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Penn State Football: 3 Things to Know About New RB Commit, Alvin Henderson
Penn State Football Penn State Nittany Lions Running Back Kaytron Allen ((Photo by Gregory Fisher/Icon Sportswire)

Penn State Football picked up a third running back commit in the Nittany Lions‘ 2025 class Thursday, adding four-star Alvin Henderson out of Alabama.

Henderson ranks as a top 100 recruit and the number ten running back in the nation according to 247Sports composite rankings.

3 Things to know about new Penn State Football RB Alvin Henderson

Henderson led the country in touchdowns as a junior in 2023

Henderson has had a very productive high school career, racking up over 7,200 yards and 139 touchdowns in three seasons.

However, although Henderson earned the Alabama Class 1A Back of the Year award for his sophomore campaign after a 47-touchdown season, he took his game to a new level in 2023, totaling over 3,500 yards and leading the nation in total touchdowns with 68.

Henderson’s 68 touchdowns last season are tied for the seventh most by any high school player in a season ever, according to MaxPreps.

Alvin Henderson is a three-sport athlete


Penn State Football, James Franklin Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)

In addition to football, Henderson plays basketball and baseball for Alabama’s Elba High School.

In a game in February, Henderson scored 37 points in an overtime win for Elba. After the game, Elba’s basketball coach Kelsey Prestwood gave a glowing review for Henderson, saying “he’s our best player and we know that” adding that “late in the game you want to get the ball in his hands.”

Football is Henderson’s best sport, as he holds at least 76 offers from programs around the country.

Henderson Joins Ja’Jaun Seider’s first three-running back class


Penn State Football Penn State running back coach Ja?Juan Seider catches a ball during warmups before facing West Virginia at Beaver Stadium September 2, 2023, in State College.

Penn State running back coach Ja’Juan Seider has pulled off some impressive recruiting wins during his tenure in Happy Valley.

Notably, Seider was able to secure the commitments of a number of impressive two running back classes, including Quinton Martin and Corey Smith in 2024, Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen in 2022, and Devyn Ford and Noah Cain in 2019 to name a few.

However, despite the success at getting elite running backs to commit to Penn State, Seider has never brought in three running backs in a class. Even with four-star Kiandrea Barker and three-star in-state Tiqwai Hayes committed, Henderson is too great of a talent for Seider and Penn State to pass up.

After never redshirting a running back in his career before 2023, Seider redshirted two last season. Pair that with two 2024 freshmen and three commits in 2025 and Seider will have his hands full with an elite but packed running back room.

Henderson still has room to grow and add muscle to his frame, but his production speaks for itself. Henderson is an elite recruit that Penn State was lucky to pry out of the south.

Thanks to Ja’Juan Seider, Penn State’s name has pull all over the country with elite running backs and Henderson should be set to join a long list of talented running backs in Happy Valley.

This article first appeared on Nittany Central and was syndicated with permission.

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