DES MOINES, IOWA — The late Mike Henderson, who served as chief statistician for the Drake Relays for 30 years, has been named recipient of the Paul Morrison Legacy Award.
Henderson was well known and highly regarded throughout Iowa for his longtime work with high school and Drake University sports. He served as information director for the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union for 32 years. 

Henderson was Iowa track and field and cross-country's best friend. He never ran in a state meet or the Drake Relays, but his many contributions made hundreds of these meets run smoothly for generations of athletes, coaches, officials and journalists. While working at the IGHSAU, his service spread to the Iowa High School Athletic Association for boys sports, Drake University and wherever else his talent and devotion were needed.

Henderson died Dec. 30, 2004, with his memorial service drawing a capacity crowd at the Knapp Center. 

Mike's love of sports dates from his early years in Coin, Iowa. He played football and basketball and ran track at Coin High School, graduating in the final class before that school closed in 1959. He also became immersed in the purebred hog business at an early age. His family farm raised prize-winning Yorkshires.

Henderson graduated from Iowa State in 1963 with majors in agricultural journalism and animal science. He also acted as student sports information director and sports editor of the Iowa State Daily and was a national collegiate champion in livestock judging. He came to Des Moines in 1973, first joining the sports information staff at Drake before moving to the Girls Athletic Union.

The Drake Relays is Iowa's annual Super Bowl of track and field each April. For the Henderson family it's a holiday weekend as anticipated as Christmas. For more than three-quarters of the Drake Relays, two generations of the Henderson family have watched and worked there. None served longer than Mike, and perhaps no one at all ever loved this event more or lived it more completely.
 
By title, Mike was the Drake Relays statistician, but he was much more than that. Henderson was a living history book and human computer for this meet and this sport. Drake Relays officials, coaches and especially the reporters knew all that he did for them and valued him for it.
 
Starting in the mid-1960s, he shared the Relays' statistical load with his late father Jim. Mike later worked with any sport that needed him – at Drake, the girls and boys high school championships, even arena football. But track and field always came first.
 
This was his family's sport before he was born. An uncle, Charles Henderson, won a Drake Relays title for Iowa State in the early 1930s. His brother Joe Henderson ran there; brother-in-law Elliott Evans anchored Drake to the four-mile relay title in 1968 and his cousin Bruce Henderson coached winning teams in Drake Stadium. His sisters Anne and Emily have been proud Drake Relays supporters.
 
Mike's mother, Virginia, worked at Drake as secretary to the dean of fine arts. She sat on the aisle at the Drake Relays close to the steps up to the press box. That way she could keep an eye on Mike, get the heat sheets and watch for celebrities. She got Jesse Owens' autograph one year.
 
Henderson not only loved the Drake Relays; he lived for and with this meet. From just after the state high school basketball tournaments in March through the high school track championships in late May, he camped out in Drake Field House or the stadium press box, often working two to three days without sleep. He never sought praise for this work and in fact, acted embarrassed when told how well he did it.
 
"Everyone who knew him has an incredible Mike Henderson story," Franklin P. Johnson Director of the Drake Relays Blake Boldon said. "His impact is still felt at Drake Stadium, and people still tell stories about his statistical recall ability and nocturnal nature. He was dedicated to the Relays, and Iowa sports in general, and many people remain inspired by his contributions."
 
Mike was loved in return, more than even his family knew. Honoring his dedicated service to the Drake Relays, the high school girls' invitational 100 hurdles was renamed the Mike Henderson 100 hurdles at the 2005 Drake Relays.
 
His honors also included hall of fame induction by these athletic bodies: the National Athletic Coaches Association, the Iowa High School Swimming and Diving Association, the Iowa Coaches Association, the Iowa Association of Track Coaches and the Drake Relays. The Mike Henderson Middle School Boys and Girls State Track and Field Meet, named in his honor, is held annually in Waukee on the first Saturday in May.

The award is named in honor of longtime Drake University athletic historian Paul Morrison, a beloved figure on the Drake campus who passed away at the age of 100 on Nov. 30, 2017.  Morrison was involved in, maintained historical narratives and attended 80 Drake Relays. A half-mile stretch of Forest Avenue in front of the Knapp Center is named in his honor.
Morrison was the initial recipient of the Legacy Award in 2017, followed by Franklin (Pitch) Johnson, in 2018; the Gary Osborn family and Scott Osborn in 2019; Bob Clark, 2021; Dave Mills, 2022; and Pete Guerrini, 2023.