For UCLA, the Young Get Younger : Freshman Darryl Henley Will Start in Bruin Secondary

UCLA’s young secondary got a little younger last week when Dennis Price, a sophomore cornerback, dislocated his shoulder.

In the ensuing shuffling of personnel, freshman Darryl Henley became a starter.

He says he’s ready to go, and the coaches are backing him all the way--but he’s not exactly the kind of football player who will strike fear in the hearts of Bruin rivals just by stepping off the bus.

At 5 feet 9 inches--and don’t forget that quarter inch--and 163 pounds, he’s likely to be mistaken for somebody’s little brother. As a matter of fact, he is somebody’s little brother. He’s Stanford tailback Thomas Henley’s little brother.

And he’s still just 18 years old, even after redshirting last year.

When he reported at UCLA last fall, fresh from a stellar senior year at Damien High School in La Verne as both a running back and defensive back, he was just 17 years old and, even lighter than he is now.

“I’ve added about 20 pounds and I’ve gotten a lot stronger,” Henley said. “Physically, I really wasn’t ready to play last year. Redshirting was in my best interest, but it’s hard to realize that at the time.

“When you’re used to playing, sitting out for 11 games can be a very humbling experience.”

Not too humbling, it seems. Darryl Henley may not be the biggest player on the field, but he doesn’t give up too much in the way of confidence.

He has a spring in his step, that competitive spark in his eye, and if you want to talk about his size, he’ll be glad to talk about his quickness.

At the start of practice this summer, Coach Terry Donahue said that Price would start at right cornerback and junior Chuckie Miller would start at left cornerback, “although he’s being pushed by a freshman, Darryl Henley, who thinks he’s ready now.”

Now that Henley has been named a starter for the Bruins’ opener against Brigham Young next Saturday at Provo, Utah, Tom Hayes, one of UCLA’s defensive coordinators and the coach of the defensive backs, cites the improvement the freshman has made: “Darryl came in here with a slight knee injury out of high school, so he had no leg strength and he didn’t run particularly well. From that, he has become one of the fastest defensive backs we have, one of the hardest workers on the field and in the weight room.

“He is excellent at one-on-one coverage.”

Henley will complete a secondary that includes junior Craig Rudledge at strong safety and sophomore James Washington at free safety.

It’s not unheard of for a freshman to make it in UCLA’s secondary. Besides such celebrated former stars as Kenny Easley, Washington started all 12 games last season and led the team in tackles.

Henley now lists Washington as one of the players it is a privilege to play with. And he admits he’s a little nervous about the opener, adding that he doesn’t expect to sleep too much the night before.

Even before Price was injured, however, Henley was expected to play against BYU, replacing Ron Pitts, who graduated, as the Bruins’ punt return man.

Hayes said: “He was a successful returner in high school and now he’s learning the tricks of the trade from us. He has a lot of shake. He has the potential to be a real fine returner. He just needs some seasoning.”

Henley is now able to smile knowingly when the subject is his progress. It’s easier to look back and see how far he had to go than it was to look forward and see it.

Henley said: “Last year about this time, my dad talked to Coach Donahue to check on my progress and Coach Donahue told him, ‘Darryl wants success, but he wants it now.’ My dad had been telling me for years that I needed to stop relying just on my God-given talent and start working the way Thomas does.

“Maybe redshirting last year was the best thing that ever happened to me.”

Henley’s father, Thomas, was a football coach at Duarte High School and at Pomona Pitzer. His younger brother, Eric, is a junior at Damien High School now and, according to Henley, “the best is yet to come.”

Henley was a good student in high school, carrying a 3.1 average on a 4-point scale. His brother, Thomas, was better, 3.8, and he says Eric is more like Thomas.

UCLA lost out to Stanford on Thomas, but Darryl chose UCLA over Stanford and Notre Dame, among others.

“I liked the winning tradition at UCLA,” Henley said. “UCLA was winning when I was being recruited, and I like winning.”

Bruin Notes The team elected captains Thursday, voting for guard Mike Hartmeier, guard Jim McCullough and split end Mike Sherrard for the offensive team, and outside linebacker Tony Phillips, inside linebacker Tommy Taylor and tackle Mark Walen for the defensive team. . . . UCLA was scheduled to end two-a-day sessions last Thursday, but ended them Wednesday instead, scrimmaging on Thursday afternoon.