SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — Henninger High School football’s 2025-26 campaign was one Tajalon Innis would rather forget. The Black Knights finished 1-7, with their lone win coming over a sub-.500 Watertown squad. The year before, Henninger went 2-6 with five double-digit losses.
It’s been hard for anyone involved in the Black Knights’ football program to find a reason to smile. Innis, an offensive lineman, linebacker and running back, is an exception.
The senior is regularly out in the Syracuse community, demonstrating the traits — commitment, character, teamwork, will and dedication — that make him one of Syracuse’s first-ever New York Heart of a Giant Award nominees.
The Heart of a Giant Award is an annual recognition given to high school football players in New York, Connecticut and New Jersey. Presented by the New York Giants and USA Football, the award factors in both players’ on-field performance and their commitment to contributing in their communities and building relationships off the field.
“I’m really grateful to receive it because it reminds me to keep being someone my teammates and community can count on,” Innis said.
Innis’ mother passed away when he was young, and Prince Harry, his uncle, became his legal guardian. Innis grew up on the south side of Syracuse, an area riddled by gang violence, he said. Football and volunteering were his way out.
“It means a lot,” Harry said regarding Innis’ nomination. “From watching him grow up as a kid and seeing him grow into the man he is today, I know that he’s a leader in the community and in school as well.”
Leading has been one of Innis’ priorities for years.
He focused on his strength and agility training and joined his first football team in seventh grade, the Corcoran Modified squad. He grew to 5-foot-8 and 185 pounds and has become a versatile asset for the struggling Black Knights.
When playing football, Innis said he feels like he can be himself. He channeled those aforementioned struggles and adversity — his mother’s death and upbringing on the south side of Syracuse — into production and also juggled academics. As Innis began to take football more seriously, he started to look toward the younger generation, too.
Each Wednesday at noon, Innis, alongside a group of his teammates, attends Webster Elementary School in the north Syracuse area. They connect with younger students and teach them the rules of football, “how to catch, how to pass and how to line up correctly.”
“It’s mainly about spending time with (the kids),” Innis said. “Making sure they learn the things if they want to play football when they grow up. Hopefully they can have the skills to come and play for Henninger High School.”
Innis finds comfort in seeing others happy. It’s also why he helped start Henninger’s annual barbecue fundraiser, now in its third year.
“Every year, we go out, bring meats and different sides, and the O-linemen, we cook on the grill,” Innis said. “We make plates for everyone to come spend time, enjoy. It’s just a fun memory to have.”
Those are just two of many examples Innis prides himself on. But it won’t be easy for the senior to bring the honor back to central New York. He’s up against 11 nominees.
The award is given out once a week for six weeks, with each finalist receiving a $1,000 equipment grant for their high school football program, and the grand prize winner earning an additional $9,000 grant for their school and being honored on the field at a future New York Giants game this season.
But Innis isn’t doing what he does for the clout. He’s not doing it for the money. He’s not doing it to be honored at an NFL game. Whether he comes away with the award when voting ends on Sept. 27, his initiative remains the same.
“I just like to see everyone happy,” he said. “I don’t like to see no one down. Just me being able to put a smile on someone’s face, that’s all that really matters.”