Texas vs Texas A&M WHAT JUST HAPPENED?

[BottlesOf]

The anouncers don't get it, and clearly neither do I.

Texas blocked a punt and ran it in the endzone while down 13-6.

With the score then 13-12, Texas's point after was flubbed and kicked towards the endzone. A&M recovers in the endzone and then fumbles. Texas recovers in the endzone for what is kind of like a pseudo-safety, or another touchdown /images/graemlins/confused.gif.

And somehow, they get 1 point. Huh?

[BottlesOf]

As I was finishing the last mesasge, they explained it. Anything that would normally be considered a safety (which that debacle was) that occurs on an extra point play is awarded one point not two.

[jstnrgrs]

I only saw on replay of the play later on, so I may not have seen this right, but it looks to me like on a normal play this would be a touchback. I don't see how that should be worth any points.

[pudley4]

I think what they say happened is:
<ul type="square"> A&amp;M "blocks" the kick (although a squirrel could have blocked that kick /images/graemlins/smile.gif )
A&amp;M then picks up the ball outside of the end zone, thus establishing posession.
The ball is still live, since in college you can return a PAT try for 2 pts.
A&amp;M then loses possession of the ball, it goes into the endzone and is recovered by A&amp;M.
Because they established possession outside of the endzone, it cannot be ruled a touchback; it's therefore a safety.[/list]
As JBB said, on a PAT try, the safety only counts as a single point (not sure why though, since the kicking team has the opportunity to score 2 pts by getting into the endzone so it's not like they're being rewarded by getting extra, unavailable pts...)

[daryn]

isn't this kinda like if you intercept the ball when the other team is going for 2? if you run it back to your endzone, you get 2 points.

[SuitedSixes]

One thing that no one knows, or at least ever does:
On a PAT attempt that is unsuccessful, the defense has the option of taking a kick off or the result of the play. For example, if A&amp;M blocked the PAT, and returned it to the end zone, it would be 2 points and they would receive the kick off, but if the defender, realizing a possible +EV opportunity (depends on the strength of your offense), stepped out of bounds at the Texas 1 yard line, they would be given the option of taking the ball at the Texas 1 with First and Goal to go, or having Texas kick off. No one knows this.

The other obscure rule is that if there a punt on the final play of a quarter (any quarter) and the receiving team calls for a fair catch, they are awarded a free kick (may place the ball on the tee, no snap, no opponent rush) for a FG. I have seen this once in the NFL.

When I was a football coach, we used to practice putting 3 punt returners back to call fair catch, because even a high school kid can make a 55+ yard field goal from a tee with no rush.

Also, if you drop kick a PAT (let the ball bounce then kick it) that's good for 2 points, if I remember correctly. We used to try and do that, but a football is just not designed to be bounced with any kind of predictability.

[PhatTBoll]

Not to be a dillsner, but...

[ QUOTE ]
One thing that no one knows, or at least ever does:
On a PAT attempt that is unsuccessful, the defense has the option of taking a kick off or the result of the play. For example, if A&amp;M blocked the PAT, and returned it to the end zone, it would be 2 points and they would receive the kick off, but if the defender, realizing a possible +EV opportunity (depends on the strength of your offense), stepped out of bounds at the Texas 1 yard line, they would be given the option of taking the ball at the Texas 1 with First and Goal to go, or having Texas kick off. No one knows this.

[/ QUOTE ]

NCAA Football Rulebook, Rule 8-3, Article 6:

"After a try, the ball shall be put in play by a kickoff or at the succeeding spot in extra periods. The team scoring the six-point touchdown shall kick off."

Rulebook link (http://www.ncaa.org/library/rules/2004/2004_football_rules.pdf)

Nothing about taking the ball at the result of the try.

Also, the free kick at the end of the half is only a rule in the NFL. It was placed there 5 years or so ago, and nobody seems to know why. It's not the rule in college ball.

Drop-kicking is also not worth any extra points. I think it might be in the Arena League and the CFL, but not in the NFL or NCAA.

I have no idea what the rules are for high school ball these days, so you may be right about that.

[jstnrgrs]

The fair catch kick (FCK) can be attempted on ANY fair catch. It's just that the end of the half is the only time anyone would want to atempt it. I don't know if this rule is only an NFL rule, but I do know that it has been in place for a long time. (Though they may have recently altered the rule to allow a FCK after time has expired for a half, I don't know.)

[PhatTBoll]

[ QUOTE ]
The fair catch kick (FCK) can be attempted on ANY fair catch. It's just that the end of the half is the only time anyone would want to atempt it.

[/ QUOTE ]

Nope.

Fair Catch Kick rule (http://ww2.nfl.com/fans/rules/faircatch.html)

The free kick can only be taken if time has expired. From the language I would assume this applies to the end of the quarter as well as the end of the half.

[jstnrgrs]

[ QUOTE ]


Quote:
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The fair catch kick (FCK) can be attempted on ANY fair catch. It's just that the end of the half is the only time anyone would want to atempt it.


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Nope.

Fair Catch Kick rule

The free kick can only be taken if time has expired. From the language I would assume this applies to the end of the quarter as well as the end of the half.

[/ QUOTE ]

Nope
The Real Fair Catch Kick rule (http://www.nfl.com/fans/rules/fairkick)

(Note the language about when to start the clock.)

The link you refered me to state that the kick MAY be taken if time expires. Not ONLY if time expired.

I agree that it appears that this provision aplies th the end of a quarter as well as the half.

[PhatTBoll]

Well, I'll be jiggered. Wonder why they decided not to put that in the Fair Catch section.