“He told me to call if I needed advice, and he congratulated me on the awards that I’ve won”, said Henry, who also won the Maxwell Award as the nation’s top player and the Doak Walker Award as the top running back. Watson is the quarterback on the first team. “Everyone asks about [the high number of] carries and how I felt, but when you have teammates like those, it doesn’t matter how much it hurts”. Tim Tebow, the 2007 victor of the Heisman Trophy and a former Philadelphia Eagles hopeful, earlier stated his support for the Alabama running back. You made me into who I am today – hard work, dedication and just doing what I wanted to do.
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“Since I’ve been a kid it’s been a lifelong goal and a dream of mine and I’m just so thankful”, the 21-year-old said at the presentation.
(AP Photo/Julie Jacobson). Alabama’s Derrick Henry, center, answers questions for members of the media, Friday, Dec. 11, 2015, in NY.
Derrick Henry’s path from the tiny northeastern Florida town of Yulee to the bright lights of the Heisman Trophy ceremony in New York City is nothing short of remarkable. McCaffrey took down Barry Sanders’ record for all-purpose yards in a single season, while Henry broke Herschel Walker’s SEC rushing record.
Henry becomes the second player in Alabama Football history to win the Heisman Trophy.
While the SEC has dominated this award in recent years, no one has come so agonizingly close but ended up empty quite like Stanford.
“I haven’t really thought that far yet right now”, Henry says.
Alabama’s only other victor was Mark Ingram of the New Orleans Saints.
Alabama Crimson Tide running back Derrick Henry (2) celebrates his 2 yard touchdown run in the second quarter against the Florida Gators in the 2015 SEC Championship Game at the Georgia Dome.
And Henry knows exactly where he’s putting the hardware.
Henry was considered the favorite going in, though it didn’t make it any easier for him. Can you imagine what Alabama’s season would have looked like without Derrick Henry?
Henry, Watson and McCaffrey arrived Friday in NY from Atlanta, where they attended the ESPN awards show at the College Football Hall of Fame.
Alabama plays Michigan State in the playoff on December 31 in Dallas, Texas.
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“It’s a great building block for the future”, he said.
