Miami's Star Offensive Lineman Named to The Rimington Trophy Midseason Watchlist

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Miami's offensive line has been anchored by its veterans all season, starting in the middle with Ryan Rodriguez.

One of the last holdovers from the Manny Diaz Era waited his turn and developed into one of the best centers in the country. PFF grades him as the fifth-best center in the nation, and he has proven that time and time again.

Now, he has been need to the Rimington Trophy Midseason Watchlist.

The Rimington Trophy is presented annually to the most outstanding center in NCAA Division I College Football. Rodriguez has been elite and only gets better.

However, if you ask the star center, he feels like more can be done.

"I feel like I'm still not even nowhere near where I feel like I can be," Rodriguez said. "Coach Mirabal pushes me very hard, and I feel like that's what clicks, just constant trying to get better and hunger for improvement. And I feel like, thank you for your appreciation, but I feel like I still am not, remotely where I can be. There's still a lot of work to do, still a lot of work to be done."

Moreover, he wants to improve in the run game, the one area that is slightly lacking, at times, for Miami.

"Proving the run game still," Rodriguez said. "We still have a lot of improvement personally that I can make there, that can make it better. I want to get better at my leadership. I want to get better at my pass pro, just all-around game, just continuing to be a better player. I was talking to Brockermeyer the other day, and he said, There's no finished product. So just literally continuing to keep working."

It also helps that he has one of the best quarterbacks under center. Darian Mensah loves the relationship each player has with one another. Trust remains one of the strongest on the team, and that protection will only help with awards at the end of the year and a better connection between the line and the QB.

"I'd say his attention to detail and his preparation is A1," Mensah said. "And to play center under Coach Mirabal is, you've got to be a special player, and he is that. And he's done an excellent job preparing each and every week, and then he's just been on point with the calls, and I feel super protected when he's out there with me. So it's a blessing to have him as my center."

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