| Malik Henry | |
| Position: | Quarterback |
| Birth Date: | 7 July 1998 |
| Birth Place: | Inglewood, California, U.S. |
| Height Ft: | 6 |
| Height In: | 2 |
| Weight Lbs: | 200 |
| High School: | Long Beach Polytechnic |
| Pastteams: | |
Malik Henry (born July 7, 1998) is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. Henry played college football at the University of Nevada and Independence Community College, where he is most recognized for playing on the Netflix documentary series Last Chance U.[1]
Henry was a consensus four-star recruit that was rated as one of the nation's Top 60 prospects by ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports. He had an outstanding performance in the Under Armour All-America Game in January (2016) where he completed 9-of-12 passes for 75 yards and two touchdowns while leading Team Highlight to a 27–0 victory. Henry played his sophomore and junior years at Oaks Christian high school before finishing his prep career at Long Beach Poly in the fall of 2015. He threw for 1,410 yards, 16 touchdowns and just one interception over seven games during his senior year. Henry was the No. 2 dual-threat quarterback in the nation, No. 1 player from California and No. 17 overall prospect by ESPN. He was rated the nation's No. 2 dual-threat signal-caller, No. 7 player in California and No. 34 overall recruit by Rivals. Henry was ranked the No. 4 pro-style quarterback, No. 8 player in California and No. 53 player overall by 247Sports. He also competed in Nike's Elite 11 quarterback camp in the summer of 2015, coached by former Super Bowl-winning quarterback Trent Dilfer.[2]
As a highly ranked, four-star prospect, Henry originally committed and enrolled at Florida State University under head coach Jimbo Fisher.[3] [4] However, he would be suspended for a violation of team rules and would later enter the transfer portal.[5] [6]
In January 2017, Henry announced he was transferring to Independence Community College, where he played two seasons and saw action in twelve games and completed 151-of-288 of his passes for 1620 yards and eleven touchdowns, with eleven interceptions.[7] The Netflix documentary series Last Chance U had continued its’ third and fourth season at Independence Community College, where Henry was premiered as one of the stars of the show.[8]
In December 2019, Henry walked on at the University of Nevada, where in three games he made two starts and threw for 593 yards with a touchdown, completing 53.8 percent of his passes.[9] Henry had a tremendous game against San Jose State where he threw for 352 yards including a 75-yard bomb for the Pack's longest play of the year. He also ran for seven yards on the season.
Henry began his professional career with the Frisco Fighters of Indoor Football League (IFL). He played one season, where he threw for 778 yards and 10 touchdowns in seven games.[10] [11]
Henry continued his career with the Jacksonville Sharks of the National Arena League (NAL). He split the season between the Jacksonville Sharks and the Carolina Cobras (NAL), appearing in 12 total games, passing for 1,836 yards and 38 touchdowns.[12]
In 2023, Henry's journey continued with the Carolina Cobras (NAL) where he led the league in passing yards (3,116), passing touchdowns (60) and had an NAL record 10 touchdown passes in game against the West Texas Warbirds last season. Henry led the Carolina Cobras (NAL) to the NAL title game, where they lost 54–45 to the Jacksonville Sharks.[13]
On January 26, 2024, Henry signed with the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL) under head coach Chris Jones (football coach). Prior to joining the Edmonton Elks, Henry inked a contract with the Albany Firebirds of the Arena Football League but overturned that opportunity in order to compete for a roster spot with the Elks.[14] He was released on June 3.[15]