A Santana High School football player was selected from a countywide pool of student-athletes to receive a most-inspirational player award and scholarship at the National Funding Holiday Bowl, bowl officials announced Thursday.
Devan Henselmeier, a senior, will be honored with the 2016 Dr Pepper Most Inspirational Player Award and be presented with a check for $2,000 on the field at the game on Dec. 27.
The award program aims to recognize a San Diego County high school football player “who, through their presence, actions and words of encouragement, serves as an inspirational example to their teammates.”
Henselmeier is a defensive end for the Santana varsity football team. At the beginning of the 2015 football season, Devan’s mother died of breast cancer, but he still had an outstanding junior year on the field, bowl officials said. Henselmeier totaled 11.5 sacks, made first team all-conference and received the co-defensive team MVP award.
In the final game of his junior year, a knee injury ended his season early. Devan went eight months without a diagnosis, but two weeks before camp started, Devon found out his injury was more severe than he thought. The doctor gave him two options: play and risk re-injuring his knee, or forfeit his senior year and undergo surgery.
Henselmeier chose to play his entire senior year with only a brace as support and played alongside his team in the CIF Division IV championship game. In the month of October, the football team wore his mother’s initials over pink wristbands in each game.
Overcoming abundant adversity throughout his high school football career, Henselmeier continued to serve as a source of inspiration for his teammates and coaches, bowl organizers said.
The Dr Pepper Most Inspirational Player Award is supported by Rock 105.3, XTRA 1360 Fox Sports San Diego and the Kiwanis Club of San Diego.
— City News Service