Michigan State safety Xavier Henderson has been added to the Jim Thorpe Award preseason watch list. The award is given out annually to the best defensive back in the nation by season’s end.
Henderson is one of six Big Ten defensive backs on the award’s watch list, joining senior Ji’Ayir Brown (Penn State), sophomore Denzel Burke (Ohio State), junior Ronnie Hickman (Ohio State), senior Riley Moss (Iowa) and junior Joey Porter Jr. (Penn State).
Last season, Henderson was one of the more solid players on Michigan State’s struggling defense.