Eric Henderson is the type of person who likes to be where his feet are planted.
The Drake basketball head coach – officially introduced during a press conference on Monday – paid attention to the Bulldogs’ success from four-and-a-half hours away at South Dakota State.
But he said he didn’t consider leaving his position at the helm of the Jackrabbits’ program, not until the ideal job opened up at the ideal time.
The Coggon, Iowa, native – who described his home to Drake athletics director Brian Hardin as "five miles from pavement" – takes over in Des Moines after nine years in Brookings, including six seasons as head coach.
“I watched what was going on (with Drake basketball),” Henderson shared. “But it’s not really how I live my life like, ‘Hey, what’s next?’ … I’m going to plant both feet down and love every minute that I’m a Bulldog.”
Hardin said Henderson emerged as the front-runner almost immediately after Ben McCollum was hired at Iowa two weeks ago. McCollum led Drake to a 31-4 record before trading in his blue tie for a gold one on Monday, March 24, two days after the Bulldogs lost to Texas Tech in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Hardin spent the remainder of that Monday on the phone, setting up interviews with potential candidates. He and Henderson met at an Omaha hotel – a midway point for both parties – the next day.
Doing his due diligence, Hardin spoke with other coaches on Tuesday night, Wednesday and Thursday. Henderson stood out.
On Friday morning (March 28), Henderson met with university president Marty Martin. By midday, Hardin and Drake had extended an offer. Before 5 p.m., the Bulldogs announced their next head coach.
“Any successful organization … has to reinvent itself,” Hardin told the Des Moines Register. “You can’t just continue to operate the same way. I thought that he would act in a number of ways consistent with who we have been as a department, as a program.
“But he would have his own twist on things. I know it could work, because it has worked for him up to this point.”
Henderson’s first press conference – and his first week as head coach – showed why Hardin chose him.
Sitting with his fingertips pressed together, a slight smile remained on his face during Martin and Hardin’s introductions. He looked almost uncomfortable when Hardin ran down a list of Henderson’s accomplishments.
And when he talked about his time at South Dakota State or expressed his appreciation for his wife and five children, Henderson choked back the emotion.
Henderson’s teammates from high school (Maquoketa Valley) and college (Wayne State) sat in the audience. He’s been a relationship guy since his early days in Iowa, and it showed.
“It tells me that not only is he good at building relationships, he’s good at maintaining relationships,” Hardin said. “In today’s age, with college athletics, you need coaches who are transformational, not transactional, with their relationships.”
Henderson’s ability to foster relationships showed in his early roster-building moves. He secured commitments from New Mexico transfer Braden Appelhans and South Dakota State freshman Owen Larson.
Two South Dakota State incoming freshmen – Bryson Bahl and Griffen Goodbary – flipped their commitments to the Bulldogs. Goodbary’s relationship with Henderson proved strong enough for the two-time Gatorade Player ...
