Strength coach Vic Viloria said Henderson established himself as one of the Ponies' leaders in the weightroom over the offseason (photo by Webmaster).

Jessie Henderson needs 15 kickoff returns and 266 kickoff return yards to set new SMU records in each category (photo by SMU athletics).

If ever there was a player made to play for new SMU special teams coach Frank Gansz, it's Jessie Henderson.

Everything Gansz does in special teams practice is fast. He barks his instructions fast. He gets his players in and out of their huddle fast. He expects his blockers to move fast when getting into position. He expects his coverage teams to get down the field fast.

If there’s one thing Jessie Henderson is, it’s fast — very fast. Not coincidentally, the Ponies’ senior kickoff return specialist said he greatly enjoys playing (or at least practicing, so far) for Gansz.

“I love working with him,” Henderson said of Gansz. “He demands that everything you do, you do it at a high tempo. Get on the field, finish your assignment … and do it at a high tempo.”

Of course, doing things at a high tempo has been Henderson’s modus operandi ever since he got to SMU. To be honest, his speed is what got Henderson to SMU in the first place.

A star running back at Paris (Texas) High School, Henderson arrived at SMU in 2004 amid questions if he was another player’s little brother. When the 5-foot-7 freshman stepped on the scale and watched it stop at “about 155” pounds, then-strength coach Chuck Faucette declared “you’ve got a lot of work to do.”

If they work at it, some players can put on considerable weight during a college career (see Zac Thomas, Justin Rogers, etc.) But to an 18-year-old with a small frame and blessed with electrifying speed, adding bulk can best be described as “a gradual process,” at best. Henderson ate and lifted weights and did what he was supposed to do in order to gain weight … and then ran it off. Now entering his fifth season, Henderson tips the scales at just 175 pounds.

But it’s not his size that has Henderson’s name in the SMU record book — it’s his speed. He ranks fourth in school history with 74 kickoff returns and is second in career kickoff return yards with 1,889. If he stays healthy, he should have little trouble breaking Jonas Rutledge’s career marks in each category. Henderson has recorded two of the top 10 single-game return yards totals in school history (179 in 2005 against Tulane and 147 last year at Memphis). His 857 return yards last year fell just 44 short of Jonas Rutledge’s single-season record. He is one of six players in SMU history to return a kickoff 100 yards for a score (in 2005 against Tulane), and is one of just four players — along with guys named Doak Walker, Arthur Whittington and Jerry LeVias — with two kickoff returns for touchdowns.

Henderson buys into RBs coach Wes Suan's theory that fewer carries doesn't mean less effectiveness for the SMU running game (photo by Travis Johnston).

“I didn’t know I was up there with those guys — that’s incredible,” Henderson said. “I really don’t pay attention to that stuff — stats and records. I just take pride in returning kickoffs, and doing it as well as I can.

“Those guys are great players —the greatest ever to play here. It’s a little weird to think of myself grouped with those guys. You’re talking about the best ever.”

The always-humble Henderson says he thinks he remains the fastest sprinters on a team that now includes burners like Aldrick Robinson, Bryan McCann and B.J. Lee. He also allows that he belongs in the conversation about the best kickoff returners in SMU history, although he doesn’t see himself at the top of the list. He doesn’t consider himself the best Pony returner ever. The senior who has his sights set on a season average of 30 yards per return says — begrudgingly — that history will handle the determination of his place in SMU lore.

“I think I am,” Henderson said when asked if he’s on the short list of the greatest return specialists in history. “But that’s really not up to me. I’m going to get out and bust my butt and run hard. That’s for someone else to decide.”

The finality that comes with his final season has brought about a change in Henderson. Strength and conditioning coach Vic Viloria said that last offseason (Viloria’s first at SMU), Henderson did his offseason conditioning work with his teammates. This year, Viloria names Henderson on the short list of the players who have been mainstays in the weight room. Viloria said the little guy from East Texas shows up early, works extremely hard and gets after his teammates who aren’t doing their part.

The new-found intensity, Henderson said, is a result of working with the Mustangs’ new staff.

“These guys are so great,” Henderson said. “How can you not work hard for them?”

Henderson shares the SMU record for kickoff return touchdowns with legends Arthur Whittington, Jerry LeVias and Doak Walker (photo by Travis Johnston).

Gansz is not the only coach whose philosophy Henderson has embraced. He also has bought into the theory espoused by running backs coach Wes Suan. The Ponies are entering a season in which they clearly plan to throw more than they run, but Henderson agrees with Suan that the offense should make him — and the rest of the SMU running backs — more effective than in years past.

“I like the offense,” Henderson said. “As much as we throw, teams have to play off the line more. We’re going to throw more, and they know it. They play back, and there’s more room in the box. We might not get as many carries, but they’ll be better carries.”

The effectiveness of the plays dictates the success of the offense, but the ideas behind what’s being taught on both special teams and the offense come from the new coaches Henderson said have changed the culture around the team.

“They treat us like men, you know?” he said. “If we mess up, a coach comes over and explains what we did wrong, but they don’t dwell on it. They tell us how it’s supposed to be done, pat us on the back and tell us we’ll get it right next time. They make you want to play for them.

“They make you want to win for them.”