The Florida Atlantic Owls have made a strong splash in the transfer portal, with football head coach Zach Kittley landing a huge addition to the quarterback position with Caden Veltkamp coming to Boca Raton.
Caden Veltkamp
Quarterback
6-6, 236 lbs
Transfer
Western Kentucky
Veltkamp announced his commitment to the Owls on Monday afternoon via X, shortly after entering the portal on Dec. 10. He joins FAU with two years of eligibility remaining.
He looks for a new opportunity after being a member of the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers for three seasons, rising in the ranks until becoming a star in Conference USA for the program.
Taking a redshirt in 2022, Veltkamp was thrusted into the lineup in last year’s bowl game and led the Hlltoppers to a dramatic 38-35 victory as the team came back from a 28-point deficit to Old Dominion. Veltkamp threw for 383 yards and five touchdowns in the thrilling postseason win.
The Kentucky native returned to Bowling Green in 2023 and lost a quarterback battle to Texas State transfer TJ Finley. However, an injury knocked Finley out of the lineup and Veltkamp regained the spot.
That was where Veltkamp became a force in the 2024 campaign. The redshirt sophomore ended the regular season passing for 2,806 yards on 8.0 yards per attempt with a 66.6 percent completion rate for 30 touchdowns. His success leading the Hilltoppers’ snaps helped lead WKU to the Conference USA Championship Game for the second time in four seasons.
His presence at FAU was quite noted, being at the newly named Flagler Credit Union Stadium for the annual Boca Raton Bowl on Dec. 18. His skillset was on full display, completing 25 of his 39 passes for 302 yards and two touchdowns against James Madison.
Veltkamp’s performances in 2024 garnered plenty of acclaim. He won CUSA Player of the Year as he was named the CUSA Offensive Player of the Week twice, has also been a Davey O’Brien Great 8 honoree, a Manning Star of the Week, and a member of the Davey O’Brien Quarterback Class of 2024.
He ranked first in CUSA in points responsible for, first in points responsible for per game, second in passing yards, first in passing touchdowns, second in completion percentage and second in efficiency. Nationally, Veltkamp ranked 21st in completion percentage, 25th in passing efficiency, 22nd in passing touchdowns, 15th in points responsible for and 17 in points responsible for per game.
Veltkamp was viewed as a consensus three-star prospect by recruiting outlets coming out of high school. On 247Sports, he has an 85 score as the 11th-best player in the state of Kentucky and the 68th-best quarterback in the Class of 2023. He had multiple offers from the likes of Kentucky, Akron, Indiana State, and Appalachian State among other schools before choosing Western Kentucky in July 2021.
When he entered the portal this month, he had an 83 rating as the 72nd-best quarterback and the 582nd-best player in the country.
With Veltkamp in, he joins an FAU quarterback room that consists of the returning Kasen Weisman and incoming freshman Jordan Magwood, paving the way for an intriguing battle for the starting job in 2025.
Some of his highlights from the 2024 season, specifically the Boca Raton Bowl, can be viewed below: