jts@brunix.UUCP (12/18/84)
After watching this past Sunday's Cards-'Skins game (a terrific one I might add) I got the idea for a new play. I call it the "onsides punt." It would be an offensive weapon used by a punting team. Generally, the receiving team turns and runs backward in order to get into position to block for their return man. Consequently, many players on the receiving team don't actually see the punt. A punter could take advantage of this by driving a low hard punt just over the heads of his own linemen in the hope that it would hit a player on the receiving team and become a live ball. I've seen this happen a few times on normal punts; the punt isn't caught on the fly and a wild bounce sends it careening off the leg of an unsuspecting blocker. This play would primarily be used when a team is in good field position and they're just a bit too far for a field goal. Even if the kick wouldn't hit an opposing player, it would probably take a good roll and end up around the 20 just like a booming punt for a touchback. What do you think? Bonus question: Suppose a team used this in the waning moments of a game and it worked (glanced off the leg of a receiving team player). Is it a change of possesion, i.e., would the clock be stopped? John Stasko ..!decvax!brunix!jts Brown U.
ables@cyb-eng.UUCP (King Ables) (12/20/84)
A short kick designed to bounce off of a defensive man as described
might work now and then, admittedly, the chances are better when
the punting team is watching for a short kick and a fumble, but trying
to kick the ball and have it hit one guy out of that whole area (22 guys
in a 50x50 yard area probably isn't all that easy) seems unlikely enough
that at least I wouldn't try it unless I were *Really* desperate.
As for the ruling on the play, it would be a change of posession
(the receiving team has to have possession of it in order to call it
a fumble if it touches them, right?). I'm not sure when possession
changes (at the top of the arc, when the ball leaves the punter's foot,
or when the receiver touches or catches it) but if it touches the
receiver and then the punting team covers it and you say there wasn't
a change of possession, you couldn't call it a fumble, either.
Q.E.D. :-)
-King
ARPA: ables%cyb-eng.UUCP@ut-sally.ARPA
UUCP: ...{ctvax,gatech,ihnp4,nbires,seismo,ucb-vax}!ut-sally!cyb-eng!ablesstudent@nmtvax.UUCP (12/21/84)
it was sugguested by jts@brunix.UUCP that > I got the idea for a new play. I call it the "onsides punt." It would >be an offensive weapon used by a punting team. >..... >....... > A punter could take advantage of this by driving >a low hard punt just over the heads of his own linemen in the hope that it >would hit a player on the receiving team and become a live ball. I've seen >this happen a few times on normal punts; the punt isn't caught on the fly and >.... > Is it a change >of possesion, i.e., would the clock be stopped? > >John Stasko >..!decvax!brunix!jts >Brown U. It is considered a "muff." If the team that punted recovers the ball they cannot advance the ball and there is a stoppage of time to change possesion. Sincerely; Greg Hennessy; ..ucbvax!unmvax!nmtvax!student