CM's Henry Opts for Track at Northeastern

Donovan Henry’s announcement Wednesday morning is sure to be a pleasant surprise for Northeastern University track and field coach Sherman Hart

Next season Hart will have one of the fastest recruits in the state on his team.

Henry, a Sharon native, announced during National Signing Day at that he would attend Northeastern for track and field in the fall. It was a last minute change from his original plans to play football at Boston College.

“BC’s a great school and all, but I decided it was a good fit for me to run track,” he said.

“I’ve been thinking about it and as indoor track has progressed, I came to realize that I love football, but track – I have a really good chance to reach my potential there.”

Henry’s “potential” happens to be higher than just about any runner in the state. The 5-11 185-pound sprinter has placed near tops in the state during just about every event he has participated in this winter.

Henry has placed No. 1 in the state and No. 9 in the nation in the B-300 at the MSTCA Elite Invitational this winter with a time of 34.76. He also placed first in the state and No. 50 in the nation in the B-400 at the Dartmouth Relays in January with a time of 50.16. Most recently, Henry placed No. 3 in the state in the B-55 at the Tri County League Meet last week with a time of 6.58.

“I run everything from the 400-meter and down,” he said. “In college I’ll be running the 400s, 200s, and relays, so it should be great.”

Henry didn’t choose Northeastern just for its Division I track and field program, though. The CM senior was interested in the college’s academic program, particularly the five-year co-op program offered.

“The school, I was really interested in the cooperative education program,” he said. “That’s a good part of Northeastern and getting real-world experience. That’s something I wanted out of college, and I was able to get that out of Northeastern.”

While he made the switch to track at the last minute, Henry still celebrated his decision with fellow football teammates who will be playing at a Division I schools. , who will play football at the University of Massachusetts, joined him at the ceremony.

Leaving his teammates behind next year will be difficult, Henry said.

“We’ve grown so close over the last four years,” he said. “It’s going to be really sad to leave everyone, but it’s going to be great to move on and see what I can do in the future.”

Moving forward, he knows he will have at least two people behind him.

“My mom and my dad are here,” he said. “They’ve helped me an awful lot in this process so I’m just thankful for them.”