Chris Rodriguez Jr. provides elite efficiency for Liam Coen and Kentucky

Chris Rodriguez Jr. is the most efficient player in college football. The 224-pound tailback out of McDonough (Ga.) Ola has held that title for two years now.

Success rate is an advanced statistic in football that measures if an offense is staying ahead of the chains. To have a successful play, offenses must gain 50 percent on needed yards on first down, 70 percent of the needed yards on second down, and 100 percent of the needed yards on third/fourth down.

Chris Rodriguez Jr. excels at this.

In 2020, Rodriguez led the SEC in rushing success rate (65.6%) on 119 carries as the running back rushed for 785 yards and 11 touchdowns. In 2021, the redshirt junior again led the SEC in rushing success rate (55.1%) with an increased workload. Rodriguez finished the year with 1,378 yards with 10 touchdowns on 17.3 attempts per game.

That efficiency paid off big-time for offensive coordinator Liam Coen. Kentucky finished the year No. 5 in third down conversion rate (50.67%) directly because of the ability to constantly be playing ahead of the chains.

“The success on third down that we had directly equated to him running the football successfully on first and second down because we’re in so many more manageable third downs,” Coen told KSR on the 11 Personnel podcast. “When you’re in second-and-six, second-and-five, second-and-four, it’s so much easier to call plays.”

“He does such a good job of keeping us ahead of the chains and just a good position to call plays. He’s sneaky that way.”

That sneakiness hasn’t really been noticed by the rest of the country. In the preseason, Auburn’s Tank Bigsby was picked over Chris Rodriguez Jr. for All-SEC honors despite the Kentucky tailback having much better play-by-play success. Alabama’s Brian Robinson earned All-SEC honors over Rodriguez despite having a much lower success rate (49.1%), fewer yards per rush (4.96), and fewer total yards (1,343).

In large part to some ball security issues, Rodriguez will be returning to Kentucky for a fifth season in 2022. The former low three-star recruit has 100 percent exceeded expectations and will be one of the top tailbacks next season in college football. Expect No. 24 to get plenty of preseason recognition since he has now collected 2,739 rushing yards and 30 total touchdowns during his career.

On top of all the efficiency, Rodriguez also doesn’t take negative plays. The tailback has just 24 rushes that have gone for no yards or a negative game in his last 344 attempts. That means over 93 percent of the time the tailback is moving forward.

That is all a part of the winning formula for Coen.

“This kid never gets tackled behind the line of scrimmage,” said the offensive coordinator.