In New Mexico, some last names are known before the first names are ever said. Peyton and Harvey Yates and Mack Chase, names long tied to oil, business and influence, are a few of those.
The Henderson name carries a different kind of weight. It is known for football, winning and a standard few programs ever reach. Together, L.G. and Cooper Henderson won 20 state football championships and 403 games, more than any family coaching duo in New Mexico sports history.
On Friday, July 24, the New Mexico High School Coaches Association Hall of Honor made it official, inducting Cooper and L.G. Henderson together.
“The biggest honor is the players and coaches you worked with, and the people who helped you get where you are,” said Cooper Henderson, 71. “It makes you slow down and appreciate all the people who had a part in your life.”
Cooper went 293-103-1 in 32 seasons at Ruidoso and Artesia. He led those programs to 15 state championships, all but one at Artesia, and ranks fourth all-time in wins among New Mexico coaches.
Cooper and his brother, Butch Henderson, both played for their dad at Artesia. Cooper, a Bulldog from 1970 to 1972, saw L.G. in two roles: the demanding coach at school and the father who left football on the field unless his sons wanted to talk about it at home.
Cooper said his dad’s biggest lesson came from the way he lived as a Christian leader at home and at school. He was disciplined, lived what he believed and expected his players to carry that same discipline, Cooper said.
Cooper played football at Eastern New Mexico University and graduated in 1977. He began coaching at Portales, moved to Perryton High School in Texas and later worked as an assistant at Amarillo High.
Ruidoso had won only one game in two years when Henderson got his first head coaching job. He figured it could not get much worse — and believed it could get a lot better.
Through every move and season, Henderson said the greatest thing that ever happened to him was marrying his college sweetheart, Judy Visscher Henderson, whom he met at ENMU.
“She made a difference in my coaching career,” Henderson said. “She was at every game. Our kids were raised by her and kept involved, and they were always excited about me coaching and what I was doing.”
The couple has two children: Bryan Henderson, an Artesia graduate and lawyer in Dallas; and Britni Ridolfi, who works for the San Antonio Spurs.
Cooper said Artesia’s success came with strong support from assistant coaches, administrators and Mike Phipps, who won seven state championships as a coach and later served as athletic director and superintendent of Artesia Public Schools.
The Quarterback Club was another piece of that success. Cooper said it was never just about football; it was about helping young people grow up, compete well and succeed in life.
“The whole time I was the head football coach, Raye Miller was the head of our Quarterback Club,” Cooper said. “That group is a huge part of our success in Artesia, and they are all looking for good things out of our young people.”
L.G. Henderson, who guided the Bulldogs to five titles in the 1960s and died in 2012, had not been eligible before because he did not meet the NMHSCA’s minimum years of service or membership requirement. Once the criteria changed, the obstacle was gone.
Both Hendersons were already members of the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame. Now, together in the NMHSCA Hall of Honor, L.G. and Cooper Henderson stand where their careers always placed them — at the heart of New Mexico high school football history.
JT Keith can be reached at 575-420-0061 or on X @JTKEITH1.
