ATHENS, Ga. — The XFL kickoff system is coming to the NFL. And that means college football may not be far behind.
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart, a member of the college football rules committee, said he and others in the game are looking to make the kickoff more relevant while also making it safer. So they will follow the new NFL rule, which was approved on Tuesday.
“I think the NFL is the model. They know what they want. They know what they’re trying to do,” Smart said Tuesday. “And they’re going to get it right, and then hopefully we can look into it ourselves, if the kickoff is not part of our game.”
It has become less part of the college game, just like the NFL. Concerns about safety led to both leagues to move kickoffs up to the 35-yard line, resulting in more touchbacks but less excitement for the play.
The touchback percentage on kickoffs at the FBS level has increased starkly in the past five years, per TruMedia:
- 2023: 49.6 percent
- 2022: 49 percent
- 2021: 47.6 percent
- 2020: 41.2 percent
- 2019: 43.6 percent
Seeking a balance, the XFL devised the kickoff rule two years ago, which the NFL has now adopted:
- Kickoffs are still from the 35 but now 10 players on the kicking team line up at the opposing 40-yard line while the receiving team lines up nine players at its own 35, with two players lined up downfield as returners.
- The kickoff team can’t move until the ball lands inside the 20-yard line.
- Touchbacks are now moved to the receiving team’s 30.
The motivation is to have a returnable kick but without players sprinting downfield, which has led to severe injuries in the past.
Georgia is well aware of that, having seen an opposing player, Devon Gales at Southern University, paralyzed when hit on a kickoff during a 2015 game. Pulled muscles are also more prevalent on kickoffs, thanks to sprinting, another reason coaches embraced changes to the rules.
But the lack of kickoffs has had drawbacks. Less drama, of course. But Smart also pointed to the development of younger players, who get used to the speed of the game on special teams. That was a concern at both the college and NFL levels.
“Charlie Woerner, Nakobe Dean, their first year they had 10 times more snaps on special teams than their (normal) position,” Smart said, naming two of his players who went on to the NFL. “But those snaps now are irrelevant because of the fair catch or touchback. So if you want to develop your roster you need to have special teams to develop them. We feel the same way. I develop my roster through special teams. If a guy last year started on all the (special teams) units, (he) will probably start at a position this year. So you need those plays to be a part of it. But you need them to be safe.”
Smart said the kickoff concerns came up in joint meetings between NFL and college personnel. They cited the stark increase in touchbacks, as well as fewer punts being returned, thanks to punters getting so good at hang time. There aren’t any major proposals right now to encourage more returnable punts, but the NFL is hoping it has a good plan for kickoffs. Smart and those at the college level will be watching it this year.
“I did see a picture about how they are lining them up (with the new rule),” Smart said. “They discussed that with us, and that’s going to create less violent blows. The way I understood it, it’s also going to be a reward for you returning it or a punishment for you kicking it out of the end zone. It’s going to promote you kicking the ball in the field of play because if you kick the ball out the end zone, now the ball comes further out.”
(Photo of Josh Turbyville: Saul Young / News Sentinel / USA Today)
2024-03-27 04:00:04
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