Maybe it was the weather. Maybe it was the SEC. Maybe it was teammates or coaches. The reason why Vito Calvaruso returned to Arkansas may never be known by anyone but him.
But his old coach, who is once again his new coach, grinned widely when asked about the kicker’s transfer back from Wisconsin.
“Man, it’s good to have him back,” Arkansas coach Sam Pittman said. “He has to sit out a year because of double transfer. But yeah, good to have him back.”
Calvaruso was Arkansas’ kickoff specialist in 2021, botting 63 of his 74 kicks for touchbacks. The former five-star recruit wanted a shot at scoring, though, and Cam Little had that duty wrapped up for the Razorbacks. Calvaruso took off for Wisconsin after the season to try to win the Badgers’ job.
For whatever reason, Wisconsin didn’t even use him on kickoffs, instead getting only 32 touchbacks on 68 kicks between two others. It was enough to make Calvaruso return to Fayetteville, anyway.
Little remains the Razorbacks primary placekicker and will have another year of eligibility in 2024. Calvaruso may have another shot after that and could even get his old gig back as soon as next year, too.
“I think he could have two (years of eligibility remaining),” Pittman said. “He could possibly have, I wonder this year, it makes him lose his COVID year so he should have two.”
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