Nebraska punter kicks ball off teammate, Iowa returns it for TD (GIFs)
Down 17-7 to Iowa midway through the third quarter, Nebraska conducted a clinic on how not to execute a punt.
First, punter Sam Foltz dropped a perfect snap. He was able to collect the ball off the turf, but as he got off a punt, he kicked the ball directly off the backside of one of his blockers – No. 72 Zach Hannon, a 6-foot-5, 305-pound lineman.
As Foltz took a big hit, the ball deflected high in the air and flew 15 yards backwards. It took a nice hop for the Hawkeyes and 6-foot-4, 270-pound defensive lineman Drew Ott scooped up the loose ball for an Iowa touchdown.
Since he kicked the ball off a teammate and it wasn’t technically blocked by Iowa, Foltz’s gaffe went down in the box score as a negative 31-yard punt and a 12-yard return for Ott.
Things would get better for the Huskers later on in the ballgame. Nebraska rallied to score 31 of the game's final 41 points to win 37-34 in overtime.
For more Nebraska news, visit HuskerOnline.com.
For more Iowa news, visit HawkeyeReport.com.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
