Kitler Named to Rimington Trophy Watch List

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Arkansas redshirt junior offensive lineman Caden Kitler has been named to the Rimington Trophy Preseason Watch List, the Boomer Esiason Foundation announced Friday.

The Rimington Trophy is presented annually to the most outstanding center in NCAA Division I College Football. Since its inception in 2000, the award has raised over $5 million for the Boomer Esiason Foundation.

Kitler arrives on The Hill after spending the first three seasons of his collegiate career at UCF, where he appeared in 17 games while making 13 starts. In 2024, Kitler started all 11 games for the Knights while helping pave the way for an offense that averaged 447.8 yards per contest. Behind Kitler’s blocking, UCF averaged 248.1 rushing yards per contest and strung together four games of 500+ yards of total offense. Kitler also posted a 79.1 pass-blocking grade according to Pro Football Focus.

Dave Rimington, the award’s namesake, was a consensus first-team All-America center at the University of Nebraska in 1981 and 1982. During that time, he became the John Outland Trophy’s only two-time winner as the nation’s finest college interior lineman.

The Rimington Trophy is a member of the National College Football Awards Association. Founded in 1997, the NCFAA includes college football’s most prestigious awards and its 25 awards have honored more than 950 recipients dating back to 1935.

Head Coach Sam Pittman and the Hogs opened preseason practice last week with the first of 25 practices leading into the season opener. The Razorbacks kick off the 2025 season on Saturday, Aug. 30, when they welcome Alabama A&M to Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium for a 3:15 p.m. matchup on SEC Network.

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