John Settle hopes to develop Chris Rodriguez into an All-American. (UK Athletics Photo)
There’s been a lot of excitement for Kentucky football about the addition of offensive coordinator Liam Coen, a former assistant coach with the Los Angeles Rams. Kentucky defensive line coach Anwar Stewart says Coen is a “great guy with a lot of passion and excitement” he enjoys being around.
“I love watching him go through plays with guys. I am learning from him, seeing how he does things and interacts with players,” Stewart said.
However, Stewart said not to sleep on the importance of new running backs coach John Settle, a former NFL running back for six years who also has 26 years of coaching experience that includes 19 bowl appearances.
“Coach Settle is a heck of a ball coach. He is awesome and a great guy,” Stewart said. “He is just a very humble man but look at this resume and you won’t find a better resume than running backs he has produced for such a long time.”
That includes his most recent star, Jonathan Taylor of Wisconsin. He was a two-time unanimous first-team All-American and two-time Doak Walker Award winner as the nation’s top running back.
“He was a heck of a running back himself. For him to have developed all these running backs, you would not know it,” Stewart said. “He is a very mild-mannered guy. Very soft-spoken and funny.
“Just a great person and nice to sit down and talk with. I will go to his office and just sit down and shoot it. I am always getting something from him and he’s going to be great for our running backs.”
