Quote:
Originally Posted by AUgrad2006
Techinically, it is still a kick because a kick is defined (2-24-1) as "the intentional striking of the ball with the knee, lower leg, or foot." However, the rules pertaining to kicks and the action/status of the ball during kicks pertain specifically to free kicks or scrimmage kicks. By rule, a free kick (2-24-3) and a scrimmage kick (2-24-4) are both legal kicks.
And per 2-24-9, "When the ball is loose following an illegal kick, it is treated as a fumble." The biggest difference this makes is that the ball is still live when it enters the end zone, as B can recover and run it out and A can score a TD (which would be nullified by the penalty). And obviously in the OP, it is a touchback because the ball went out of the back of the end zone.
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So then, it's not a kick in the sense that it's not one of the 2 legal kicks - free or scrimmage, the player has simply "kicked" the ball? That seems to make the most sense according to the way it's treated. If it were a "kick" then we would have to apply the appropriate kicking rules, such as "being dead when it crossed the goal line. But b/c it wasn't a "kick," it is still a loose ball, treated like any other loose ball that is not a kick.