MARYVILLE, Tenn. - A perfect story: all anyone wants is a straight path with no obstacles, no trials, and no setbacks. The game of football is similar to life: the ball is snapped, things happen, and someone falls. The key thing to observe, however, is whoever goes down gets back up – there's something to be said about that.
For
Grant Henderson, his story has not been perfect; instead, it's been one of triumph over all odds.
Everything was going right for the defensive back when he first arrived at Maryville College.
After two seasons of consistent improvement, which included earning a USA South Defensive Rookie of the Week award and making 23 tackles in his first year, he followed that up with 41 tackles—which was tied for third on the team his sophomore season—and led the squad with 30 solo stops, ranking third in the conference for pass breakups.
Things were trending up for Henderson: consistent improvement, assimilating into the program, and learning what it meant to be a Scot.
In a span of seconds, his junior season was stripped from him.
In his first practice of junior year at fall camp, Henderson tore his ACL in a non-contact injury, seemingly out of nowhere.
"I went back home for the summer. I didn't really know how I was gonna pay for school to come back that following semester, so I just put my trust in God and prayed every morning about it," Henderson said. "I just had to go keep working out, knowing that if I did get a chance to come back to Maryville College, I wouldn't take it for granted."
From that moment on, the Miami native worked tirelessly, training his body, preparing for his moment to return to the gridiron.
"It's really easy to quit and he's not, and he's wanted to stay, and he's worked hard in school to improve, and he's done great, I mean, he's done awesome," said Maryville head coach
Ben Fox. "He's a tough kid, I think that he's kept a really good energy, he's not gotten bitter, he's not gotten frustrated."
The four-year senior has been part of a transformation at Maryville, including unprecedented success and record-breaking seasons. Individually, the Miami native has overcome injury and major life events to become the engine of a stout Scot defense, along with an honor only a few players across all of college football can claim.
Henderson is a consensus All-American.
The 5-8, 165-pound defensive back last season earned an honor only 25 other Maryville players have received, and one of six in the previous two decades. On top of that, Henderson earned the title of the highest graded All-American in school history. The last time a Scot earned a First Team selection was when Steve Dockery was named to the 1967 Associated Press Little All-America Team.
"Sometimes it still feels surreal, it doesn't feel real to me, but to me it just feels like something that we already knew; that I probably was one of the best DBs in DIII football," said Henderson. "That's really what it means; it just solidified it. It gave me a title, but it's something that I already knew."
Finishing the season with First Team All-American honors from AP, Walter Camp, and AFCA, Henderson ranked third nationally with 15 pass breakups, fourth in passes defended, and tied for second at Maryville in a single season, along with 30 tackles and four interceptions.
It wasn't an individual effort, however, as the Scots' defense was second in the country in passing efficiency, fifth on first down defense, eighth in total defense, and 13th in passing yards allowed out of 240 DIII programs.
Defensively, Maryville ranked second in the country in passing efficiency, fifth in first down defense, eighth in total defense, 13th in passing yards allowed, 15th in rush defense, 20th in opponents' points per game, and 22nd in third-down conversion percentage.
To put it simply, the Scots could play defense.
From a young age, Henderson has been tested by elite-level competitors at Christopher Columbus, a school that boasts an impressive list of alumni – including Paul Mainieri, Alex Rodriguez, Mario Cristobal, and, more recently, five-star Duke Blue Devils Cameron and Cayden Boozer. Not to mention, two Florida Supreme Court Justices and a Pulitzer Prize winner.
"When their coach is like, 'Hey, we've got one that can play,' You kind of have to trust them," said Fox. "I think both the guys that he played with, two of the guys in the secondary when he was in high school, were Power Four guys. We watched his film, evaluated him, and thought, you know, he's got some skills and some movement."
Henderson was a junior on the Explorers team that brought home a football state championship for the first time in school history. His senior season, which was during the COVID-19 pandemic, was a perfect 9-0 with Henderson playing a majority of the snaps on the defensive side of the ball.
Everywhere the defensive back has gone, historic success has followed. During his time at Maryville, he has been part of the team that won the first playoff game in school history in its second-ever playoff appearance – all while compiling the most wins in a single season with nine.
"This is what the vision is for the program," Fox said. "They all signed up for that, so now, we've got them – and we tell them it's going to be hard. This is my expectation – for this to be the hardest small college program in the country."
Being selected as a team captain during fall camp, Henderson embodies the ideal player under Fox: selfless, driven, and gritty.
As a Health and Wellness Promotion major at Maryville, Henderson enjoys giving back to a community that's taken him in and supported him throughout his four years. Working as a care provider for Sevita Health—a rehabilitation service that supports people with life-changing injuries, illnesses, and medical and behavioral challenges —Henderson has found his way to help others off the football field.
"I go to people's homes who need some help with daily living activities, and I found it's pretty cool to be around that. You get to know them as people cause they are human beings just like us," Henderson said. "They just need a little help."
What Henderson doesn't mention, due to his selfless nature, are the hours. His position coach,
Brian Milan, recounts many times that Henderson has had to sacrifice sleep and free time to be the best football player and also work towards a potential future career.
"He works the night shift sometimes," Milan said. "This is a guy that, through camp, was going and working the night shift, like, I think he was going in at 11 and getting off at four or five in the morning – then coming into practice and being the best player on the defense in the secondary."
With five siblings and a loving family, Henderson has been pushed and molded into the player he is today, thanks to them. However, his family was met with a tragedy when his sister Rehana Henderson passed away unexpectedly in a car crash before Henderson's junior year, which also claimed the lives of his niece and nephew. His mother, Christine Henderson, provided a strong but comforting voice in dark times for her grieving family. Henderson's other three siblings turned towards their strong faith to continue on in honor of their sister.
Deciding through it all, football was his calling, and returning to Maryville, Henderson plays with his faith, family, and teammates all on his shoulders.
Now in his final season in Garnet, he enters his last game at Honaker Field, where he has been a part of 16 career victories with another impressive season. Already eclipsing his career high in tackles at 51, Henderson tallied a clutch interception in Week 7 versus Millsaps to keep the Scots in the game. With 10 pass breakups, Henderson needs only one more to, for the third time, enter the top-10 of breakups in a single season. Still, it's more than just what appears on the statsheet for the defensive back.
"The way we run our defense, he plays boundary corner, and our defense, you're going to be man-to-man a lot into the boundary," Milan said. "Well, most offenses put their best receiver into the boundary, so that means 95% of the game, he's lined up on the other team's best player, and he's got to shut down that side of the field."
Football is life for Henderson, the captain of the Scots; his words echo as a leader. In practice, it's not only just coaches providing instructions, but Henderson as well, who has earned a revered level of respect from other players at Maryville. When he speaks, others listen.
"This is my last season, so a legacy to me is the story that you make a story that you set in stone," Henderson said. "Maybe when I'm done with it, I can look back and be excited and be proud, but I have to focus on what's coming. I'm hoping coach Fox continues to change the program around and hopefully to go get us a national championship one day."
At the core of that shift in the program at Maryville College has been Henderson, the selfless—and forever—All-American.
