Teammates, coaches remember former Sooners All-American and National Championship DB Zac Henderson

Henderson started as a true freshman on one of the best defenses in college football history

Oklahoma defensive back Zac Henderson chases Texas running back Earl Campbell / OU Athletics

Teammates and coaches on Tuesday recalled former Oklahoma All-American Zac Henderson as "a hell of a player" and "a great kid, too."

Henderson died Monday from what family called complications from sleep apnea. He was 64.

Henderson might be the most historically underrated Oklahoma football player from the Barry Switzer era — maybe even in school history.

“Zac had good speed,” Switzer told SI Sooners. “That’s why he could play. He was smart, he was big and he was fast.”

Henderson was a two-time All-American and a three-time All-Big Eight defensive back for Switzer’s Sooners from 1974-77. He earned consensus All-America honors in 1977, and in 1974 he started as a true freshman on one of the greatest defenses in the history of the game.

“We came in the same recruiting class, and we were fast friends from the start,” said former teammate and OU quarterback Dean Blevins. “Kind of really quiet, but man, when he got on the field, he was something else.”

Henderson arrived in ’74 from Burkburnett, Texas, like any college freshman — eager to explore adulthood, a little unsure about things, definitely on the skinny side.

“He was a smallish guy when he got there. In the 170s,” Blevins said. “But he could run like the wind.”

Henderson certainly didn’t play like a freshman. In fact, he was OU’s first freshman to start on defense after the NCAA reinstated freshman eligibility in 1972.

Noseguard Lee Roy Selmon, linebacker Rod Shoate and defensive end Dewey Selmon were unanimous All-Americans, and safety Randy Hughes earned All-American honors as well.

“Think about that,” Switzer said. “In ’74, we were pretty good. National champions, went 11-0. In ’73 we lost Durwood Keeton, really good safety for us out of Navarro, and we were looking for a safety in ’74 and he came in and just lit it up for us.”

As a freshman, Henderson stood toe-to-toe with college football royalty. He played alongside Hughes, who went on to start six seasons for the Dallas Cowboys.

“He was a wiry kid,” former OU defensive backs coach Bobby Proctor told SI Sooners. “Tall, slim kid, kinda loosey-goosey legs and arms.

“Don Jimmerson recruited him. Don told me, ‘I got a hell of a player coming in here.’ And he came in in practice and just did everything. He did everything you wanted, as far as the drills. I think after the first ballgame, we just moved him right in. He started the rest of the ballgames after that.

“He was a great kid, too.”

Zac Henderson in 1974 :: The Oklahoman/Oklahoma Historical Society

Hughes was a senior in ’74 who had offseason knee surgery and was practicing during the preseason but with limited contact.

“I was around him a lot when he actually got to the playing field. I tried to help him as much as I could, obviously,” Hughes told SI Sooners.

“We safeties pretty much called the defense to our side of the field. So he had one side and I had the other. He’d ask me from time to time what to do. He was really a hard worker.”

Said Proctor, “I just got through talking to Randy Hughes, and he said, ‘Yeah, I used to cradle him all the time when he was in there,’ and I said, ‘Yeah, you did. You helped him a lot.’ “

To play for Oklahoma as a freshman was one thing. But to play for Proctor as a freshman required a little more.

“Bobby came in my junior year,” Hughes said. “He recruited me to go to Vanderbilt when I was in high school. … Bobby was tough as nails. You know Bobby, he’d get in your face. And if you weren’t tough, he’d make you tough before very long. That’s kind of what he did with Zac. Maybe not quite as tough, but he toughened him up really fast.”

Said Blevins, “To be able to step on the field with that team we had in ’74, I mean, that defense was spectacular, and to start as a true freshman was miraculous. So he was quite the player — and just a good ol’ Burkburnett boy.”

Henderson earned All-Big Eight honors in ’75 as the Selmons were joined on the All-American roster by defensive end Jimbo Elrod.

Zac Henderson  / OU Athletics

Then in ’76, Henderson earned his own All-American accolades, and in ’77, he followed that with consensus All-American honors and an award from New York’s Downtown Athletic Club as the national Defensive Back of the Year.

Henderson still ranks tied for fourth in school history with 15 interceptions, including seven his senior year. He still leads OU defensive backs in career tackles with 299 (Gana Joseph at 298, Roy Williams at 287 and Brandon Everage at 285 are next).

“Man, he roamed the field at free safety, and he could do everything,” Blevins said. “Could fly, could hit, was fearless, had great hands, had great instincts. And as a guy, just as rock solid as they come.

“And, he always had a sly grin on his face, like he knew something you didn’t.”

Proctor said he spoke Tuesday with former OU assistant Sherwood Taylor, who said Henderson’s sister told him the cause of death was complications from sleep apnea. Funeral arrangements are pending.

Those that knew Henderson best had been concerned about his physical and mental health.

“Sherwood called this morning,” Proctor said. “I told him I couldn’t sleep all night. He said, ‘Well, you can sleep better tonight.’ It eased my mind, but it doesn’t take away the hurt.

“It’s just a shame.”

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