Former Cowboy Josh Henson facing his old squad
STILLWATER — When he got promoted from analyst to offensive line coach before the 2017 season, it looked like Josh Henson was in for a long run at Oklahoma State.
But after two seasons, a better salary and bigger openings on the path to career advancement lured him to Texas A&M.
He hasn't been gone for a full year, and he's already getting the chance to coach against his old school when A&M plays No. 25 OSU at 5:45 p.m. Friday in the Texas Bowl at NRG Stadium in Houston.
Henson played on the offensive line at OSU in the Bob Simmons years, and began his college coaching career with the Cowboys under Les Miles.
He followed Miles to LSU, then worked his way to the offensive coordinator job at Missouri, before returning to OSU as an analyst in 2016 and the offensive line coach a year later.
He has either coached or recruited every offensive lineman in the Texas Bowl.
“It'll be nice to see him again,” OSU junior right tackle Teven Jenkins said. “He's a great coach. I really liked him. He knows football. You gotta support your family wherever you go.”
Henson, of course, has a strong familiarity with the OSU offense, and the skills of the linemen. But Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher warns that too much in formation can be a bad thing.
“Guys change and
players play and people can do that against you, too,” Fisher said. “As far as Josh knowing the players and the people and all those things, I think it will be another good asset to have, but you've got to be careful relying on that too much.”
OSU has faced former quarterback John Kolar earlier this season, after he transferred to Iowa State, and the Cowboys made adjustments. With a month to prepare, they're likely to have some other changes to guard against what Henson could be sharing with the A&M defensive staff.
Henson doesn't get to speak to the media, per Texas A&M's policy with assistant coaches, but Fisher has been pleased with what his first-year offensive line coach has done.
“I've coached on staffs with him,” Fisher said of Henson. “He coached tight ends, worked with line, when I was at LSU. He was a lineman himself, did a tremendous job at Oklahoma State. They have won a lot of games and he's been a big part of that.
"He was a coordinator at Missouri and they went to two conference championships. He's a really knowledgeable guy, not only for a line guy, but to understand the big picture of what's going on.”