After a long process of scouting, vetting and recruiting, Kentucky's coaches finally settled on McDonough (Ga.) Ola prospect Chris Rodriguez as its running back from the Class of 2018.
Bio in Brief
Running back Chris Rodriguez
6'0, 200 pounds
Rating: Three-stars (5.6 Rivals Rating)
Other offers: Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Appalachian State, Georgia State
Recruiting Overview
Rodriguez's recruitment was very quiet as he generally stayed away from interviews and self-promotion efforts.
Early in Rodriguez's recruitment, Mississippi State was his favorite school. That was due, in part, to their interest, but also to the fact that Dak Prescott was one of his favorite players. Georgia was in some contact with him. North Carolina's coaches were looking at Rodriguez as well.
When several other running backs Kentucky had offered ended up committing to other schools, Kentucky began its search anew. A deliberate process led the coaching staff to zero in on Rodriguez, and shortly after a visit to Lexington he committed to Kentucky.
Scouting Report
From Rivals.com's Chad Simmons, "Rodriguez is a strong, powerful back who gets north-south." That's consistent with what Ola coach Jared Zito told Cats Illustrated after Rodriguez's commitment to Kentucky. He said that Rodriguez is not a player who will jump off the screen when you're watching his film, but he's the kind of player who grows on you the longer you watch him. He's not the fastest player in an open field sprint but has better speed than he's given credit for. He is a strong between-the-tackles runner who can carry a big workload (and he's already done that).
Forecast for 2018 & Beyond
Benny Snell should be a preseason first team All-SEC pick and he's going to be Kentucky's workhorse in 2018. There will be some leftover carries for Sihiem King, A.J. Rose, Bryant Koback and Rodriguez, and he'll be part of the competition for those touches. However, given that Rodriguez is not arriving a semester early, it seems like he'll be playing catch up a bit.
Once Snell leaves, whether that's after 2018 or 2019, there will be a very open competition and Rodriguez will be a part of that.
Quotable
"Most downhill guys are going to get you their tough six or eight yards and that’ll be about it but he’s got the ability to pull away and get you the big run. But what I’ve told just about every college coach who’s come through is it’s what he does after first contact. He’s a very violent runner especially after his first contact. The hidden yards he gets after the first, initial contact, it’s really special.”
- Ola head coach Jared Zito to Cats Illustrated
