{"id":154364,"date":"2025-11-11T12:28:21","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T17:28:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/?p=154364"},"modified":"2025-11-11T12:31:28","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T17:31:28","slug":"nfl-teams-eyeing-hbcu-star-known-as-d2-derrick-henry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/2025\/11\/11\/nfl-teams-eyeing-hbcu-star-known-as-d2-derrick-henry\/","title":{"rendered":"NFL teams eyeing HBCU star known as “D2 Derrick Henry”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

RICHMOND, Va. \u2014 Curtis Allen, the star running back for Virginia Union, is drawing NFL attention after a record-setting season that has earned him comparisons to Derrick Henry, the Baltimore Ravens\u2019 All-Pro powerhouse. The senior capped off his historic regular season Saturday with another dominant performance, rushing for 151 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries as Virginia Union defeated rival Virginia State to clinch its spot in the CIAA Championship Game.<\/a>

Allen\u2019s latest outing pushed his season total to 2,098 rushing yards, breaking Jada Byers\u2019 single-season school record and further solidifying his status as one of the top players in all of Division II football. His combination of size, power, and endurance has made him a nightmare for opposing defenses and a must-watch prospect for pro scouts.

On Monday, Virginia Union assistant coach Diego Ryland revealed that both the Carolina Panthers and Baltimore Ravens had recently visited campus \u2014 with both teams reportedly taking a close look at Allen. The timing couldn\u2019t be better, as the 6-foot, 215-pound back has become the focal point of one of the most dominant offenses in HBCU football.

\u201cCurtis has been consistent all year long,\u201d said VUU Head Coach Dr. Alvin Parker. \u201cHe\u2019s the kind of player who gets stronger as the game goes on. His preparation, his leadership, and his love for this program have set the tone for everyone in our locker room.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Curtis
Curtis Allen runs against Virginia State. (Steven J. Gaither\/HBCU Gameday)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The nickname \u201cD2 Derrick Henry\u201d has started circulating among fans and media alike \u2014 and for good reason. Like the NFL\u2019s Henry, Allen is known for his bruising running style and uncanny ability to wear down defenses over four quarters. He has rushed for more than 100 yards in every game this season and surpassed the 200-yard mark five times, including a 369-yard, five-touchdown explosion at Bluefield State earlier this month.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With his power runs and game-breaking ability, Allen has become the engine of Virginia Union\u2019s 9\u20131 campaign, propelling the Panthers back to the CIAA Championship Game for the second time in the last three seasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Virginia Union will face Johnson C. Smith on Saturday in Durham, N.C., with Allen once again at the center of the spotlight \u2014 a small-school star now commanding big-league attention. And if his \u201cD2 Derrick Henry\u201d reputation holds true, the NFL may not be far behind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Star running back Curtis Allen has been getting compared to Derrick Henry and is getting NFL looks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":154366,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_ml_titleColor":"#000000","_ml_titleFont":"Roboto","_ml_titleFontSize":1.136,"_ml_titleFontWeight":"400","_ml_titleLineHeight":1.3,"_ml_metaColor":"#708090","_ml_metaFont":"Montserrat","_ml_metaFontSize":0.6785,"_ml_metaFontWeight":"400","_ml_metaLineHeight":0.92,"_ml_bodyColor":"#a9a9a9","_ml_bodyFont":"Open Sans","_ml_bodyFontSize":0.85,"_ml_bodyFontWeight":"400","_ml_bodyLineHeight":1.2,"_ml_wooPriceColor":"#666","_ml_wooPriceFont":"Open Sans","_ml_wooPriceFontSize":0.9,"_ml_wooPriceFontWeight":"400","_ml_wooPriceLineHeight":1.27,"_ml_headingColor":"#000","_ml_headingFont":"Merriweather","_ml_headingFontSize":2.02,"_ml_headingFontWeight":"700","_ml_headingLineHeight":1.47,"_mlglobal_userfontcolors":{"headingColorUser":[],"titleColorUser":[],"metaColorUser":[],"bodyColorUser":[],"wooPriceColorUser":[]},"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[573635379,573627535],"tags":[1809557,573627544,573627534,813301],"class_list":["post-154364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2025-hbcu-football","category-football","tag-ciaa","tag-featured","tag-hbcusports","tag-virginia-union"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nNFL teams eyeing HBCU star known as "D2 Derrick Henry" - HBCU Gameday<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Curtis Allen (AKA "D2 Derrick Henry") is getting NFL looks as the HBCU star has passed the 2,000 yard rushing mark.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/2025\/11\/11\/nfl-teams-eyeing-hbcu-star-known-as-d2-derrick-henry\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NFL teams eyeing HBCU star known as "D2 Derrick Henry"\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Curtis Allen (AKA "D2 Derrick Henry") is getting NFL looks as the HBCU star has passed the 2,000 yard rushing mark.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/2025\/11\/11\/nfl-teams-eyeing-hbcu-star-known-as-d2-derrick-henry\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"HBCU Gameday\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hbcugameday\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-11T17:28:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-11-11T17:31:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/hbcugameday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/HenryvsVSU.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"675\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Steven J. 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