Oh Henry

August 28, 2008 by Steve Hanway

Nebraska’s near #2 at right guard Ricky Henry never got a great deal of hype as a recruit. In part, there may be a tendency to discount in-state players as somehow being players that wouldn’t otherwise receive scholarship offers (even if Rivals puts three stars behind their names). It could also be that because there wasn’t a long list of suitors for Henry, people thought he wasn’t that great. Then again, when academic questions arise many schools look elsewhere and Henry failed to meet eligibility requirements out of high school.

But Henry was listed as a top ten prospect nationally at center in 2006 and this fall it became apparent why. The offensive line is arguably the deepest position on the team and in less than half of fall camp, he crept into the two-deep. The Huskers seem likely to redshirt him, but that would seem in part so that they might get two years of him as a starter versus using one with him as a reserve.

In the past, I’ve questioned the value of junior college transfers on the offensive line (as Henry ultimately became), because they have little time to learn a difficult position and might not be suited to the complexity of a Division I offense. The coaches clearly feel differently when it comes to Henry.

For better or worse, the player that Henry seems most reminiscent of is former Husker bad boy and current St. Louis Ram center Richie Incognito. Both are said to be nasty and physical and don’t make friends with their over-the-top practice habits. Assuming Henry can tow the line with regard to team rules, he could emerge at the kind of force that Incognito was. Incognito was honored as a “freshman All-American� and an All Big 12 player in his second year.

Henry appears likely to prove doubters wrong and show that some juco linemen are worth waiting for.

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