RPM Prediction: NKY Tight End Willie Rodriguez

Kentucky associate head coach Vince Marrow has spearheaded the Wildcats’ recruiting efforts since he joined Mark Stoops’ inaugural coaching staff. The Big Dog has always taken quality care of his position room, the tight ends. Following a breakout season for a pair of local products at the position — Bowling Green’s Jordan Dingle and Cincinnati’s Josh Kattus — Kentucky is closing in on another nearby tight end, Willie Rodriguez.

A 6-foot-4, 225-pound athlete from Covington Catholic High School in Northern Kentucky, Rodriguez is a three-star prospect and the No. 8 player from the Commonwealth, according to the On3 Industry Rankings.

Willie Rodriguez began his summer with official visits to Purdue and Virginia Tech. This weekend he will be in Lexington for Kentucky’s first star-studded recruiting event. Before he travels down I-75, I am placing a Kentucky prediction with 70% confidence in On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM). Let me explain why.

Kentucky Makes Strong Push for Willie Rodriguez

Shortly after Cutter Boley announced his commitment to Kentucky in front of hundreds at Lexington Christian Academy, he joined Kentucky Sports Radio. Matt Jones asked the Wildcats’ new quarterback commitment who he is pushing to join him in Kentucky’s 2024 recruiting class.

“Willie Rodriguez,” was the first name Boley mentioned. It was not lip service.

“I think he’s just a really, really great kid overall,” Rodriguez told KSR+. “He’s treated me really well already. I can tell we’re pretty similar and I think we would fit in really well with each other.” 

He was not always the Wildcats’ top priority at tight end. This spring South Carolina, Vanderbilt and Arkansas were among the SEC schools that issued scholarship offers to Rodriguez. There was some angst among UK fans who wondered why Rodriguez did not have an offer, “What are they waiting for?”

The wait ended April 18 when Liam Coen and Vince Marrow made the short drive to Northern Kentucky. The Kentucky coaches extended a scholarship offer to Willie Rodriguez and have put on the full-court press ever since. That will only be amplified this weekend once he’s surrounded by other top recruits on Kentucky’s campus.

The Wildcats want to start the month of June with a bang. Willie Rodriguez will get the ball rolling.

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