offense. Riley and Hill received the lion's share of reps when Miller found himself on the sidelines due to various injuries.

The game against the Warhawks was Dear's best by total yardage. He ran five times for 76 yards, with the majority of that production serving as a direct result of the aforementioned long touchdown. Dear also had multiple carries against Wisconsin (two for nine yards) and one Iron Bowl catch for six yards.