Rodrigo Blankenship: Walk-On Turned Reliable Weapon for the Bulldogs
As far as placekickers go you'd be hard-pressed to find one more popular in College Football than Rodrigo Blankenship. It's rare that a placekicker is well known even outside of their own fanbase, but Rodrigo is just that. Rare.
He is one of the most popular players on the Georgia Bulldogs roster. On Saturdays when Blankenship's name is announced in the starting lineups, the raucous response from the home crowd rivals that of one Jake Fromm. His signature look includes the thick black specs that he wears during games. The phrase "Respect the Specs" has taken Twitter by storm and has even inspired t-shirts.
Of course, everyone remembers the post-game interview he gave after he kicked the winning field goal against Kentucky to lift UGA over the Wildcats 27-24. Blankenship famously kept his helmet on the throughout the press conference in what has become a "classic" Hot Rod moment.
Rodrigo Blankenship came to UGA a walk-on in 2015. After a redshirt season, in 2016 he assumed the starting placekicker role for the Bulldogs, going 14/18 on FGs in his first season. In 2017, after a thrilling Georgia win over Notre Dame in South Bend thanks to another Hot Rod kick, Rodrigo informed the team that earlier in the week he had received a full scholarship from Coach Smart and the University.
An announcement that sent his teammates into a frenzy. He also went on to set the school record for most the touchbacks in a season at 67. As if that wasn't enough he set the Rose Bowl record for longest field goal at 55-yards. A field goal that proved pivotal as the Dawgs would defeat Oklahoma to advance to the national championship.
Since that kick at Notre Dame, he's gone on to make 157 of 157 extra points and 55 of 64 field goals. That's 85.9% over his last 37 starts as a scholarship athlete proving to be more than worth the investment.
He will continue to be a valuable piece in Georgia's immediate future. With an SEC championship game and potential playoff birth looming, Rodrigo will be called upon in a close contest.
With a rainy day in the forecast Saturday it could be a low scoring affair, one that will inevitably lead to Rodrigo could be put to work often.
Blankenship is on the watchlist for the Reese's Senior Bowl and is currently the #1 ranked placekicker in the 2020 NFL Draft according to walterfootball.com
He has won multiple SEC honors and is a finalist for the Burlsworth Trophy, which is given to the most outstanding player that began his career as a walk-on. But as much as he is revered nationally, the fans of the Bulldogs will forever have a spot in their hearts for "Hot Rod". He earned his way into a scholarship by proving to be an essential, effective, and reliable weapon for the Bulldogs. And he did it with a smile on his face, obvious love for the university, his teammates, and fans.
Respect the specs.
