Frostproof's Harper Henson develops into top defender despite obstacles

It was the final defensive play of the game in a contest pitting the Frostproof Bulldogs and the George Jenkins Eagles on Oct. 7. A stunt play was called for defensive tackle Harper Henson as well as nose guard Curtis Capers.

“I was thinking to myself, they're on the goal line right now, so I’ve got to give everything I’ve got because this could be the end of the game right here — anything could happen,” Henson said.

George Jenkins snapped the ball. And Henson pulled to make the stunt and he speeded through the offensive line unblocked before lunging in shoulder-first with his 6-foot, 260-pound frame. Henson ended up sacking George Jenkins quarterback Sincere Burroughs in the end zone for a safety, which sealed the game, though the Frostproof offense needed to kneel the ball for the game clock officially to go out. The Bulldogs won 16-7 to go 5-1.

Henson would go on to help lead the defense to a current 10-2 record, advancing the program to the Class 2S regional finals for the first time in 14 years. The No. 18 Bulldogs will be playing No. 6 Bishop Verot Friday on the road.

The senior has been playing for a lot this year. Before the season started, his grandma, Linda Jones, died, and he has been diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome.

“It’s been pretty hard,” Henson said. “And I wanted to make her proud, and I wanted to do something big for her. Yeah, I just been playing really well in her name. … It’s amazing because that was a tough game for us and them. We were kind of on edge. But we pushed through as a team. And I think we became a closer brotherhood that night. It was just an amazing feeling overall.”

Henson has strived for that kind of football feeling at a very young age. In his single-digit years, his father, Kenneth Henson, got him into flag football. Kenneth is an avid football enthusiast, and he also played the game for Frostproof 2000-04.

A few years later, Henson played for the Frostproof Dogs as a lineman when he was in fifth grade at Frostproof Ben Hill Griffin Jr.  As Henson was growing up, he had problems with speaking, communicating, relaying how he felt, and he was scared around people, so Kenneth thought playing football would help his son get over some of his social problems, though Henson took therapy classes as well.

“I was anxious a lot to talk to people. Communicating was a problem back then, but I’ve gotten much better with that over the years, and I’ve proven that I can play, (and) I can communicate, and I can do everything that everybody else can do,” Henson said. “…I didn’t know what I was doing at first, but they kind of guided me through the game, and I just kind of fell in love with it — opened myself up to others.”

Football helped Henson become more social, but what also helped was his grandmother doing all she could to take care of the Frostproof native.

With the help of his grandmother, family members friends and coaches on the pee-wee football team, Henson at 13 would guide his team to a city league Super Bowl, finishing the season undefeated.

“I think that really help set me up high school ball,” Henson said.

It set up Henson for football, but he said the Frostproof Dog coaching staff preached developing as a fruitful human being as well.

“(They) motivated me to be better,” Henson said. “…We were encouraged to improve ourselves no matter what through the hard times. You just got to keep on pushing. My teammates, we can’t be separated. We love each other. We know we are going to have each other’s back.”

By the time he reached eighth grade at Frostproof High, he played on junior varsity. His freshman year he found opportunity due to an injury on the defensive line. The most memorable moment was a game vs. Fort Meade his freshman year when he was all over the field.

The Bulldogs only went 5-5 in 2019, but his sophomore and junior years Frostproof went 4-2 and 7-5 respectively.

This year, he was the district’s best defensive player, earning the District Defensive Player of the Year award.

And he attributes the award to Frostproof’s weightlifting program. Last year, the Bulldogs were the district runner-up.

Additionally, Henson can work out in his parents' backyard thanks to his father putting in a weightlifting set in the shed. Other arduous training usually follows.

“Me and him would just go out on weekends and go on the field and just run, do drills, and stuff like that would make me that much better. I think that’s a big part of me,” Henson said.

He wants to take this developed skill set and win this weekend. And, individually, his goal is to play at the Division I level.

"I’m still trying to keep the dream alive. I’m not losing hope,” Henson said.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Henson develops into top player despite odds