Texas Longhorns Kicker Bert Auburn Enters Transfer Portal

Texas Longhorns kicker Bert Auburn is hitting the transfer portal after struggling at the end of last season.

Jan 1, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Texas Longhorns place kicker Bert Auburn (45) after a victory over the Arizona State Sun Devils in the Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

AUSTIN -- The Texas Longhorns will officially have to find a new starting kicker for the 2025-26 season.

Texas kicker Bert Auburn announced on social media Thursday that he's entering the transfer portal after four years with the program. He exits as Texas' all-time leader in field goals made (66) and total points scored (376).

"Thank you Texas. Through all the ups and downs, these have been some of the best years," Auburn wrote on X. "It’s been an honor to be a longhorn! I will be entering the transfer portal with one year of eligibility remaining."

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said Monday that the kicking competition remained ongoing between Auburn and Will Stone, who took over place-kicking duties in the College Football Playoff Semifinal against Ohio State. Stone handled kickoff duties all of last season.

However, with the spring portal window now open, the Longhorns could look to add a new kicker to the fold while still giving Stone a chance to prove himself.

"From a kicking standpoint, trying to find that right rhythm of consistency when you when you have a competition going on, the protection is as important as even just the kick," Sarkisian said. "And so trying to work on that, and that'll be a big emphasis of ours as we continue to move forward. ... We haven't done enough. I think we'll start to really ramp it up here Wednesday. We've done it, we've done some, but now we've got to really start to ramp this thing up, to get a real gage on what it looks like."

Auburn finished the 2024 season 16 of 25 on field goals, with six of those misses coming in the final five games of the season. He ends his Texas career 66 of 86 on field goals with a long of 54 yards. He hit all 178 career extra point attempts and even caught a one-yard pass on a fake field goal in the win over Houston during the 2023 season.

The Longhorns didn't attempt a field goal against Ohio State but Stone knocked in both extra points for Texas in the 28-14 loss at the Cotton Bowl while Auburn sat the bench.