Coastal Carolina’s Henderson evaluating all options for next year

The 2016 Coastal Carolina football season is already set to look distinctly different without veteran quarterback Alex Ross leading the offense and the Chanticleers ineligible for postseason play as they begin a two-year transition to the FBS level.

On top of that, star running back De’Angelo Henderson has not decided yet if he is returning for his senior season with the Chants.

“I’m in the process of turning my name into the NFL [College] Advisory Committee to get a projection of where I would stand. When that comes back, I can give you an answer,” he said Wednesday.

Henderson, who graduated last spring and is presently working on a second undergraduate degree, might also have a chance to move to an FBS program with immediate eligibility as a graduate transfer, as former Eastern Washington quarterback and FCS standout Vernon Adams did last year in transferring to Oregon for his final season. That is, if such a program were to reach out to him with interest in the coming weeks.

Coastal Carolina offensive coordinator Dave Patenaude said that is something he and Henderson discussed in their year-end meeting.

“I think at this point he’s going to consider all of his options, and we’ll certainly support anything he wants to do,” Patenaude said. “Obviously we’d love to have him back, but he’s been a great player for us, he’s been a warrior for us and if he felt his best option was to do that, I think he’s got to put his toe in the water and find out where he really stands. We’ll be supportive of whatever he wants to do.”

Henderson, who is Coastal Carolina’s all-time leading rusher with 3,479 yards, was named the Big South Offensive Player of the Year this season while rushing for 1,346 yards, catching 40 passes for 403 yards and scoring 19 total touchdowns. He also finished 10th in the voting for the STATS FCS National Offensive Player of the Year award.

“I think he’s been such a good player and he’s been so devoted to everything we do, he is kind of Mr. Chanticleer in a lot of ways and embodies everything we’d want one of our student-athletes to be,” Patenaude said. “It came up here when we started our year-end meetings, and so it will be a wait and see deal and hopefully he can get the information he needs to make the best decision for him and his family.”

Coastal Carolina head coach Joe Moglia offered the same sentiments and said he will be involved in the process as a support to Henderson.

“I think we have the type of program, for somebody to leave, he’s got to really believe that’s a much better opportunity for him, and if he believes that, that’s what he should be doing. I would advise him to do that,” Moglia said of his general stance on such matters. “So with regards to ‘Hop,’ I think rather than do this in secret, we’re kind of doing this together. And if he’s got what he believes is truly the right opportunity I would help him and understand that and encourage him to go.

“Unless he gets that opportunity, this is where he should be. He’s a big part of what goes on at Coastal, and I truly believe that he loves being here and he’s had a great career here. It’s not over, but he needs to be able to explore what his options might be and what might be smart and what might not be smart. Whatever that is, that is.”

Since becoming a full-time starter last fall, Henderson has put up the second and third-best rushing seasons in program history while averaging 6.5 yards per carry throughout his career. Known to coaches, teammates and fans alike as “Hop,” he’s been a crowd favorite with his penchant for dazzling moves and big plays.

In Coastal Carolina’s season-ending 41-38 loss to The Citadel in the first round of the FCS playoffs Saturday, Henderson rushed for 101 yards (including a 44-yard touchdown) and caught three passes for 60 yards with a touchdown.

Overall, he has set an FCS record by scoring touchdowns in 26 straight games.

Speaking Wednesday, Henderson said he expected to hear back from the NFL College Advisory Committee by January at the latest and that a potential early exit is something he tried not to think about during the season.

“I mean it’s something that’s been brought up. I tried to ignore it during the season because I just wanted to focus on the season, but more so since the season ended, the question kind of arose again,” Henderson said. “It’s something I really can’t speak on because I really don’t know too much, I really didn’t look too much into it. I’m just coming off a loss, it’s not really something I really think about right now. ...

“I’ve had some people give me some positive talks about stuff like that, but a lot goes into play when you’re dealing with stuff like that. I’m just kind of focused on turning my name in, seeing where they’ve got me at and not trying to listen to the outsiders. Whatever they say, I’ll go off that whenever that comes back.”

In addressing his offseason thought process Wednesday, he didn’t speak about his feelings on possibly transferring to a bigger FBS school for his final season and in a follow-up text clarified that he has not heard from any FBS programs at this time while reiterating that he’ll wait for the NFL College Advisory Committee to get back to him before making any decisions.

But Patenaude said he sees the graduate transfer option as one a lot of players nationally are now considering after Adams’ high-profile move to Oregon last offseason.

“Now this is such a big trend because everybody is in summer school for so long and they have so many credits, and when Vernon did it everybody thought it was going to be a vogue thing to do,” he said. “For me it’s the next generation of how these things work, so I think once Vernon ended up doing that it kind of set the tone for a lot of different guys doing it. Not just at our level, you could look across the country and guys are doing it from 1As to 1As if they don’t think they’re going to play or think they have a better opportunity at other places. It’s something that’s out there and with social media and Twitter, everybody knows what everybody’s doing and thinks, ‘This could be me.’ It’s just the world we live in now.”

As for Henderson, he has already left an indelible mark on the Chanticleer program – regardless of what he chooses to do next season.

“The bottom line is I think we’ve always had the best interest of our players at heart – ‘What are your ultimate objectives as a player?’ – and I’m sure there may be schools that have some interest in some of our guys,” Moglia said. “Is that a good long-term decision for our guys to be able to make? Frankly, I would be very objective with the plusses and the minuses associated with that. ...

“But it’s got to be the right opportunity, he’s got to be a perfect fit. All of those things have to take place, and if that’s the case, I would do all I could to help. If that’s not the case, the individual would be best served here. But he’s got to make that decision.”

This story was originally published December 2, 2015 at 7:42 PM with the headline "Coastal Carolina’s Henderson evaluating all options for next year."