Carnell Henderson is taking on a second big role at Westlake High.
Henderson, who has been the Assistant Principal of Athletics at Westlake High for two years, was hired as the school’s head football coach last week, according to principal Jason Branham.
He replaces Jesse Craven, who stepped down last month without coaching a game.
Despite the compressed schedule, this is not a temporary appointment.
“This is permanent,” Branham said.
Henderson will be Westlake’s fifth head coach since Jim Benkert left for Oaks Christian in 2015 after heading the program for 26 years.
“I plan to stick around,” Henderson said. “I think it would be unfair to the kids if there isn’t a level of consistency. That’s been the problem.”
Henderson, who is originally from Woonsocket, Rhode Islands, has plenty of football experience.
He was a star wide receiver at Boston University in the 1990s, catching 188 passes for 2,759 yards and 24 TDs for the Terriers.
He was a member of BU’s memorable 1993 team, which won its first 12 games and beat Kurt Warner’s Northern Iowa in the NCAA Division 1-AA playoffs.
Henderson was inducted into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012.
He previously coached receivers at Fairfield University and served as the head coach of his alma mater, Woonsocket High.
Henderson plans to keep Craven’s staff in place, including offensive coordinator Anthony Fullerton and defensive coordinator Kellen Yancy. No varsity coaches were retained from last year’s staff.
“As far as the staff, everyone is going to stay on board, which is a great thing,” Henderson said. “I think the student-athletes need consistency.”
Alum Justin Fabiculanan, the brother of University of Washington defensive back Kamren Fabiculanan, has recently rejoined the program as an assistant coach.
How his athletic directing duties may shift so Henderson can bear the weight of his new role is still being discussed.
“Everything happened so quickly, those things will be constantly evolving,” Henderson said. “We’re going to manage that as we go. … There will be some shifts in some responsibilities in what that looks like.”
Craven was hired in December to replace Mark Serve, who was fired in September. Ellis Green served the program as an interim head coach during the second half of a 2-8 season.
Craven told the Los Angeles Times last month that he was stepping down “after differences with administration.”
“I can’t speak to why he stepped down,” Henderson said. “That’s his story to share. It would be unfair of me.”
Henderson coached the Warriors during a 7-on-7 tournament last weekend in Simi Valley. Local high school football is now in a dead period ahead of summer practice later this month.
“This dead period comes at an opportune time for everyone to catch their breath and hone in on the student-athletes who are before us and concentrate on the season,” Henderson said.
Joe Curley is a staff writer for The Star. He can be reached at joe.curley@vcstar.com. For more coverage, follow @vcspreps on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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