Michael Dickson developing into weapon for Texas

Photo Credit: The Daily Texan

*Originally published on ArmchairAllAmericans.com*

It’s no secret that Charlie Strong’s Texas Longhorns teams have had difficulty on special teams during the past few seasons. After years of consistency from the likes of Anthony Fera and Justin Tucker, it has not been easy for the Longhorns to find replacements that consistently perform up to expectations.

However, the answer to some of these inconsistencies seems to have found Texas in the form of sophomore Australian-born punter Michael Dickson. Although he has had his share of inconsistencies during his young career, thus far this season he has been a force for the Longhorn’s special teams unit.

With an up and down freshman season in 2015 behind him, Dickson has bounced back early this season to provide Texas with a much needed difference maker on special teams. Through three games Dickson is averaging a booming 50.4 yards per punt, which ranks him 3rd nationally.

Dickson originally came to Texas in 2015 as a product of ProKick Australia, an academy that specializes in tutoring Aussie rules football players in order to help them transition to American football. As he describes it, when he arrived on campus last summer he had “only really been punting for six months.” Now that he is on campus however, it looks as though Charlie Strong is one step closer to cleaning up the poor special teams play that has been showcased for the last two years.

Special teams errors have been a recurring theme during Coach Strong’s tenure, with several of the errors being severe enough to lose games for the Horns. In 2014, Texas had to kick-off to start both halves against UCLA because of a mistake by the captains during the coin toss. This extra possession ended up being the difference maker as the Bruins would win by a field goal. And then in the Red River game against OU, Texas would concede a kick-off return touchdown that would prove to be the difference in a 31-26 loss.

The 2015 season had some similar special teams breakdowns that turned some toss-up games into losses. Of course no one can forget Jerrod Heard’s record-breaking performance against Cal being spoiled by a missed game-tying extra point by Nick Rose. This was followed a week later by what would prove to be the low moment of the season for Dickson, as Texas took on Oklahoma State. Late in the fourth quarter of a tied game, Dickson bobbled a snap which led to perfect field position for the Cowboys to kick a game-winning field goal. Talking about the error now, the Aussie says he tries not to dwell on the past, but says he does use it as motivation.

“I try not to think about it, but I don’t forget about it,” he said. “It’s disappointing that it happened, but I feel like it’s going to help me in the long run. It makes me not take anything for granted.”

Now with a full offseason of practice under his belt, Dickson has developed into a fantastic punter for the Longhorns. He is beginning to establish himself as an elite weapon for Charlie Strong’s team, as showcased in the Notre Dame and UTEP games thus far. Even as Texas has seen its share of struggles early in the season, Dickson’s strong leg has been a net plus for Texas in the all-important third phase of the game.

Having a punter that can flip field position on an opponent is tremendously advantageous, especially for a coach like Strong who values ball control and having a fresh defense as much as he does.

With this likely being a make-or-break year for Strong, winning the special teams battle will be crucial if Texas hopes to win those toss-up games that have gone the other way over the past two seasons. But with Dickson booming punts and winning the field position battle for the Horns, Strong has to feel good about his chances.