RUSTON – Justin Henderson has a penchant for breaking out in year two.
 
The redshirt junior running back redshirted during his first year at Coffeyville Community College. The next season he was a JuCo All-American. He rushed for 113 yards as a redshirt sophomore at Louisiana Tech – most of it coming against FCS Southern. This year he's nearing 1,000.
 
His secret? Staying patient.
 
"My first year here I was trying to rush it," Henderson said. "When I started getting comfortable with the playbook I started loosening up. I just prayed and asked God to take care of all the other stuff that's going on. And then I just went out and worked hard."
 
The hard work has paid off for the redshirt junior. He led Conference-USA with 15 rushing touchdowns this season and can be the 13^th Bulldog to rush for 1,000 yards in a season with just 33 yards in Thursday's Independence Bowl.
 
Not bad for a guy who came into the season as a third-string running back.
 
"He is exceeding every expectation I had from the beginning, but I'm not surprised at the production he's had since he worked so hard to get this opportunity he's had," said running backs coach Brock Hays. "Every time he gets a chance, he keeps fighting."
 
Henderson came to Louisiana Tech after a tumultuous start to his football career. The Lake Wales, Florida native committed to Cincinnati out of high school, but it didn't work out so he elected to go to prep school for a season. Virginia Tech showed interest, but a coaching change derailed that opportunity.
 
A prep school coach made calls to local junior and community colleges on Henderson's behalf, eventually getting him into Coffeyville. Henderson found himself redshirting as a freshman before taking on a starring role as a sophomore. Fans of Netflix's Last Chance U may remember Henderson as the back who ran for 170 yards and a touchdown against Independence Community College.
 
"I worked hard and it payed off," Henderson said of his time at the Kansas JuCo. "I didn't even know if I was going to play football again. And then my coach hit up a couple JuCos and I took advantage of it and I'm here now."
 
When it came time to make his four-year college decision, Henderson didn't hesitate.
 
"I chose Tech because of the brotherhood," he said. "When I took my official visit it felt like my family. They welcomed me in and when I was on my visit I already knew my decision. I chose Tech."
 
As a redshirt sophomore, Henderson had three years to play at Tech, but found himself behind Israel Tucker, Jaqwis Dancy, and Kam McKnight on the depth chart. He played sparingly, racking up most of his yardage in a blowout win over FCS Southern.
 
He resolved to work his way into the running back rotation over the summer. Henderson spent hours with Hays after his hiring in January. The two ran through the playbook ad nauseum, but Henderson still saw just 11 carries against Texas and Grambling State.
 
That changed in the following two games. The redshirt junior broke off a 75-yard scamper against Bowling Green – where he totaled 95 yards on 9 carries – to set up a breakout game against FIU.
 
Henderson entered that game as a starter as a result of injuries that nagged Dancy and kept Tucker out of the game altogether.
 
"I was really confident in him," Hays said. "In a group, you're only as strong as your weakest link, so every guy was getting prepared the same way. We were really confident that anyone could step up."
 
"I don't really concentrate on the starting thing," Henderson continued. "I just do my job and the rest takes care of itself. I knew in my mind that I was going to start, but I always approach the game like I'm fifth-string. I always have that mindset to push myself to the limit and not get comfortable being the starter."
 
Whatever he was doing, it worked. The redshirt junior solidified his starting spot with 141 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 43-31 win. Two weeks later, Henderson rushed for 137 yards and 3 more scores in a 69-28 trouncing of UMass. All three rushing touchdowns came in the first quarter, making him the first Tech running back since Kenneth Dixon to score three times in one quarter.
 
From there, the job was his. Henderson rushed for at least 50 yards and 2 touchdowns in each of his next three games, all while continuing to diversify his game. While most of his production in the first half of the season came between the tackles, Hays worked with Henderson on bouncing outside and catching the ball out of the backfield.
 
"We work on a lot of one-cut drills. For him, that wasn't something that he really was as good at coming in, but he's really worked on it so now he's understanding how the blocks happen and how the play developed," Hays noted. "It's paying off because he's the type of guy who can flourish once he understands how something works."
 
The work has continued into bowl practices where Henderson is preparing for the opportunity to go 3-0 against teams from his home state. The Lake Wales native admitted that playing Florida teams provides extra motivation and a matchup with Miami would be the perfect stage achieve his goal of rushing for 1,000 yards.
 
"I'm really excited for him," Bulldog head coach Skip Holtz said. "We say all the time that competition makes the entire program better and it's certainly a situation where Justin has made the entire room better because of his competitive nature and his drive to get better. I commend him for that. He wasn't given anything. He's had to earn it, and he's certainly rolled his sleeves up and competed for the opportunities he's gotten."
 
Thursday's Independence Bowl is also another chance – a final one in 2019 - to continue his stellar season and prepare for one more season with his teammates. The starting spot won't just be given to him in 2020, but Henderson wouldn't have it any other way.