Rodrigo Blankenship named SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year
For the fourth time in the award's history, a Georgia Bulldog has been named SEC Scholar-Athlete of the year.
Rodrigo Blankenship has added yet another award to a long list of accomplishments in his Georgia football career. He is not only the school's all-time leading point scorer, but he's also an incredible student having already graduated with his degree in Digitial and Broadcast Journalism last fall.
Now, he's an unquestioned leader at Georgia and one of the nation's top placekickers. Blankenship is a finalist for the Lou Groza Award which is awarded to the Nation's top placekicker.
Blankenship is currently enrolled in Georgia's Master Program for journalism and bolsters a 3.65 GPA.
Hot Rod has long been a fan favorite, dating back to his introduction to the national stage against Kentucky when after nailing a game-winning field goal, he famously completed the postgame interviews with his helmet and specs still on.
In his last year as a Bulldog, he's hit 24 of 28 field goals, that's an 85% conversion rate and he's become a weapon for this Georgia offense.
He's not only one of the nation's most accurate kickers, but he's one of the longest, having hit numerous 50+ yard field goals in his career. Most famously the 55-yarder against Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl.
In addition to being one of the best placekickers in the country, Blankenship has done an excellent job since taking over the kickoff duties for the Bulldogs. Very rarely do opponents have an opportunity to return a kick, especially in solid weather environments like the perfect conditions he will have Saturday in the SEC Championship Game.
Blankenship is listed by several draft analysts as the top kicker available this spring's NFL draft.
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