Dean Grosfeld already knew who Kevonte Henry was.
The Cerritos College football coach remembered Henry as a 6-foot-4, 210-pound Leuzinger High School football player in Los Angeles, one that dominated both as a defensive lineman and as a running back.
"God didn't create us all equal when it comes to athletic ability," Grosfeld said of Henry. "He definitely was created a little different."
When Henry's family approached Cerritos College about Henry joining the roster in 2023 after one season at Oklahoma , Grosfeld knew what to expect. It's exactly what he expects Henry to bring to Alabama football in 2025.
"He's such a disruptor and people have to pay attention to him," Grosfeld said. "We use the term, 'the other guys get to eat' a lot. Because Kevonte, he stirs the water up and those other guys get to eat."
Alabama added Henry to its 2025 recruiting class Monday, flipping his previous commitment from Mississippi State. Henry joins Steve Mboumoua as the Crimson Tide 's second junior college defensive line commit. Alabama also has a commitment from Mississippi three-star defensive lineman London Simmons .
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After recording a 43-tackle season with Cerritos in 2023, in which he had 7.5 tackles-for-loss and 3.5 sacks, Henry has 19 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and two sacks through five games in 2024, a season Grosfeld said puts Henry in the conversation for South Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year.
Henry's relationship with Alabama is much deeper than just his on-field production as a 6-foot-4, 242-pound defensive end.
Through the high school recruiting process, Henry developed a close relationship with Courtney Morgan , Alabama football's general manager. Henry committed to Michigan when Morgan was on staff as director of player personnel in 2021. When Morgan left for Washington in December 2021, Henry quickly ended his commitment and flipped to Oklahoma.
Henry spent one season with the Sooners before he entered the transfer portal in December 2022.
Henry reconnected with Morgan at Alabama, leading to a game-day visit for the Crimson Tide's win against South Carolina . And while Morgan talked up Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer , defensive line coach Freddie Roach and the rest of the Crimson Tide staff, Grosfeld said Henry put his full trust in what Morgan was helping build.
"Kevonte is not about money," Grosfeld said. "You are not going to sway him. He's going to play by the rules. It's about relationships. And when he had an opportunity to talk to Courtney again, going back to their previous relationships, the comfort level and the loyalties and those things were pretty comfortable with Courtney."
Henry loves football, Grosfeld said. He's passionate about the sport. He has the "God-given talent that can lead him to something down the road," Grosfeld said.
But that's not Henry's main focus. It's being a father.
"Watching him be a father, I mean, we're very family-oriented at Cerritos, and his daughter is, she's going on 2 years of age, and she's here every single day," Grosfeld said. "She's like part of our family. But he's a really good dad, and I think that says something about somebody when they have the ability to do that. He puts her number one, and football is a really close second, but he's got his priorities straight."
Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at cgay@gannett.com or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: What Alabama football is getting in 2025 JUCO DE Kevonte Henry
