The Freshmen 15: Benny Snell Jr.

@MaggieDavisKSR

Via @iambennysnelljr

There were a lot of key players in last night’s victory (victory!!!) over Mississippi State, one of which was true freshman Benny Snell Jr. After an extremely impressive season so far, I think it’s only fair for Snell to be the next athlete highlighted on my list of 15 ridiculous freshmen. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you can read my first one here.

Snell has dominated on Kentucky’s offense during all four of the Cats’ victories. In total, he’s rushed for 431 yards against New Mexico State, South Carolina, Vandy and Mississippi State. Last night, he ran 19 times for 128 yards, including a 34-yard touchdown that put the cats up 20-17.

After the game, Snell described his emotions following the dramatic victory.

“All of us were emotional about this game. We love this game with all of our heart. When something like that happens, I have no choice but to cry. We just fought so hard.”

An emotional Snell and Boom Williams (who rushed for 99 yards in 14 carries) were caught on camera after the game in an adorable moment of raw emotion.

https://twitter.com/KSTV_Sports/status/790044183650328577

The two have been known to be competitive with one another, especially since they have often been referred to as UK’s two key running backs, so it was nice to see they were on the same page following last night’s W.

According to both players though, the “rivalry” is all in good fun.

“We’re very competitive on the practice field, but that just makes both of us better,” said Snell after the South Carolina game.

Boom agreed. “We’re very competitive, but we just want to go out there and practice hard and make each other better. We’re able to coach each other without someone getting upset.”

Another impressive comment on Snell? There’s “no BS about him.” Yes, this is a real quote. Mark Stoops described Snell as a player with a “tough mindset, tough attitude, no BS about him, just here to work and win football games.” Strong words from Coach Stoops.

Snell, who was listed as a 6’2, 210 pound 3-star running back, came to Lexington from Westerville, Ohio, where he led Westerville Central to back-to-back Ohio Capital Conference titles. After leading the Warhawks with 1,826 rushing yards during his senior season, he chose UK because of the overall atmosphere and the city of Lexington.

And now, Lexington loves him right back. #SnellYeah

Twitter: @MaggieDavisKSR