New Kicker Battle Is 'Tight' for the Miami Hurricanes

After years of experience behind the line with generational kickers, the Miami Hurricanes will have a new last name in the orange and green, taking extra points and field goals this season.

Mario Cristobal hit the transfer portal hard this offseason to try and plug in some of these holes, and one of the key players who was in the portal was a consistent kicker for the Texas Longhorns, Bert Auburn.

In his three seasons with the Longhorns, Auburn has missed 20 field goals and was a consistent kicker for the program that saw a lot of close game victories on his watch.

He is battling with FAU transfer Carter Davis, who specializes in kickoffs because of his inaccurate leg for field goals. However, if you ask Mario Cristobal, he knows that this race is tight between his two new kickers.

“It’s tight,” Cristobal said. “It’s tight. Strong legs, experience. Obviously, our snapper and holder, we think really highly of those guys. So, they’ve been instrumental in helping these guys get better at kicking. And today, we also kicked off, which is a huge part of winning the job as well. Who can kick it out of the end zone, if possible, on every opportunity. But it’s tight, it’s tight. We’re going to put them in every pressure situation as best we can. We’ll figure it out before Week 1.”

The Hurricanes don't have that sure-fire person like they had with the Jose and Andres Borregales, who are some of the all-time leading Hurricanes in the history of the program. Now the Hurricanes will look to trust a new duo that is still earning the trust of Cristobal day by day as the season quickly approaches.

That will be tested in the most important game of the season for the Hurricanes on opening night against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on August 31. Every point will matter in the game, from a PAT to a field goal. The Hurricanes will rely on the newly acquired special teams players, who will have an instant impact this season.

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Justice Sandle is a graduate of Mississippi State University and is the site lead for the Miami Hurricanes on SI. He can be reached at Twitter @Justice_News5.