The Marquise Henderson saga takes a strange turn with Liberty

Clemson receiver Marquise Henderson (3) during the Clemson Club football National Signing Day wrap up presented by Clemson Seneca Chick-Fil-A at the Poe Indoor Practice Facility at Clemson University in Clemson, S.C. Feb 5, 2025.
Clemson receiver Marquise Henderson (3) during the Clemson Club football National Signing Day wrap up presented by Clemson Seneca Chick-Fil-A at the Poe Indoor Practice Facility at Clemson University in Clemson, S.C. Feb 5, 2025. | Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

When Dabo Swinney abruptly dismissed Marquise Henderson from Clemson earlier this offseason, fans were left in shock as a promising freshman would no longer be part of the roster.

Henderson was a talented recruit who had been committed for a long time and even went through spring ball with the Tigers as an early enrollee, but an incident that has since been leaked resulted in his dismissal and subsequent entrance into the transfer portal.

Days after hitting the portal, he committed to Liberty.

That was that, right? Everyone assumed the Henderson saga was over, but a report surfaced on Monday that he wouldn't be joining the Liberty roster for the upcoming season.

On Thursday, Liberty released a statement, confirming that Henderson was recruited by the Flames but he was never on the roster nor did he take part in any summer workouts.

To me, this sounds like Liberty heard why Henderson was dismissed by Swinney, and they had second thoughts about taking him. He reportedly threatened teammates, which was an immediate no-go for Dabo and the Tigers as they let him go to preserve that family-like culture.

Henderson currently isn't on an FBS roster heading into the 2025 season and it shouldn't be long before he finds a home as a former four-star running back with plenty of potential.

It does seem like he has some growing up to do, and if he can prove he's changing his mindset and maturing as a person, more teams will be willing to take a chance on him. Unfortunately, it looks like Liberty won't be his next home after all.