TreVeyon Henderson on splitting time with Quinshon Judkins: 'I'm thankful that he's here'

Ohio State‘s running back room is expected to be one of the strongest in the country in 2024 thanks to the return of TreVeyon Henderson and arrival of Ole Miss transfer Quinshon Judkins.

Ahead of their season opener this weekend, Henderson opened up on splitting time with the All-American tailback and explained how playing alongside Judkins has elevated his game.

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“It’s been great, man. He’s a hard worker and trying to get better every single day,” Henderson said on Wednesday. “We push each other and so I’m thankful that he’s here and I’m playing alongside such a great player and person. … It’s been so good having coach [Carlos Locklyn] in the room and keeping us close together.

“Our bond — God has bonded us so closer together, man.”

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On paper, Judkins was a three-star recruit coming out of high school. When he committed to Ole Miss, he wasn’t expected to be the instant-impact performer he quickly became as Judkins went on to become the On3 National Offensive True Freshman of the Year and a first-team All-SEC selection after rushing for 1,567 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2022.

He finished with the second-best rushing season by a freshman in SEC history, trailing only Herschel Walker’s 1,616 yards at Georgia in 1980. Judkins followed that up by rushing for 1,158 yards and 15 touchdowns in 2023, while averaging 4.3 yards per carry. He also had 149 receiving yards and two scores.

Judkins was asked a similar question earlier in fall camp, where he said his job at Ohio State is to be the best teammate he can be and do whatever is asked of him.

“I just come in and just do my job,” he said.

For Henderson, he rushed for 926 yards and 11 touchdowns for Ohio State last season while splitting time with Chip Trayanum, who has since transferred to Kentucky.

Now they’re together at Ohio State in a new-look Big Ten Conference. Both running backs were each named on the preseason watch list for the 2024 Doak Walter Award and will be tasked with leading a Buckeyes program that finished 11-2 in 2023 after starting 11-0 last year.

The Buckeyes will show off their two-headed backfield during the season opener against Akron on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.