Receiver Henry ‘a hassle’ to defend

By Ryan Wood     Mar 30, 2007

Take a look at Marcus Henry, and try convincing yourself he isn’t the prototypical playmaker at wide receiver.

Kansas University’s senior wideout is a slender 6-foot-4, 200 pounds. He has long arms, a long stride and is big enough that any quarterback can’t help but find him when scouring the football field for targets.

Henry certainly fits the mold. So is it time, at long last, for him to be a star his senior year?

Maybe so. Teammates certainly see what the fuss could be about.

“He’s a hassle to work with,” said KU safety Darrell Stuckey, who occasionally goes against Henry in practice. “It’s his long frame. Every time you match up with him, you have to be aware of his reach and his range.

“He has a variety of routes he can do because he’s so athletic. And then he has great awareness of his body. He’s got a great vertical, great strength. And he’s not afraid to come across the middle. You don’t find too many tall people doing that.”

KU coach Mark Mangino singled out Henry when speaking of his wide receiver fleet earlier this week. Looking for matches during the ongoing spring season, receivers like Dexton Fields, Marcus Herford and Tertavian Ingram are being plugged here, switched to there and rearranged about everywhere until something clicks.

But Henry already fits. He’s projected to line up as the X-receiver when Kansas plays Central Michigan on Sept. 2, meaning he’ll be out wide on the weak side – where it’s just him and a cornerback duking it out.

“The only guy that’s a constant,” Mangino said of Henry. “His abilities fit that position to a T.

“X is a guy that can stretch the field. He’s a guy that, if you a roll a corner up to him, he should be able to get off the press coverage. Not neccesarily your fastest guy, but a big, rangy guy.”

Stuckey agreed that Henry could cause one-on-one fits if given the chance.

“He has good foot speed. That’s his biggest threat,” Stuckey said. “But he can break down and come back (toward the quarterback), too.”

Henry had 25 catches for 316 yards in 2006, recording three touchdowns. Still, he was the third option behind Fields and Brian Murph and didn’t record a touchdown reception in KU’s last nine games.

With Murph gone and a Jayhawk offense undergoing a makeover with new coordinator Ed Warinner, the team’s expectations of Henry could increase.

He’s bracing for it, and making sure his teammates on the unit are, too.

“Our role is pretty important,” Henry said. “Once we get our offense situated and everything, we’ve got to go out there and make plays and be in the right spot at the right time.”

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