Derrick Henry is heading west for the Super Bowl, and he’s bringing a few lessons along with him.

In a new Oikos campaign, he’s highlighting what it means to take back your strength when life does everything to break it, and he’s using San Francisco’s iconic landscape as a sort of metaphor for life’s uphill battles.

“I just think tough battles, adversity moments, they happen all throughout life,” Henry told Blavity in a recent interview. “Me playing football, that’s always going to happen. But I think you know when a big hill is in front of you, which can seem tough, you just got to keep climbing, keep going, staying focused, getting to the top of that hill.”

He added, “I just think about times where I was struggling during the season and didn’t feel like I was playing my best, and then as I just kept working and kept believing, and just kept showing up every day, I eventually got to where I wanted to be. No big hill is bigger than you, unless you believe it.”

Playing alongside Emmy-nominated actor Kathryn Hahn

When asked about the side Hahn brings out of him in their new ad, Henry said it’s simple: being able to do something he’s never done before, and having fun every step of the way.

For Henry, the campaign feels very authentic to his work as a professional athlete. Being back in San Francisco also made a huge difference.

“I’ve been to San Fran before, I think for the Alabama National Championship game a couple years back,” Henry said. “But I never really got to experience that part of the city, being by the big hill, seeing the environment of San Francisco, and just spending the day there and shooting a commercial, which was a really fun, big commercial. I’m appreciative of Oikos and working beside Kathryn, and I think it’s all about what the commercial is — inner strength. As long as you have your inner strength, no matter what happens and what goes on, just rely on that and continue to push forward. I think fans will have laughter from the big ad, and also enjoy the messaging from it.”

The TV spot will air during Super Bowl LX on Sunday, Feb. 8.

Derrick Henry

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