TreVeyon Henderson thrilled with Ohio State competition: 'I definitely belong here'

Ohio State has a crowded running back room bloated with talent, but TreVeyon Henderson hardly minds. In fact, he sees the competition as a positive.

After all, he knows he belongs at Ohio State.

Although last year’s leading rusher, Trey Sermon, was selected in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers, junior Master Teague III, the second-leading rusher from 2020, is back and competing for first-team reps. Miyan Williams, who may not have seen the field much last year and had just 64 rushing yards on 10 attempts, is now a redshirt freshman, and figures to play a role in the offense. Four-star freshman Evan Pryor, one of the nation’s top-10 running back recruits according to all outlets, will also join them. So, what can Henderson, a five-star freshman, really expect in his first season?

“I always believe I belong here,” he said Wednesday. “I’m competing against the best players every day, so I love competing. I compete in everything, so I definitely belong here.”

The nation’s top-ranked running back recruit did not have a senior season in high school due to COVID-19. The Hopewell, Virginia native never received a chance to compete in 2020 due to COVID-19, which prompted Virginia to move its football season to the spring. Still, he amassed over 4,000 rushing yards and 50 touchdowns in three seasons.

In high school, he made every day count. And on Wednesday, he said he said he has the same approach at Ohio State — making sure to never waste an opportunity.

“It’s all about competing,” he repeated. “Stuff like that each and every day. You can’t take no days off. You can’t waste a day because [if you waste a day], that next running back, he’s not wasting a day. He’s trying to get better.”

Now, it’s merely a waiting game for Henderson, who continues to work toward Ohio State’s Sept. 2 season opener against Minnesota. He has set lofty goals for himself, both this season and beyond; only time will tell if Buckeyes’ head coach Ryan Day has those same expectations for Henderson in the immediate future.

It remains unclear where exactly Henderson stands on the depth chart.

“I’ve got a lot of expectations for myself,” he said with a smile. “I’ve got big expectations. I don’t want to put [all of them] out there, but I’ve got big expectations for myself.”