When host Ryan Clark mentioned Henry Ruggs III during Josh Jacobs’ appearance on this week’s “The Pivot Podcast,” the Green Bay Packers running back said he got goosebumps.

Jacobs and Ruggs were teammates for two seasons at Alabama, then two seasons again in the NFL with the Las Vegas Raiders before Ruggs’ career came to an abrupt end.

At 3:39 a.m. Nov. 2, 2021, in Las Vegas, a Corvette driven by Ruggs struck a Toyota RAV4 driven by Tina Tintor. The 23-year-old Las Vegas resident died in the wreck. Law-enforcement authorities said Ruggs’ Corvette was traveling at 156 mph 2.5 seconds before impact and 127 mph at the time of the collision.

In May 2023, Ruggs pleaded guilty to one count of driving under the influence of alcohol and/or controlled or prohibited substance resulting in death and one count of misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter after reaching a plea arrangement with the Clark County (Nevada) District Attorney’s Office.

In August 2023, Judge Jennifer Schwartz of the 8th Judicial Court chose to follow the plea agreement and sentenced Ruggs to from 36 to 120 months in prison for the first count and six months in prison for the second count.

“I still talk to Henry,” Jacobs said. “Henry still calls me. I still help him out and all of them type of things, his wife and his daughter, all of that. We still connected.

“I know his whole family. He’s from Alabama. He played with me at Bama. His momma and them taught me how to bowl. It’s real love on a deeper level when it comes to Ruggs.”

Ruggs is incarcerated at Casa Grande Transitional Housing in Las Vegas. According to Nevada Department of Corrections records, Ruggs’ earliest parole-eligibility date as Aug. 5, 2026.

“Keeping up with him and hearing him talk, it brings me spirits because he’s always positive,” Jacobs said. “He’s positive about everything. He’s training. They let him train and things like that, so I’m like, ‘When you come out, man, I don’t know if you will get a chance.’ I’ve been talking to some people for him. They’ve been saying a couple of teams’re willing to give him a chance. I’m like, ‘When you get that chance, man, you better not ever – don’t look back. And prove to yourself and prove to everybody that one decision don’t define you and who you are as a man.’”

Ruggs was on his way home from Top Golf when the fatal wreck occurred. Jacobs said he had planned to go, too, but decided he didn’t want to stay out that late.

“Then I’m getting woken up,” Jacobs said. “My lawyer’s calling me: ‘Tell Ruggs we got him. We’re going to represent him.’ I’m like, ‘What you talking about?’”

After he found out what happened, Jacobs said: “I instantly get mad. And then when I start finding out more about the story and about how they were supposed to be racing. I’m like, ‘Who was he with?’ But he was with his family. So I went to his house. I had some words with some people over there, and I’m just like, ‘Man, y’all got to understand, like, he the breadwinner of the family. He the one changing all of y’all’s lives — everybody.’

“And then not only that, he’s a good kid. He’s never been in trouble. I’ve never seen him do nothing crazy. He was just one of them guys that have a very, very unfortunate situation and something happened, a decision that he made.

“That’s what hurt me the most. Man, he isn’t somebody you would look at and be like, ‘Bro, you deserved this to happen to you.’”

At Lee High School (now renamed Julian High School) in Montgomery, Ruggs received All-State recognition in 2015 and 2016. As a senior, he earned the Alabama Sports Writers Association Class 7A Back of the Year Award.

A freshman on Alabama’s CFP national-championship team for the 2017 season, Ruggs had 98 receptions for 1,716 yards and 24 touchdowns in three seasons with the Crimson Tide.

After he caught 40 passes for 746 yards and seven touchdowns in 2019 for Alabama and ran the fastest 40-yard dash at 4.27 seconds at the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine, Ruggs joined the Raiders as the 12th selection of the 2020 NFL Draft.

At the time of his arrest, Ruggs had 50 receptions for 921 yards and four touchdowns in 20 games for Las Vegas. The Raiders released Ruggs on the same day the wreck occurred.

Jacobs also was a first-round pick of the Raiders the year before they selected Ruggs. Jacobs led the NFL in rushing yards in 2022 with 1,653. Last offseason, he left Las Vegas in free agency to sign with the Green Bay Packers. In 2024, Jacobs ran for 1,329 yards and 15 touchdowns on 301 carries and received this third Pro Bowl invitation.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.