Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry originally committed to Georgia while a football star at Yulee High School. But he ended up winning the 2015 Heisman Trophy at Alabama. Henry used his college choice as an example when speaking to young athletes on Sunday night.

For the second straight year, Henry served as the guest speaker for the Tennessean Sports Awards, which recognized the top high school athletes in Tennessee from the past year.

During a question-and-answer session with Rachel Baribeau of SiriusXM and ESPN, Henry talked about his decision to attend Alabama after piling up a prep national-record 12,124 career rushing yards.

"My sophomore year, I was close with a couple guys that were from the area," Henry said, "and all of them were considering Georgia, and we went down there for a camp to go work out. ... And they all talked me into us all committing to play on the same team at Georgia, and we all did that night. But then when I got back home and I was by myself, I kind of realized I kind of made a decision too fast. Let me re-evaluate where I want to go, and then I decommitted, and Alabama was my final choice my senior year."

Henry advised the prep athletes not to do what he did initially when making their college decisions.

"Definitely take your time. Don't rush anything," Henry said. "Any college will tell you what you want to hear when they want you to come there. But just listen to your family. Listen to yourself. Weigh your options. Make sure it fits you right, as far as athletics, academically, and don't rush into no decisions. Just take your time.

"You don't get this time back, so enjoy it. Enjoy the process. Whatever decisions you make, believe it, and then go out there and be successful."

Henry set SEC single-season records by rushing for 2,219 yards and 28 touchdowns for Alabama's CFP national-championship team in the 2015 season. But in his first season with the Crimson Tide, Henry was behind T.J. Yeldon and Kenyan Drake on the depth chart. Yeldon now plays for the Jacksonville Jaguars, and Drake is with the Miami Dolphins.

"I remember one time, my freshman year, when it was kind of tough for me adjusting to college, I wanted to leave," Henry said. "And (Alabama coach Nick Saban) sat down and talked with me for a while, just telling me about adversity.

"Everybody has adversity through life. It's all about how you overcome it, and don't let it affect you."

Henry is preparing for his third NFL season, his first without DeMarco Murray ahead of him on the Titans' depth chart.

In his second NFL season, Henry got more work than he did as a rookie, with Murray missing one regular-season game and both playoff games with injuries. Henry led the Titans with 744 rushing yards on 176 attempts and caught 11 passes for 136 yards. He had five rushing touchdowns and one receiving TD.

Henry had touchdown runs of 72 and 75 yards, and the scoring pass covered 66 yards. He became the first player in NFL history to have TD runs of at least 72 yards in the final minute of two games.

In the playoffs, Henry ran for 156 yards and a touchdown in a victory over the Kansas City Chiefs and 28 yards in a loss to the New England Patriots.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @AMarkG1.