Pitt wide receiver Quadree Henderson slashes Virginia for 93-yard TD on return

Pittsburgh’s Quadree Henderson returns the ball 93 yards for a touchdown in a special teams return

Pittsburgh Panthers wide receiver Quadree Henderson lit up the Virginia Cavaliers special teams squad with an electrifying 93-yard touchdown return.

He showed tremendous vision and speed, cutting back twice, and making four defenders miss en route to another touchdown in a special year for him. The highlight of the play comes in two areas. First, he manages to escape a crowd of defenders around the 21-yard line and cuts back to find an open lane. He also has the vision to find another running lane around the Virginia 40, which left him with plenty of space to cruise in for the score.

This play should hardly come as a surprise, given the season that he is having. He is second in all purpose yards (1,046). He has 346 rushing yards, coupled with a 11.06 yard per carry average, which ranks second.

This is his second kickoff return for a touchdown this year. And shockingly enough, that one against Penn State was longer than this one, totaling 96 yards. In his breakout performance in last year’s Military Bowl, he returned the ball 100 yards for a touchdown.

Although Henderson is listed as a wide receiver, that is a misleading title given his contributions to the team. Through the season’s six games, he actually has more carries and returns than receptions.

Offensive coordinator Matt Canada recognizes the 5-8, 160 pounds Henderson’s versatile skill set and has tried to come up with new ways to utilize him in the offense. Canada has used him in a variety of jet sweeps which allow Henderson to use his speed and vision to torch defenses.

Henderson is quickly gaining a reputation as an explosive offensive weapon that should keep defenses nervous the remainder of the season.