Broken Records: TreVeyon Henderson will break Buckeye freshman rushing record

All this week, LGHL writers will be bring you articles with inspired by their favorite Ohio State records. Check out all of our “Broken Records” thoughts throughout the week HERE. Whether you disagree, let us know what you think in the comments below and on Twitter @Landgrant33.

This year’s Ohio State football team is going to be filled with young talent. From redshirt freshman quarterback C.J. Stroud, to five-star defensive ends Jack Sawyer and J.T. Tuimoloa, to No. 1 wide receiver in the class Emeka Egbuka, the Buckeyes are definitely reloading, not rebuilding. However, the player that I want to focus on today is freshman running back, TreVeyon Henderson. Since it is Broken Records Week here at Land-Grant Holy Land, I am going to predict that he will break J.K. Dobbins’ freshman rushing record of 1,403 yards. Before you freak out, please read the whole article first!

If you haven’t heard of Henderson yet (have you been living under a rock?), you definitely will this season. Let me give you the lowdown on him: he is a five-star prospect and the nation’s No. 1-ranked running back according to 247Sports Composite Rankings. For his high school career, he compiled over 4,000 rushing yards with 50 touchdowns, while leading his team to its second consecutive state championship win.

Oh, and did I mention he racked up those stats while playing only three seasons? Henderson didn’t play a senior season due to Virginia moving its fall sports season to the spring as a result of COVID-19 (he enrolled at OSU in January). So, you could say he made the most of his time there.

These numbers are absolutely wild to me, as I’m sure they are to you. The most shocking of them to me, is that he only became his team’s full time RB his junior season, and rushed for 2,424 yards and 45 touchdowns. FORTY-FIVE TOUCHDOWNS?! Henderson seriously has some wicked potential to be added to the long list of Buckeye running back greats.

Now that you know the background on Henderson, you might have a little more faith in my previous statement of him being a record-breaker. I think this season is the perfect scenario for it to happen. With Justin Fields gone, that leaves a new, young QB to start (presumably Stroud, but maybe Jack Miller or Kyle McCord — either way, all of OSU’s quarterback options basically have zero experience).

Stroud specifically has a cannon of an arm, and plays similar to Fields. Therefore, I bet the Bucks will utilize their run game like they did with Trey Sermon late in the 2020 campaign. Opposing defenses will likely be expecting a pass the majority of the time, so Henderson could be an elite weapon for the offense.

Another reason that I believe Henderson can eclipse Dobbins’ record of 1,403 yards is because Ohio State will be playing a few more games than the average team! Yes, they are a young team, but that doesn’t mean that OSU has a lack of talent. The Buckeyes still have Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson; a.k.a. two of the top receivers (if not THE top two receivers) in the nation.

As a result, I predict that Ohio State will be playing in the Big Ten Championship Game, the CFB Playoff Semifinal, and, dare I say, the Natty? At the very least, I think Henderson will have two extra games to rack up some yardage, in addition to the 12-game regular season.

One question you may be asking is, did you forget about Master Teague? No, my fellow Buckeye, I did not. I just think that Henderson is going to surpass him and earn the starting job, even if it isn’t in the season opener. Don’t get me wrong, I love Teague. He has been a solid contributor the last two seasons for OSU, but honestly, I think he has pretty much already shown us everything that he’s got.

Two seasons ago, he had a career high 789 yards, while last year he only posted 514 yards while splitting time with Sermon during the shortened season. Another factor is whether or not Teague can stay healthy, as he has suffered a couple of injuries during his time at OSU.

TreVeyon Henderson has already earned high praise from his coaches, and impressed all of Buckeye Nation during the Spring Game this past April. His style of play has been compared to Dobbins (not a bad thing!) — they both have tremendous vision, are quick and agile. Henderson also has great hands, as he did play some receiver in high school.

Former OSU RB coach, Tim Spencer said that former Buckeye great, and freshman phenom, Maurice Clarett was able to earn the starting job with his ability to understand pass blocking. If Henderson can lock that down, no question he will be breaking records and taking names — as a freshman.