FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas kicker Vito Calvaruso announced his intention to enter the transfer portal Tuesday afternoon.
“Thank you to the University of Arkansas for everything over the past two years,” Calvaruso wrote in a message on Twitter. “After careful consideration with my family, I believe it is best for me to enter the Transfer Portal.”
The sophomore from Jefferson City, Mo., is the Razorbacks’ third player to decide to leave the program since the start of the season, but is by far the most significant.
While running back Josh Oglesby and defensive tackle Solomon Wright were reserves who rarely saw the field, Calvaruso was Arkansas’ kickoff specialist the last two years and excelled in that role.
After ranking 14th nationally with 68.8 percent of his kickoffs resulting in touchbacks as a true freshman, Calvaruso increased that touchback rate to 85.1 percent. That not only ranks fifth in the FBS this season, but is believed to be a school record.
According to Pro Football Focus, Calvaruso was the best kickoff specialist in the country with a 93.4 grade. In addition to his impressive touchback rate, he had an average hang time of 4.26 that helped his coverage unit limit opponents to just 21.1 yards when they did return a kick.
Calvaruso was so valuable to the Razorbacks that head coach Sam Pittman awarded him a scholarship during the season.
However, sources indicated to HawgBeat that Calvaruso has a desire to play somewhere he can also be the placekicker. Arkansas does not seem to be the place for that, as true freshman Cam Little burst onto the scene by making 19 of 23 field goals this season - including a game-winner at LSU.
Because of the pandemic-related eligibility relief granted by the NCAA last season, Calvaruso has three years remaining to play college football. He’ll be immediately eligible at his new school because of the NCAA’s new one-time transfer waiver rule.
As for Arkansas, Little would presumably take over the kickoff duties for the Outback Bowl on Jan. 1 and moving forward next season. The only other kicker of the roster is walk-on Matthew Phillips, plus the Razorbacks have a pair of punters who’ve played this year: Reid Bauer and Sam Loy.
Even though he was on scholarship, Calvaruso’s departure doesn’t necessarily help Arkansas’ situation for the 2022 class. The move opens a spot in the 85-man limit, but won’t create a scholarship for the Razorbacks to use in the current class unless he waits to actually enter the portal on or after Dec. 15.
At that point, Arkansas would be able to count him toward the seven extra scholarships the NCAA Division I Council approved this season. If his name pops up before then, he - like Oglesby and Wright before him - would not increase the Razorbacks’ initial counter limit for 2022.
