A team went for it on 4th and 2. The QB fumbled the snap and the ball went forward past the first down marker and was recovered by an offensive lineman. The refs gave the offense a first down. Can a fumble be advanced on 4th down when recovered by someone other than the fumbler?! Thanks in advance for any help.

In HS (FED rules), absolutely. There is never a situation when an accidental FUMBLE cannot be advanced by any player on either team.

College rules may (and do) vary.

So do the NFL rules, thanks to Kenny Stabler! :)

technical nit pick, but the QB does not fumble a snap. He "Muffs" a snap and therefore it is considered to a grounded backward pass that happens to have rolled forward.
Anyone can recover and advance this loose ball.

I don't think it's a nitpick at all. Big difference in NCAA rules, isn't it?

Rich

Yes, it would be a huge difference. While I don't rule out the wing officials knowing, I would hope the Ref has positive visual knoweldge that the reason for the loose ball is a fumble or mishandled snap.
It would be my guess that about 98% of snaps where the ball is now on the ground was the result of a muffed QB/center exchange.

I'll only bag a loose ball when I know it's a fumble.

Absolutely right about the bean bag. It is a terrible habit that some guys have about bagging those missed snapper/QB exchanges. They are backward passes and a bag suggests they are fumbles, not muffs. No need for the bag at all!!!

Excellent point. I will remember that. Thanks TXMike also for the proper mechanics clue.