Caden Kitler comfortable in Arkansas’ scheme

FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas went searching for a center when Addison Nichols entered the transfer portal and the search took them to UCF where Caden Kitler was also leaving.

Kitler, 6-3, 306, is a redshirt junior who transferred to Arkansas from UCF where he played for Gus Malzahn. Kitler played high school football at The Colony (Texas) John Paul II prior to heading to Orlando, Fla. Prior to Tuesday’s practice, Kitler talked about the recruiting process that saw him land at Arkansas.

“One of the main goals for me in the portal was to get a little closer to home,” Kitler said. “I’m a Texas kid so family is really big for me. So the SEC there’s lot of schools that are closer to Texas than Florida. So that was a big drawing factor to here. Coach (Eric) Mateos has coached a lot of great centers in his career, so just seeing that on his resume, coupled with the fact that Arkansas is a four-hour drive from my house and it’s in the SEC really drew me here.”

Before he could head to Arkansas he had to tell Malzahn, who is now the offensive coordinator at Florida State, that he was going to be a Razorback.

“Gus was recruiting me at Florida State, so when I told him I was interested in Arkansas, he didn’t have any bad things to say about it,” Kitler said. “He still loves the school. So yeah. He was excited for me at the end of the day when I ended up telling him I was coming here.”

Kitler has been through six practices with the Razorbacks with Tuesday marking the seventh.

“The hardest part about transferring is learning a new language,” Kitler said. “All of the calls in this O-line room are completely different from my old O-line room, so that’s been the hardest part. Adjusting to the culture and learning his technique, completely different. I’m enjoying it. I think it’s better suited for my skill set instead of where I was at.

“UCF was very inside zone based. Here, it’s a lot of pin-and-pull, wide zone, so I’m running a lot more. I feel like I’m more athletic than I showed within the past couple of years because I really couldn’t do anything else just because of the style of offense I was in. Now we’re running a lot more, so I’m excited to show what I can do this year.”

Kitler has impressed defensive tackle Ian Geffrard who he goes against in practice.

“I’d say for him, with Caden, he’s twitchy, he’s fast, really laterally,” Geffrard said. “It’s something I have to work on personally. But if it’s, like, stretch and I’m in a zero, then it’s something I really have to work on on not getting cut out. And then also, he’s really good with his hands, too. If I’m trying to get my hands inside, he’s pretty much just already there, which is funny because my arms are longer, too. But sometimes he’ll get me, other times he won’t, but it’s good competition at the end of the day.”

Fernando Carmona is one of the leaders of the offensive line. He started at left tackle last season, but has moved inside to left guard this spring.

“Yeah, we kind of clicked instantly,” Carmona said. “It was one of those relationships. So he’s a great person, and I’d like to think of myself as a vet too now, just at a different school. So we kind of have that same mindset on what we want the line to look like. So just having two similar mindsets in the interior, it really helps the whole line.”

Being the center Kitler has a good relationship with quarterback Taylen Green.

“He’s an expert at what he does, or at least he tries to be,” Kitler said. “So, you know, that’s inspiring with me getting in the playbook and everything like that. So, he’s always grinding, always working on his craft, always watching film, doing something to help the team. So just seeing that, you know, me and Taylen met a long time ago, so he helped me in the recruitment process as well. So, just his commitment to the game is honestly inspiring and it makes me want to do better as well.”

Kitler was asked if he knew Green prior to the portal.

“I met him on my visit to Boise State in high school,” Kitler said. “One of my five official visits was Boise State, UCF, whatever. I ended up choosing UCF, but I met him on that official and we’ve been in contact since. I actually stayed with him first couple weeks here— because there were people that are in my house— that I currently have. Seeing him away from football as well was really big in that relationship process.” 

Arkansas’ spring game will be Saturday, April 19, at 1 p.m.