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Senior Highlights: Alabama running back commit Javari Barnett

AB1by: Andrew Bone10/28/25AndrewJBone
Javari Barnett
Alabama RBs coach Robert Gillespie with new commit Javari Barnett

Javari Barnett, three-star running back from Tampa (Fla.) Bay Tech, flipped his commitment from Illinois to Alabama after his official visit with the Crimson Tide on June 23. Barnett missed most of his junior season with an injury, but hopes to finish out the final year with a strong run in the state playoffs.

Barnett tore his meniscus after playing in three games in 2024. He had 30 carries for 249 yards and four touchdowns prior to the injury. The 6-foot, 215-pound back has 55 carries for 371 yards (6.7 per carry) with three touchdowns this season. Tampa Tech (7-3, 3-0 district) plays its final regular-season game at Robinson (1-9) on Friday night.

On flipping from Illinois to Alabama:

“There was just no question about it, Alabama was the best choice for me,” Barnett told Rivals. “Academically, socially, everything was just a perfect fit for me. The visit sealed the deal. I was thinking about it a little bit, but when I went up there everything was everything and I made the decision. 

Coach says: “He’s a guy that fits the mold of what Alabama backs have been traditionally in the past 10-15 years. Just having that elite size, speed, quickness combination,” Roberts told BOL. “He fits that mold perfectly, man, of being a big back over 200 pounds and six feet tall. Has that suddenness and burst to get downhill and be a playmaker, has the home run-type top-end speed to go along with vision and patience. He has the size and strength to run through arm tackles and really wear down the defense.”- Tampa Bay Tech HC Jayson Roberts (Continue reading)

Barnett is one of 23 commitments and two running backs for the Crimson Tide in the ’26 class. He is joined by Ezavier Crowell, No. 2 RB from Jackson High School in Alabama (senior highlights have not been posted yet). Barnett is expected to enroll in the spring.

On playing being in the same class with Crowell:

“Me and Ezavier met when I went to Florida on a visit,” Barnett told Rivals prior to the start of the season. “We started talking from there, even though he doesn’t talk much. Ever since then, we’re locked in. We text often and stuff like that. I would say we’re similar. I’m taller than him but we’re both built for the next level.”

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