Football, Lacrosse
Favorite athlete: Bryce Harper
Favorite team: Philadelphia Eagles
Favorite memory competing in sports: Winning the District 1 6A championship this past fall in football.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: I face-planted trying to block a punt against Neshaminy in my junior year.
Music on playlist: Rap/Rock
Future plans: Play lacrosse at Holy Family University and study secondary education in history.
Words to live by: “Go hard or go home”
One goal before turning 30: To graduate college
One thing people don’t know about me: I am ambidextrous.
By GORDON GLANTZ
Nothing binds fathers and sons like sports.
After an NFL draft that saw the sons of several former NFL players drafted – including Jeremiah Trotter, Jr., the son of former Eagles’ standout Jeremiah Trotter, Sr. – one can’t help but think of all the words of wisdom that did not fall on deaf ears.
For Central Bucks South senior John Henson, a standout in both lacrosse and football, his father’s advice of “go hard or go home” was always a guiding light.
“My dad has been telling me that since I was little,” said Henson. “It has always been, like, if you are going to quit, just go home. Keep trying. Always keep going as hard as you can and don’t give up.
“It has kind of stuck with me all the way through high school. For lacrosse, to just get on the field, I had to work my butt off to get that starting position in my sophomore year. I put the same kind of energy into football the following summer and did the same thing.”
There was a moment of adversity, around this time last year, when that was put the test. What seemed like a routine play against Council Rock North turned into a worst-case scenario.
“There was a guy who was trying to cut into the middle of the lane,” Henson recalled. “I threw him a shoulder to try and not to let him make a clear shot. I just felt my wrist break. It was one of those things where it was, like, ‘Oh no.’ I knew what was happening. I just felt it. It was devastating for me.”
This adversity could have meant turning his back on the team – i.e. going home after going hard – but that’s just not how he is made.
Already a team captain, Henson pledged to still live up to that role.
“Once I went down, the defense didn’t really have a leader out there to keep them going,” he said. “It was just kind of a struggle. I tried my best to help from the sideline.”
While head coach Mike Strayline believes the Titans would have made the playoffs with a healthy Henson on the field, he was impressed with the level of maturity he showed by remaining engaged with the process.
“As a defensive player, he was the leader of our defense last year,” he said. “Although we had a few seniors, John was really vocal and made sure we were doing the right things. Obviously, he broke his wrist and kind of helped us out from the sidelines.
“He understands his role as a leader and makes sure guys are doing the right things and not messing around. He’s just a really good kid.”
For Henson, who was in a cast for five weeks and needed another two weeks to get his strength back in time to hit the weight room for football season, there really was no choice.
It was all part of going hard or going home.
“I was picked to be the captain earlier in the year, back in February,” he explained. “It just stuck in my mind, you know, ‘I’m the captain. Why would I leave?’ I wanted to stay with my guys. I wanted to help them out. I still wanted to be that leader, even if I was on the sideline. I still wanted to represent what I was doing for the team.
“I know those guys still missed me a lot when I wasn’t on the field, so even being on the sidelines helped them out and gave them confidence.”
Strayline says it just speaks to Henson’s rare overall maturity level.
“It says a lot about his character,” said the coach. “A lot of kids get hurt and just kind of retreat and don’t get involved.
“For him to be as involved as he was, it says a lot for a kid like that. You don’t get many kids who have that personality.”
Ready to Rumble
There is naturally some lamenting about what would have been for the Titans last spring had Henson been on the field to anchor the defense.
“If we had John, we would have easily won 2-3 more games and made the playoffs and possibly even had a home game,” said Strayline. “Having him back this year has been great. Our record has been pretty good.”
After a strong season at outside linebacker for a football team that won the District One 6A title, Henson has resumed being that leader on the lacrosse field he was before.
“He came back strong and is playing really well for us right now,” said Strayline. “He is just the heart and soul of our defense right now, and we have a young defense. He leads them well.”
With the regular season winding down, the Bucks are ranked 14th in the latest District 1 3A power rankings, all but guaranteeing themselves a spot in the 24-team field. The squad boosted its confidence – not to mention its place in the league power structure and district rankings – with upset wins over both Souderton and Central Bucks West.
On the Gridiron
Henson thanked both his parents – Marcia and Brian – for getting him into sports early.
“I don’t know what I would do without sports,” he reflected.
He started playing youth football around second grade, for Lenape Valley and then Warrington, before entering middle school.
Still, Henson had to work his way up in coach Tom Hetrick’s program.
