Rat Snake

How can anything so cute have a name like rat snake? Perhaps I will just learn the Latin name Elaphe obsoleta and call it by that. Lex found this little fella while mowing the front lawn. It is obviously a juvenile so it is a little hard to identify and please comment if I have identified it incorrectly. But the young hatch late July to September and I think this one just hatched recently. Rat snakes prefer a variety of forest, shrub, and edge habitats, so he should feel right at home. Carnivorous mammals and raptors prey upon these little snakes. Hope he survives!