Most folk can’t quite comprehend the full scope of what it means to be the descendant of a great. The proverbial fruit of someone successful and famous’ loins. They often dash partisan and often prejudicial allegations of nepotism their way. Conceded, certain instances in sport and society have fanned the flames of these allegations being warranted. It’s largely beneficial if you’re from a lineage that carries weight. But posterity brings its own problems, and they’re universal across the board—even if you’re the son of the “World’s Strongest Man.” When WWE HOFer and Olympian Mark Henry’s son Jacob Henry stood on the precipice of one of the first big decisions of his life and career, he found out about one such problem firsthand—the hard way, unfortunately.

D-lineman Jacob Henry was a 3-star prospect coming out of high school. Born out in New York and having lived in Austin, TX, from the age of 9, Henry thwarted the approaches of his local Texas Longhorns to commit to the other side of the Red River Rivalry and the Oklahoma Sooners. This decision was shrewd. Not only is OU a football blueblood, but they house an uber-successful wrestling program, too.

This wasn’t just baked into Jacob Henry’s choice—it was likely the driving force. Because he enrolled at Oklahoma to join the wrestling program and not football. Something that likely stemmed from a place of wanting and almost feeling compelled to traverse the path his father had already blazed. Hey, you can make shrewd decisions with your mind. But the heart stays wanting what it does. Jacob Henry realized he wanted to pursue football. Albeit not before some distress.

Henry has now switched over from the mat to the gridiron and is part of HC Brent Venables’ defensive unit. The redshirt freshman had an epiphany of sorts, realizing his passion for football exceeded anything he initially quantified it as. But only after a year away from the game, a year that proved mentally and emotionally taxing. Jacob Henry guested on the “UNFAIR SPORTS” YouTube channel to discuss his life, hobbies, Mark Henry, the Sooners, and his ambitions. He came clean about how the call to pursue wrestling over football in college led to some tribulation. “I just felt a magical, magical experience. It’s crazy, they always say, ‘OU magic’ or ‘Sooner magic’… It was just a really good vibe,” he said about coming to Norman. Before acknowledging how it was the right place but the wrong vertical.

“I’m just grateful. I felt grateful the entire time. [Because] I did feel a little bit of sadness and anxiety in my first semester,” remarked Jacob Henry. “I was starting to have really bad football withdrawals. It was making me [feel] like I was losing my focus,” he added.

Henry had nothing but praise for the wrestling program, his contemporaries there, and his coaches. But admits that he was fortunate to realize he’d be more at peace hunting and bringing down quarterbacks than wrestlers- for now. “[I was thinking] ‘This is the right spot. But am I in the right sport right now?’ Because the passion for football was still tearing me up a little bit,” he said.

‘For now’ is actually the key, operative term there. While Jacob Henry wishes to play football in Norman, he sees his career eventually panning out as a pro wrestler. Carrying the name and legacy of Mark Henry on his back in a more figurative sense than literally, via a jersey. Henry spoke about being a wrestling and WWE fanatic and how it’s potentially his calling. A fanaticism that has been honed and cultivated since he was a child. But he made sure to verbalize the struggles of being the son of a revered figure. Yes, he had access to a lot that other kids didn’t. But he also contended with a constant tryst with carving his own individuality.

Jacob Henry’s eye-opening account of what it’s like being Mark Henry’s son

America’s big on its football. But it’s also big on its pro wrestling. Mark Henry was a bonafide A-lister WWE Superstar when Jacob Henry was growing up, so it has had a marked impact on his life. When asked about how the experience of growing up a Henry was, Jacob brought forth two perspectives: One discussed ad nauseam and one that’s almost understated.

“When you’re young, you feel like he’s a superhero. It’s the coolest thing in the world,” resounded Jacob Henry. “Because you’re just like, ‘Oh my God, my dad’s so cool.’ Other people think he’s so cool and respect him and want to take photos and autographs. And then once I started watching professional wrestling, I understood what he was doing. [Which] made it even cooler, because I just fell in love with wrestling naturally.” Henry proceeded to delve into the flip side, i.e., his emotions when he grew older and began noticing a pattern.

“It gets harder when you get older. Because you want to make a name for yourself and people still refer to you as Mark’s kid. I was always Mark’s kid, Mark Henry’s son. ‘Oh, that’s Mark’s boy.’ That’s all people [said.] People wouldn’t even remember my name sometimes. It kind of starts eating you up when you get older because now you’re personally competing against your father,” remarked Jacob Henry.

Talk about a gift and a curse. Imbalanced in favor of the former, perhaps, but, again, most folks can’t comprehend it since they’ve not walked in these shoes. Alas, Jacob will surely hope that the Henry clan’s eminence continues to grow through his footballing escapades. ‘Somebody’s gon’ get their a– kicked’ either way, just that the backdrop is going to be a different sport!