Sticky play (just to make sure)

[The Roamin' Umpire]

Originally posted by Theisey
Team-K players can NEVER advance a ball whose status is still a kick. As noted, the the status of a kicked ball remains a kick until team-R has secured possession or blown dead. If team-K does secure possession of a kicked ball, it's dead at that point.

The original situation is a free kick, for which your statement is true. Scrimmage kicks are another animal - if recovered beyond the NZ, your statement is still correct.

Scrimmage kicks recovered by K in or behind the NZ may be advanced (e.g. blocked punt).