BC vs. Vandy muffed punt

[merlin]

I was having this argument with a buddy. I was saying that the force which put the ball in the end zone was the kick and so it should be a touchback.(in NF) I was not aware of a difference with the NCAA rule.

[Theisey]

Originally Posted by merlin

I was having this argument with a buddy. I was saying that the force which put the ball in the end zone was the kick and so it should be a touchback.(in NF) I was not aware of a difference with the NCAA rule.

NCAA: it would be an automatic touch-back if it was untouched by a team-B player in the field of play.

Anytime a team-B player touches the scrimmage kick and subsequently muffs the ball either into or in the end zone, any team-B player must recover the ball before it becomes a touchback. Should a team-A player recover the ball, it becomes a touchdown.

Yes, this is a significant difference between NF and NCAA rules as it pertains to scrimmage kicks into the team-B endzone.
Just one of the over 200 plus categories of differences.

[Forksref]

Originally Posted by Theisey

NCAA: it would be an automatic touch-back if it was untouched by a team-B player in the field of play.

Anytime a team-B player touches the scrimmage kick and subsequently muffs the ball either into or in the end zone, any team-B player must recover the ball before it becomes a touchback. Should a team-A player recover the ball, it becomes a touchdown.

Yes, this is a significant difference between NF and NCAA rules as it pertains to scrimmage kicks into the team-B endzone.
Just one of the over 200 plus categories of differences.

Is it also true that on a free kick that hasn't touched the ground, it can be returned out of the EZ in NCAA?

[Texas Aggie]

Yes, its true.

Frankly, the Fed rule here is bizarre.

[Welpe]

Originally Posted by Texas Aggie

Frankly, the Fed rule here is bizarre.

It is actually pretty simple and makes enforcement simple. A legal kick always retains its status as a kick until it ends (such as the ball being recovered or becoming dead). This leads to the axiom "A kick is a kick until it is no longer a kick."

In Fed, a kick that breaks the plane of R's goal line is ALWAYS a touchback. You don't need to worry about a new impetus being imparted on the ball, or situations regarding when the receiving team may and may not advance the ball out of the endzone. It is all a moot point in Fed.

[Theisey]

Originally Posted by Forksref

Is it also true that on a free kick that hasn't touched the ground, it can be returned out of the EZ in NCAA?

Correct..

[Texas Aggie]

In Fed, a kick that breaks the plane of R's goal line is ALWAYS a touchback.

So a punter, K1, standing at his own 3 gets his punt blocked by R1 and the ball goes backwards into the end zone, it is a touchback?

[Welpe]

Originally Posted by Texas Aggie

So a punter, K1, standing at his own 3 gets his punt blocked by R1 and the ball goes backwards into the end zone, it is a touchback?

No, of course not. Your example is a kick that goes into K's endzone. If the ball becomes dead in the endzone it will either be a touchdown or a safety.

[BktBallRef]

Originally Posted by Texas Aggie

So a punter, K1, standing at his own 3 gets his punt blocked by R1 and the ball goes backwards into the end zone, it is a touchback?

You answered your own question. K1 is standing in K's end zone, not R's end zone.

In the International Bowl, there have been two more kicks that were muffed into the end zone, by UConn. On the punt, Buffalo was able to recover for a TD. On the kickoff, the UConn player recovered and ran it out of the EZ where he fumbled inside the 5.

[bossman72]

The same play happened in the Uconn - Buffalo game and I was wondering the same thing.

Question on another play they had - On a kickoff, the Uconn player muffed the ball on the 10 and the ball rolled into the endzone where he picked it up and ran it out. This would be a touchback if he would have taken a knee there, correct?

[Bob M.]

Originally Posted by Forksref

Is it also true that on a free kick that hasn't touched the ground, it can be returned out of the EZ in NCAA?

REPLY: And on scrimmage kicks as well. And notice that on free kicks caught in the end zone, the R doesn't start the clock until the runner crosses the goal line coming out.