Everyone talking about Texas's special teams being a problem for 2026 is cherry-picking the wrong numbers. The Longhorns finished 67th in punt return average last season at just 6.2 yards per return and that looks bad on paper, but the coverage units were actually solid. Texas allowed only 7.1 yards per punt return which ranked 29th nationally. The real issue was the kicking game where they hit just 76% of field goals, which was 81st in FBS. That cannot happen again if this team has playoff aspirations. But here is the part nobody wants to admit. The Longhorns ranked 15th in net punting average at 42.3 yards per punt, which means the field position battle was actually winning more often than people think. The return game just never broke one open. Texas had zero punt return touchdowns and only one kick return touchdown all year. That is the single biggest area for improvement and it is completely fixable with the athletes Sark has been stacking in these recruiting classes. The 2026 schedule has Texas traveling to Georgia and hosting Alabama. Those games will be decided by one or two possessions. A missed field goal or a muffed punt changes everything. The staff knows this. That is why they have been prioritizing specialists in the portal and using spring practice to revamp the return schemes. If Texas jumps from 67th to top 30 in punt return efficiency, that is worth an extra win in the SEC schedule imo.