Scrimmage kick mess!

[Illini_Ref]

You are saying that ANY kick going into the endzone is a touchback?

Then why do we define a new force?

If R provides a new force and then falls on the ball in the EZ, would not that be a safety? Otherwise, who cares who created the force?

Without the rule book in front of me I cannot quote the section, but, it does say that the responsibility for forcing the ball across a goal line belongs to the team who kicked the ball, UNLESS a new force is supplied by R. That would imply that a new force by R, makes it responsible for putting the ball in the EZ. If that happens to be THEIR EZ, then it is a safety if it beocmes dead in their possession there.

[mbyron]

Originally Posted by Illini_Ref

You are saying that ANY kick going into the endzone is a touchback?

Then why do we define a new force?

If R provides a new force and then falls on the ball in the EZ, would not that be a safety? Otherwise, who cares who created the force?

Yes, any kick that goes into the EZ is a touchback. A kick does not end until it is possessed.

We define a new force to determine the outcome when the ball enters the EZ after the kick has ended.

[Illini_Ref]

I guess I am hung up on the section that says that if R muffs a grounded scrimmage kick, then it provides a new force. I read that to mean that if R muffs a grounded kick then they provide a new force.

[Illini_Ref]

Nevermind, I found what I needed. The whole force thing on a kick only applies to K's EZ.

[kdf5]

2-13-4...Force is not a factor:

a. On kicks going into R’s end zone, since these kicks are always a touchback regardless of who supplied the force.

[Texas Aggie]

K punts. The punt hits the ground and R plays it on a hop. R muffs the ball (new force on a grounded kick). Ball is rolling towards R's goal line. K then muffs the ball at the 2 and it rolls into the endzone where it is recovered by K.

This play is a touchDOWN under NCAA rules, and force or impetus has nothing to do with it. K is possessing a live ball behind their opponent's goal line -- TD. The only way this could possibly be a touchBACK is if R possessed or recovered the ball or the ball went out of bounds behind the goal line.

I had this play last year.

So is this different from Fed?

[Welpe]

Aggie, yes very different in Fed. A free or scrimmage kick breaking the plane of R's oal line is always a touchback, even if muffed by either team. The ball is dead as soon s it breaks the plane.