Nick Saban and Derrick Henry Heisman Trophy
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At 31 years old, superstar NFL running back Derrick Henry is showing no signs of slowing down.
But Henry’s generational athletic ability shouldn’t come as a surprise. The 6-foot-3, 250-pound Baltimore Ravens star has been destroying opponents dating all the way back to high school, where he rushed for over 12,000 yards and 153 touchdowns.
Henry eventually decided to continue his career in college at Alabama, which at the time was just in the early years of its dynasty under legendary head coach Nick Saban.
Nick Saban Said He Was The Only Coach That Let Derrick Henry Play Running Back
As Saban told it on a recent episode of “The Pat McAfee Show,” Henry chose to play for him and the Crimson Tide because they’re the only program that recruited him at the running back position.
“The amazing thing about this, and I don’t wanna throw anybody under the bus here so I won’t mention any names, but you can go back and see who all was recruiting him. But nobody, except us, said ‘you could play running back.’ Can you believe that?” Saban told McAfee.
“The amazing thing is nobody except us said Derrick Henry could play RB..
I told him we’re recruiting you as a RB and you can do whatever you wanna do” ~ Coach Saban #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/6ybIOOV0Jv
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 12, 2025
No, Nick, I can’t believe it. Not only can I not believe it because it seems absurd, but I also cannot believe it because it’s plainly untrue, and there was immediate evidence to prove otherwise!
Prior to ending up at Alabama, Henry was committed to the University of Georgia….to play running back.
“I really like Coach Richt,” Henry told the Florida Times-Union after committing to the Bulldogs. “The Georgia coaches did a great job telling me how they would use me. They don’t have many running backs, so I feel I can go there and make an impact right away.”
Did teams tell Henry he was a linebacker or an edge rusher? Absolutely. And he probably would’ve been a superstar at those positions as well.
But there were other schools who recruited him as a running back, and it’s weird of Saban to create such an easily disprovable lie. Everyone knows how great Nick Saban is, they don’t need some sort of legendary story to confirm it.