“I did not see the field my sophomore year,” said Henson. “I was just a sideline guy.”
Initially, as junior, Henson was playing a bit more off the bench but was a permanent starter by season’s end.
“He did great things for us, not only in his senior year, but in his junior year,” said Hetrick. “He came to us as a sophomore. I knew he was a lacrosse guy first, but he also loved playing football.
“In his junior year, he kind of worked his way into a starting role and never gave up the starting job. He just has those instincts that athletes have, and he’s a good enough athlete to be able to excel at two varsity sports at this level. That certainly says something about his abilities.”
Henson believes his success in lacrosse helped him with confidence for making the leap in football.
“It was my work ethic,” he said. “And it was really lacrosse that inspired me. I started as a sophomore for lacrosse. Going into that summer, I felt like I could make the football team and be a varsity player. I worked my butt off that August. The coaches saw it and were, like, ‘Wow, we need to get this guy on the field.’
“I had to wait a little bit. Injuries did happen. It was kind of, like, next man up. The coach was, like, ‘We need you to help us out.’ That was kind of it. I started later in the year my junior year.”
And being a part of a district championship team as a senior created a lifetime memory.
“That was really cool,” he said. “We really focused up in the summer and the spring. We told ourselves that we could do really well if we put our minds to it. The record shows. Man, it was just fun. It was a great ride to go on.”
Although he may not have been the guy making banner headlines, Henson was the type of dependable role player that winning teams need to claim championships.
“I knew, when he came to us, that football was sort of his secondary sport,” said Hetrick. “He would spend so much of his time in the offseason preparing for lacrosse. But, when it came time for football, he was still really good at it.”
Even though he is not the biggest guy for the position, Hetrick said Henson had the right demeanor to play outside linebacker.
“It’s the kind of position where you need some instincts,” said the coach. “There are some things you can do to coach kids at that position. After that, it just comes down to the instincts of kids who are just used to playing sports. You have to feel things and feel your way through things, and he just has that ability. He just has the instincts that good athletes have, and he was able to do some really good things for us.”
Hitting the Books
Henson also gives it his all in the classroom, sporting a 3.4 GPA, as he hits the books as hard as he does an opponent on the field.
“I’m a pretty solid student,” he said. “It has always been about getting good grades first before playing, and everybody knows that.”
Added Hetrick: “He’s a strong student. He just has a great work ethic. He has a great family. He is a very focused kid. He is very driven. He is a solid student and is a solid member of the student body. He is just good people.”
Henson has parlayed his academic efforts into an opportunity to play collegiate lacrosse at Holy Family.
“They are starting a new lacrosse program and I wanted to be there for the foundation of it,” said Henson. “This year was their first year. They did pretty well for a first-year program. Next year, we are going to do a lot better. They only had, like, 18 guys on their roster. Next year, it’s going to go to like 40-45.”
Geography also played a part in the decision. While he could have gone elsewhere, the Holy Family campus – located at the borderline of Northeast Philadelphia and Bensalem – was ideally located.
“It’s a 45-minute drive,” he said. “I kind of wanted to stay near home, just in case I got a little homesick or wasn’t doing too well. I could still get away for the weekends, go home and get away from the college life.”
Henson plans to major in education with the goal of being a history teacher at the high school level.
“My dad is a teacher, and that inspires me and gives me the idea of trying to help people,” he said. “I know it’s history, but I think it’s so fascinating, learning about past times and what changed the world.
“And, you can get your summers off, too.”
Two-way Street
While being named captain as a junior is a bid of an oddity, Henson earned his stripes with the lacrosse team.
“He is great kid who is very good with structure,” said Strayline. “He started out a sophomore with us and played the whole year at varsity. His junior year came around, he was one of those guys with the personality and leadership and he became a captain for us last year. He really showed it in the weight room and with getting the guys together, talking to them and being positive and keeping them on the right path.”
As for football, he is less vocal but leads by example.
“He’s a really hard worker and an outstanding person,” said Hetrick. “He’s the kind of kid you root for. We call him ‘Crash,’ because he seemingly has no fear – or the right amount of no fear to play the game of football. He is just a joy to have, and I’m proud of what he has accomplished. I’m excited for him to move on to college and further his lacrosse career.
“We are just really thankful that he included the football thing in his career.”
While both coaches can’t say enough good things about him, Henson feels the same way about both Strayline and Hetrick.
“I would like to thank both of my coaches for making me into the man I am today and guiding me so much with their knowledge of both lacrosse and football,” he said. “Both of those guys are very inspirational.”
