Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com MARCH 2020 39 2020 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE way I could get out of things. My mom really helped throughout my life. "In my opinion, you have to go through certain horrible things to get the best things in life. It's sad to say, but maybe without my grandma passing, I prob- ably wouldn't be playing football today. That's truly what I think." H e n d e r s o n a n d h i s mother rallied together to get through the tough time of his grandmother's death. "After my grandma passed, the only person I had was my mom, and I know she broke her back in every way possible just to provide for me," Henderson said. "Every time I'm working, I know I have to go hard for her because she's been going hard for me." On the football field, Henderson has great length as a 6-3, 180-pound athlete and he produced on both sides of the ball. He is projected to play in the secondary for Notre Dame but could play on offense if need be. He posted 1,161 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns during his final two years of high school ball. Henderson describes himself as a "team player." "I try to make plays any way I can, whether it's offense or defense," he said. "I get frustrated with myself a lot rather than blame it on someone else. I'll always take into consider- ation that some things are your fault. I'll put my hand out before some- body else." The Tulsa, Okla., native is a strong student and has great academic en- deavors. "I was thinking about engineer- ing, but I didn't know what branch I wanted to get into," Henderson said about a major at Notre Dame. "Recently, I've been looking into bio- med and a minor in kinesiology." At some point, whether it's af- ter his college football career or a potential stint in the NFL, football will end, and Hender- son will be happy with a degree from Notre Dame. "That's what really will take you far in life," he explained. "I grew up with my mom on my back about my grades and stuff. It's built into me. I take academics just as seriously as I take football." His biggest motivation — on or off the field — is to make his mother proud. "My mom has said before that she does everything, she does for me, so I'm just trying to make the best out of everything I have and try to make her happy," Henderson said. "As long as she's fine, I'm good." ✦ Henderson posted 1,161 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns during his final two years of high school, but is projected to play cornerback for the Fighting Irish. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM RAMON HENDERSON CORNERBACK 6-3 · 180 LIBERTY BAKERSFIELD RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE ✪ ✪ ✪ — — 60 ESPN ✪ ✪ ✪ — 73^ 83 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 280 13^ 25 ^ Ranked as an athlete STATISTICS • Caught 29 passes for 581 yards and seven touchdowns as a senior. On defense, he totaled 12 stops, one tackle for loss and nine passes broken up. • As a junior, he hauled in 32 passes for 580 yards and nine scores, had a kick return touch- down, and compiled 34 tackles, four passes bro- ken up, one interception and one fumble recov- ery that he returned for a score. NOTABLE • Born on Dec. 23, 2001 • Local Fox 58 Hometown Sports 2019 Athlete of the Year • Also runs track for Liberty High • Clocked at 10.83 seconds in the 100 meters • Born in Tulsa, Okla., but moved to Bakersfield, Calif., before his first birthday ALL-STAR GAMES • Did not participate in a postseason all-star game RECRUITMENT • Committed to Notre Dame on Dec. 18, 2019 and enrolled at Notre Dame in January 2020. • Gave the coaching staff a silent commitment in November, but didn't reveal his choice until the early signing period in December. • Even with his silent pledge, the Irish staff still worked on him hard, because UCLA and Utah con- tinued to push for him. • Was Notre Dame's biggest defensive back tar- get after the Irish offered him in the spring of 2019. • Officially visited Notre Dame for the Virginia game Sept. 28. • Also took official visits to Oklahoma and Utah. 2020 PROJECTION • Henderson needs a lot of work in his technique and knowledge of the cornerback position, but if he can pick it up quickly this spring as an early en- rollee, he can play as a freshman. We do, however, expect him to redshirt. THEY SAID IT Rivals West Coast recruiting analyst Adam Gor- ney: "He's a wiry, athletic dual guy. He can be a wide receiver, safety or corner. He can kind of play anywhere you need him to be." BGI football analyst Vince DeDario: "He is a big, strong athlete who isn't afraid of contact. He has got long legs, so on film he doesn't necessar- ily look like he is all that fast. But with his long strides, he just runs by everyone. He is able to use his speed to his advantage. "Most of his film is on offense and running fly patterns past guys, but one thing you're able to see — and we know that Notre Dame is recruit- ing him as a defensive back — his ball skills are excellent. He is able to high point the ball and use his strong hands to bring it down, even when he's being challenged by the defender." "I love the coaching staff. I love people at the school who are outside of sports. I see me developing there not only as a football player, but [also] as a man. There are some good people there and can help me out in a significant way." HENDERSON ON NOTRE DAME