All of a sudden, the surprising West Virginia Mountaineers are fielding an intimidating defense. That unit received a big boost on Saturday against the Oklahoma State Cowboys from freshman safety Dravon Henry, who is the SB Nation Impact Freshman of Week 9 for his two-interception performance.
West Virginia’s Dravon Henry breaks out with 2 interceptions vs. OSU
Two interceptions with one returned for a touchdown is good enough to earn impact performer status.
Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports
Not only was Henry the biggest standout among his peers over the weekend, but his effort was strong enough to earn recognition as the CFPA National Defensive Back of the Week after piling up three tackles and those two interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown.
The performance came the day after Henry celebrated his 19th birthday and may have represented a breakout effort for the true freshman from the Pittsburgh suburbs who has improved over the last several weeks.
Henry’s first interception came in the first quarter as the West Virginia defense was trying to hold Oklahoma State out of the end zone to maintain a 14-0 lead.
By the fourth quarter, there was still hope for the Pokes as the Mountaineers clung to a 20-10 lead and Oklahoma State picked up a first down to move the ball out to its own 38-yard line.
But Henry was in the right spot when Oklahoma State quarterback Daxx Garman sailed the ball over the head of his intended receiver and was too fast for any of the Cowboys to catch him as he raced down the sideline.
The score gave the Mountaineers a 27-10 lead with 4:44 left in the game, essentially putting it out of reach.
The early impact for Henry has come amid big expectations for his career -- the Mountaineers haven’t recruited especially well since head coach Dana Holgorsen arrived in Morgantown, but the Pennsylvania product was one of the most important commits in the last several years for West Virginia.
Considered as a consensus four-star prospect, Henry was the highest-rated signee in the 2014 Mountaineer recruiting class that ranked No. 38 nationally. Classified as an athlete because of his ability to play cornerback, safety and running back, he was the No. 11 player overall in that category and the top player in his state, rankings that were good enough to slot him at No. 143 nationally in the 247Sports Composite rankings.
He was a two-way player in high school, gaining more than 5,300 rushing yards and scoring 46 touchdowns during his four-year variety career. As a junior, he also managed to record nine interceptions before returning two interceptions for touchdowns his senior season.
Henry drew national interest for his services, as he held offers from Arkansas, Baylor, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio State, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, UCLA and Wisconsin, among others.
When he announced his commitment in December of 2013, Henry chose West Virginia over Backyard Brawl rival Pittsburgh in a major recruiting win for Holgorsen and his staff.
And now it hasn’t taken long for him to secure a spot in the Mountaineer secondary and start making plays.
Previously
- Week 1: Texas A&M safety Armani Watts
- Week 2: Arizona running back Nick Wilson
- Week 3: Duke running back Shaun Wilson
- Week 4: Oklahoma running back Samaje Perine
- Week 5: Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson
- Week 6: Florida cornerback Jalen Tabor
- Week 7: LSU running back Leonard Fournette
- Week 8: Georgia running back Nick Chubb
