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50 greatest college football players this century, ranked

By Jeremy Morris

Tim Tebow, #15 quarterback of the Florida Gators (Photo by Matt Marriott/University of Florida/Collegiate Images/Getty Images)
Tim Tebow, #15 quarterback of the Florida Gators (Photo by Matt Marriott/University of Florida/Collegiate Images/Getty Images) /
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E.J. Henderson #42 of the University of Maryland Terrapins (Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images)
E.J. Henderson #42 of the University of Maryland Terrapins (Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images) /
  • Chuck Bednarik Award (2002)
  • Butkus Award (2002)
  • 2x Consensus All-American (2001, 2002)
  • ACC Player of the Year (2001)
  • 2x ACC Defensive Player of the Year (2001, 2002)
  • 2x First-team All-ACC (2001, 2001)

E.J. Henderson just squeaked by on the “of this century” prerequisite for this list. Although he started his career in 1999, he saw limited action as a freshman and wasn’t inserted into the starting lineup until his sophomore season in 2000.

As a junior in 2001, he led the conference with 150 tackles and 28 tackles for a loss, setting Maryland records in both categories. His 150 total tackles were 69 more than the second leading tackler for the Terps. As a senior in 2002, he again led the team in all defensive categories and won the Chuck Bednarik and Butkus Awards as well as being named a consensus All-American for the second time in as many seasons. He finished his stellar career by being named MVP of Maryland’s 30-3 Peach Bowl victory over Tennessee.

In his three seasons as a starter, Henderson set NCAA records for tackles per game (12.5), solo tackles in a season (135), and career solo tackles per game (8.8).

E.J. Henderson was inducted into the Maryland Hall of Fame in 2016 as the program’s only two-time consensus All-American.

Bonus Fact: Henderson was one of the fastest, sideline-to-sideline linebackers in the game. He recovered a fumble which he took back for a score in 2001 and as an underclassman even returned a handful of punts and kicks on special teams.

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