Marquise Henderson was overcome with emotion shortly after Saturday’s Class 3A football championship game. The Belton-Honea Path star running back and Clemson signee was in tears and went to one knee with his right hand over his face as he and his teammates watched Oceanside Collegiate get its championship trophy. The Landsharks defeated BHP, 35-17, to win their second straight state championship.
The game marked the end of Henderson’s storied career at BHP. “I tried to do whatever to get my team the win,” Henderson said. “But like I just said, everything doesn’t always go your way. You just have to take it on the chin and be ready for what’s next.” Henderson was trying to become the second Clemson signee to win a state championship this weekend. Defensive end Amare Adams and his South Florence teammates defeated Westside, 42-41, on Friday for the Class 4A championship. Henderson did all he could to help the Bears try to win their first championship since 2004. He rarely came off the field, playing offense and, at times, defensive back. His role changed near the end of the second quarter after starting quarterback Noah Thomas went down with a shoulder injury.
In the second half, Henderson took over as a Wildcat quarterback, taking the direct snap from the shotgun. He carried it 24 times in the second half and finished with a career-high 42 in the game for 188 yards and a touchdown. His previous career high in carries was 32 against Powdersville in the third round of the playoffs. Henderson carried 12 of BHP’s 14 plays on its scoring drive in the third quarter, capped off by Justin Lathon’s TD run to cut OC’s lead to 21-14. The Bears got within 21-17 late in the third quarter before the Landsharks answered with a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns. “Noah is a big key to our football team but Noah going down wasn’t going to stop us from winning the football game,” Henderson said. “We went into the locker room at halftime and just said keep pushing. We were going to do it for Noah but we didn’t get the outcome we wanted. Congrats to Oceanside.”
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