Hours after an online senior day celebration for the Robert Morris football team on Saturday, defensive tackle Victor Solarin stated that he is entering the transfer portal for his graduate senior season.

https://twitter.com/SolarinVictor/status/1383587644186132484?s=20

Solarin announced his decision via Twitter. He joins four other Colonials who have elected to explore the portal: Daevon Robinson, Devyn Charles, Alex Avakian and Garrett Houser.

Colonial Sports Network spoke with Solarin about his time at RMU and what is in store for the next chapter of his playing career.

In his two seasons as a Colonial, Solarin appeared in eight games, and expressed that his time within the program was “great.”

The Newark, New Jersey native entered the program as a JUCO product after playing his first two seasons of collegiate football at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, California. During his first year with RMU, he became an integral member of the defensive line, helping the Colonials to an impressive 6-1 Northeast Conference record.

“My favorite moment was being a part of that 2019 winning season, [which was] something RMU hadn’t experienced since 2010,” Solarin said. “It felt great being a part of something big and contributing to that.”

As Bernard Clark and the Colonials returned to their winning ways in 2019, Solarin recorded 15 total tackles, including five solo tackles.

With the Colonials only competing in three games during the 2021 spring season, the six-foot-one defensive lineman registered five tackles and one quarterback hurry. Solarin believes he has many strong attributes to offer at his next school.

“Playing wise, I’m a strong, fast, quick-twitch lineman,” he said.

After traveling across the country to play on the West Coast for his first two seasons, then transferring to Moon Township for an additional stint, Solarin hopes to return to his roots for his final year of eligibility.

“My goal and heart desire is to transfer close to home and play for my state school, Rutgers University,” Solarin said.

Like many other schools across college athletics, Robert Morris has been no exception to the transfer portal crisis as Solarin is just another player of potentially many leaving the program throughout the offseason.