Michael Kern is taking his talents to the west coast
Former Longhorns punter Michael Kern is taking his talents to the West Coast. After entering the transfer portal a few weeks ago, he committed to the University of California on Monday. He joins the Bears after a solid freshman year with Texas.
During the 2024 campaign, Kern averaged 41.7 yards per punt. His longest kick went 57 yards, and 10 were caught inside the 20. While Kern was productive when called upon, he missed the season's final two games. His role became unclear when the Longhorns added Utah transfer Jack Bouwmeester in the transfer portal.
Coming out of high school, Kern was ranked as the fourth-best punter in his class. In his final season at St. Thomas Aquinas High School, the Florida native punted 25 times for 1,158 yards, averaging 46.3 yards per punt. Due to his stellar play, Kern was also named to the Under Armour All-American Bowl.
Although his Longhrons career ended earlier than expected, Kern impressed coaches during his tenure. At spring practices, his play stood out to head coach Steve Sarkisian.
"Talented room of specialists for sure," Sarkisian said. "Michael Kern, have seen a definite big uptick in him. He's healthy to go along with Jack, and both those guys can bomb the ball. And when you punt the ball and it's a weapon for you, we felt that a couple different years with (Ryan) Sanborn and (Cameron) Dicker when they were at a high level, and flipping the field and things of that nature. So feel good there."
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As Kern adjusts to a new system, he will have to battle for playing time. His competition includes Brook Honore, who was also signed out of the transfer portal. If Kern can continue to build on his play in the spring, he should get a decent amount of playing time with the Bears.
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