Sanford Seminole High junior defensive back Demari Henderson and twin brother Ja’Cari Henderson have heard it often.
“Everybody is always saying, ‘Ahh, they ain’t nothing but basketball players,'” Demari said.
People can put that thinking to rest.
Seminole safety Demari and cornerback Ja’Cari were offered football scholarships by FSU Sunday night, their first Power 5 offers. UCF already had offered, and Penn State joined the group after FSU.
The twins are also two of the best basketball players in the nation in the Class of 2022. Both have basketball offers from Florida, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU and Troy.
The players were hampered by football injuries a year ago, slowing their recruitment a bit, but they’ve had plenty of time on the field this year. Seminole has rolled through the season undefeated and will face Apopka Friday in a Class 8A state semifinal game.
“Now that we’ve got a full season without being injured, it’s opened up everybody’s eyes and they can’t really say nothing else except, ‘Those boys are athletes,’ ” Demari said.
They’ve still missed games this season, but it hasn’t slowed the duo. They were offered Sunday by FSU linebackers coach/defensive run game coordinator Chris Marve.
“We were excited. Our first Power 5 offer; we were just happy we got something,” Demari said. “Everybody is finally [seeing] what we’ve got here in Sanford and it opens the door for everybody else on the team. That’s what I’m happy about. We’re getting looked at; Jimmy [Horn] is getting looked at. Everybody’s got a chance. Instead of just looking at us, they’re looking at them, too.”
Ja’Cari said the Power 5 offer legitimizes the twins’ abilities on the football field.
“It feels good and I’m just happy that we’re opening doors,” Ja’Cari said.
The two are often trying to one-up each other, no matter the competition.
“Oh yeah, like in a game, we’ll be saying to each other, ‘I bet I get a pick before you,’ ” Ja’Cari said. “It’s like competition on the field. If he gets a tackle, or a hard hit, I’m gonna go try to get one too. If he gets a pick-6, I gotta go get one too.”
It’s equally important for both brothers to get scholarship offers at the same time.
“We just feel blessed that both of us have the opportunity to get these offers,” Ja’Cari said. “Not many brothers get this opportunity.”
They’re already accustomed to the question about which sport they’ll play in college. Ever since they were in junior high, the twins have maintained their intention to play both sports at whatever college they choose to attend.
“We’re sticking with both,” Demari said. “Time will tell. We just wanna go play ball.”
“Go play ball for free,” Ja’Cari added.
They enjoy being identical twins and they like to kid around.
“We always play tricks on the coaches when we’re working out,” Demari said.
They’ve been part of a special run at Seminole High that has seen two consecutive undefeated regular seasons. The Seminoles (10-0) are aiming for their first state title game since 2008.
“It’s special because during quarantine, we didn’t know if we were going to play football or not,” Demari said. “When we finally got a chance to play, everybody was on the same page and everybody had the same mindset. We’re not losing; that’s our mindset.”
“We’ve been through so much adversity as a team that we ain’t got no choice but to go out there and get it out of the mud,” Ja’Cari said.
Much of the adversity stems from the team dealing with the death of Seminole senior and former football player Zi’Erric Wynn, who was killed in a car crash Sept. 22.
All the while, they continue to be focused. They’ve overcome the death of Wynn and the idea that they feel slighted because they are from Sanford.
“Everybody overlooked us because we’re from Sanford,” Ja’Cari said. “We aren’t from Orlando, we don’t have all the cameras on us or the social media, but we’re still gonna get it done.”
“We ain’t got no stars; we ain’t got no rankings. We just go out there and play Fridays,” Demari added.
Eventually they’ll both be playing on Saturdays, and if they have their way, their weekends will segue from the football field to the basketball court.
The twins’ father Britt Henderson enjoys seeing his sons rewarded.
“It shows how much hard work they’ve put in,” Britt said. “They’re super blessed as athletes to be able to play multiple sports and excel in both. … They still know they’ve got a long road to go and they’ve still gotta keep working hard to get better each day.”
This article first appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email Chris Hays at chays@orlandosentinel.com.
