Wisc/Mich 4th and short
I saw this play yesterday in the Wisconsin/Michigan game. I apologize if I mis-describe it in any way.
Wisconsin had it 4/1 at about the Michigan 40. They line up for a punt. The punter then moves forward to under center (so far, so good). The punter then yells a signal (hut, go, etc.). When he yells this he does not make a move out from under the center, but he puts emphasis on it (i.e. you can see his upper body and shoulders make a small move forward and back). The bigger issue is that on this signal, the 5 interior lineman move very suddenly from a 2 point stance down to 3/4 point stances. They had not done this throughout the game. Michigan D-linemen then came across and made contact. The ruling was encroachment, 5 yds., and a FD for Wisc.
The announcers (please don't stop reading!) called it good coaching, which I guess is true since A got a FD out of it. My concern is that A's only intent to draw B offsides, and the foul should have been on A.
No rooting interest here. Just curious as to folks' comments on this. Anyone else see it, and, if so, what is your impression of this?
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