It is not overly strange to see college football players seemingly faking injuries, especially on the defensive side of the ball. While these are often scrutinized unfairly when it turns out that, well, the injury is real, defensive players are often instructed (or simply use their own thought) to hit the turf in order to stop the bleeding against a fast-paced offense.
On Saturday, a new form of this activity emerged during the game between TCU and Iowa State. An Iowa State player seemingly believed he needed to leave the field in order to avoid a participation penalty and he was (very) offsides in the process.
Instead of burning a timeout, he slammed on the breaks and hit the turf.
Somehow, this behavior worked and fooled the officiating crew, which did not assess a penalty for the Cyclones or even give Iowa State a timeout. In the end, Iowa State was able to hold up defensively on that particular drive and, while this play was not the inherent cause, the Cyclones were also able to upend TCU with an upset win in Ames.
It was sneakily brilliant to (apparently) fake an injury here and it ended up working out beautifully for the home team.
You Might Also Like
Big 12
Here's the bench-clearing brawl that caused everyone to get an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty
By Brad RowlandOhio State
Jim Harbaugh blasted the "outrageous calls" from officials after the Michigan-Ohio State game
By Brad RowlandCollege Football
Paul Finebaum talks the one coach who doesn’t get enough credit as “one of the best”
By Brad RowlandCollege Football
An errant pass struck this unsuspecting official in the face and hilarity ensued
By Brad RowlandncG1vNJzZmiekaOvtsbZZ5qopV%2BYvK24xKCcZp6fpMGjrculZqKnp5Z6tMDArZxmqJyWxqa%2BjJ%2BYpJ2jYravttSrsGaumZmysHnTnKxmmZOptq%2Bzjg%3D%3D