USC kicker Parker Lewis ejected for targeting on first play vs. Stanford

For whatever reason, USC kicker Parker Lewis wears jersey number 48, and on the opening play against Stanford, perhaps he thought he was a linebacker. The sophomore kicker from Phoenix booted the ball to the Stanford Cardinal to open Saturday night’s game, and when he tried to tackle returner Nathaniel Peat, who took the ball 27 yards to his own 32-yard line… well, he got busted for what appears to be the dictionary definition of targeting. Lewis led with his helmet, and through the NCAA does not officiate this consistently at all, especially when asked to do so in the hands of #Pac12Refs, the #Pac12Refs got this one right.

The penalty put the ball at the Stanford 47-yard line, and though the Cardinal didn’t score on that drive, they got the first touchdown of the game when Peat broke off this 87-yard run with 9:16 left in the first quarter.

As far as we’re aware, Lewis is the first kicker ever ejected under the NCAA’s targeting rules, though Liberty punter Aidan Alves was kicked out of a 2018 game against Army for this boneheaded tackling attempt.

So. As it turns out, Parker Lewis can lose, and let’s be careful out there, you punters and kickers.