The transfer portal has become a mess for the last few weeks. Players come and go in a blink of an eye. The growing allurement of NIL money constantly flips talents from one school to another. On the one hand, some coaches see a silver lining in their next year’s lineup after a failed season, on the other hand, some coaches grieve their high-rated athletes’ departure. ECU head coach Blake Harrell had landed in the second category as his Steller punter announced a big career move this week. The East Carolina Pirates had a whirlwind season, capping off with a 7-5 record, including a 5-3 mark in the ACC. They will head to the off-season and a brand new 2025 roster without their oldest punter on the team.

Luke Larsen has not been just the oldest standout punter for East Carolina University, he has been taking the college football world to storm. At 31 years of age, he is delivering, setting a pristine record for net punting average at 38.70 yards per game. His ups and downs and continuous resilience shine through his incredible journey. He can play up to 33 in the schools before taking it to the pro. But his time at East Carolina University has visibly come to an end. CBSSports spilled that Larsen will hit the portal as a grad student. He’s currently finishing his MBA in Greenville at the university.

The Australia native originally joined forces with East Carolina Pirates under head coach Mike Houston in 2020. In 2021, he backed up Jonn Young and suited up in one game with five punts and two downed inside the 20-yard line.

From 2022, Larsen started to turn the tides at the starting gig, appearing in all 13 games. He punted 44 times for a 40.4-yard average with three touchbacks and 14 punts landed inside the 20-yard line. The 6-foot-2 has played in 13 games for the Pirates in 2024, putting together 52 punts with two touchbacks and 15 punts downed inside the 20-yard line.

However, in case you wonder what allowed the prodigy of the extended years in college, here is your tea.

Luke Larsen’s collegiate tenure extension: Explained

Larsen had a late start in his career. His childhood sport didn’t turn into a professional pursuit, making it a seamless transition to US football until he turned 28. His first season with the Pirates didn’t count against his NCAA eligibility.

He then decided to turn redshift in 2021 after suiting up in just one game. That made him one more season with the college. However, Larsen wants to wrap his collegiate career elsewhere. He has already been ranked 4th in franchise history, punting 174 times for a total of 7,099 yards. He could have chased the school record, but he was relentlessly finding a new home. It might be for the NIL money or something else, Larsen is clearly done with the Pirates.

At East Carolina, Luke Larsen bagged his bachelor’s degree in industrial distribution and logistics. He’ll shortly finish his graduate school coursework and is a six-time member of the ECU Director of Athletics Honor Roll. Wherever he lands next, it will be interesting to see how the rest of his college career pans out.