free kick question

[waltjp]

Originally posted by kentref
K is lined up in a free kick formation on their 40 yd line. K12's kick is a line drive that hits R50, who is on the 50 yd line, in the shoulder pads and bounces nearly straight up in the air. The ball never breaks the plane of R's free kick line. As the ball comes down, several K players block R50 and R25 from catching the ball, while K18 catches the ball in flight on K's 48 yard line and is downed there.

Note: the ball never went past R's free kick line and never touched the ground.

Ruling?

I saw this happen in a pop warner game a couple years ago. The kicker kicked a low line drive that bounced off the middle up man's helmet and flew directly back to a K player who caught it in the air.