Can You Return a Blocked Extra Point in College Football?
A blocked field goal can potentially change the course of an entire game, but can you return a blocked extra point in college football?
Yes, you can return a blocked extra point in college football. Returning a blocked extra point in college football requires the defense to successfully block a field goal, recover it, and run it all the way back to the offense’s end zone, resulting in two points being awarded.
After extensively researching NCAA guidelines and regulations, I have gathered enough information to determine if you can return a blocked extra point in college football. In this article, we’ll be taking a closer look at the rules applied to returning blocked extra points in college football based on NCAA regulations.
What is a Blocked Extra Point in College Football?
An extra point also known as a conversion is the opportunity for the offense to score an additional point after a touchdown.
After the offense gets their 6 points, they are allowed to try for a field goal, which would give them one extra point.
This can be a critical part of any football game, as just one or two points won some of the most legendary games of all time.
However, the defense can technically block this extra point to prevent the offense from scoring a field goal.
The NFL and NCAA both have specific rules for how a field goal must be blocked, but this is ultimately a common strategy used in all football leagues.
Can You Return a Blocked Extra Point in College Football?
Returning a blocked extra point in college football is very uncommon, but it does happen from time to time.
For a field goal to be legally blocked, the defense needs to take extreme measures to execute its strategy correctly, and the circumstances need to be perfect for them to pull it off.
With that said, yes, you can return a blocked extra point in college football. To successfully return a blocked extra point, the defense must legally block the field goal and then return the ball all the way to the other side into the offense’s end zone.
Achieving a legitimate blocked field goal that results in the ball being run back is very rare given that the defense must run the entire field without getting tackled.
However, doing so does award the defense an additional two points, on top of blocking the single point from the offense.
What Are the Rules for Blocking a Field Goal in College Football?
The NCAA rule book is dense, to say the least, but they do an excellent job of highlighting exactly what is allowed during a blocked field goal.
Compared to the NFL, college football has a different set of rules for how to approach field goals. This can become rather complicated given that there are so many different ways that field goals can be blocked.
Depending on the strategy that the defense goes with, field goals can be successfully blocked using a number of methods so long as they stay within the lines of the NCAA’s regulations.
The problem with this is that the defense can use certain circumstances to their advantage, which puts the offense in a disposition.
To ensure that games run smoothly and that each team has a fair chance, the NCAA has laid out specific rules based on the conditions for how filed goals are blocked.
Keep the following rules in mind when assessing the legality of a blocked field goal in college football.
Snapper Contact
The snapper’s job is to hike the ball to the holder before the kicker attempts to go for a field goal.
For a blocked field goal to be legitimate, the snapper needs to be given at least one second after the ball is snapped before contact can be made.
This is to ensure that the snapper is at least given a moment of opportunity to hike the ball before being charged.
However, if the snapper initiates any kind of contact with the defense, they are immediately vulnerable.
Boosting Teamates
A common violation in college football is when a player attempts to boost another teammate to try to block a field goal.
Boosting players or using another player to jump off of or elevate oneself is strictly prohibited and will result in a violation.
This would give the defense an unfair height advantage and could easily result in an obscene number of blocked field goal attempts in games.
Players who violate this rule will be hit with a 15-yard penalty, which can be a tragic position for the defense so close to the end zone.
Roughing Kicker or Holder
Unless the defense successfully blocks the kick, they are not allowed to rough the kicker or holder beforehand.
The defense must alter the kick before they are allowed to engage the kicker or holder based on the NCAA’s regulations.
Can You Return a Blocked Extra Point in the NFL?
One of the most confusing things about blocking field goals is how differently the NFL and NCAA approach this regulation.
In college football, players can officially return a blocked extra point, which would score the defense two points.
Whereas in the NFL, a blocked extra point cannot be returned. The NFL’s rules on this matter have led to a lot of mistakes being made by college players and it can also leave a lot of college football fans feeling lost.
However, rules are rules and the NFL specifically does not allow blocked field goals to be returned. Based on what the NFL dictates, a point can never be scored by the defense after a try.
When the defense gets possession of the ball, the down would be officially over. In addition, if the ball is blocked and it goes past the line of scrimmage, the down is also over.
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Key Takeaways
- The NCAA states that you can return a blocked extra point in college football.
- Returning a blocked extra point requires the defense to successfully block a field goal, recover it, and run it all the way back to the offense’s end zone, resulting in two points being awarded.
- A blocked extra point cannot be returned in the NFL.