Few plays in football demonstrate the true ferocity of the game itself more than the kickoff return.
The violent collisions at high speeds can have a devastating impact on players and in some cases can lead to long-term injury. As a result, the kickoff has been considered one of the most dangerous aspects of football. Officials at the college and professional levels weighing sweeping changes to try to the kickoff format.
In order to reduce the number of injuries at the college level, the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Committee recently approved new legislation that allows the team receiving a kickoff to call for a fair catch inside the 25-yard line and it would automatically be considered a touchback. The football would be placed back on the 25-yard line.
The NCAA hopes such changes will lead to a reduction in injuries during kickoff returns.
While everyone is in favor of making the game safer, some are unsure whether the new measure will lead to a significant reduction of injuries and others wonder if the play may eventually be eliminated.
"I would be very surprised if we don't see some change in that play in the near future in college football," ACC commissioner John Swofford said of kickoff returns following the league's annual spring meetings.
Arkansas coach Chad Morris adds, "I think it's going to be a game-changer in some regards."
This year's rule shift is the first kickoff return change since 2012, when NCAA moved the kickoff spot from the 30-yard line to the 35. It that's also when the starting point on touchbacks was moved up from the 20-yard line to the 25.
Those changes increased the number of touchbacks.
"What we've continued to see is the play still has a higher incident of injuries and what are the next step moves we could do to keep the play viable but make it safer for the players involved," said Steve Shaw, the NCAA secretary-rules editor.
The latest alterations were made after the Football Rules Committee examined data and determined that there are a higher number of injuries associated with the kickoff than any other play in the game. The group determined the best way to reduce the number of injuries was to add the fair catch element.
"You're certainly not going to eliminate all injuries, but you want to be as protective as you can without really changing the game," said Todd Berry, executive director of the American Football Coaches Association. The group is composed of football coaches from all different levels. "The rules committee that met felt like this was one of the cleanest ways to make a change and then adjust off of it."
The rules committee met with members of AFCA to hear their concerns and share ideas on the type of changes that could be made to the play before making adjustments.
However, some don't believe the new rule does enough to eliminate the potential for harm.
"I don't mind saying that I'm not the biggest fan of the rule," Stanford coach David Shaw said during the Pac-12 football teleconference. "I understand and appreciate the purpose and the intent behind it. ... Anything that is an attempt to make the game safer, I understand and to a certain degree, applaud.
"Field position is the basis of this game and to fair catch a ball and automatically move the ball up, was difficult for me to take."
Shaw said Stanford won't take advantage of the rule but won't fault those who do choose to use it.
Miami coach Mark Richt believes the decree will cut down on the number of high collisions, but he isn't sure how or if the Hurricanes will look to utilize the measure this season.
"I haven't even talked to Todd Hartley, our special team's coordinator on how we're going to handle that strategically from a return standpoint or even a kickoff standpoint," Richt said on the ACC teleconference last month. "It will be interesting to see what people do."
Richt said even if a team chooses to fair catch the football, there are still plenty of opportunities for high-speed collisions to take place among the blockers running up field, adding, "We're not sure if it's going to do what it's designed to do. We believe it's a higher-risk football."
Some coaches would like to see the NCAA go as far as to eliminate the practice of double-team blocking on kickoffs. Others believe teams with experienced kickers will just choose to squib or sky kicks in order to bypass the new rule.
Another long-term impact could come in the form of roster moves.
"The one thing you start looking at is scholarships and kickers now," Morris said of the changes. "Just trying to look ahead, you're just looking at a field goal kicker now because a field goal kicker can do everything from putting a high-pooch kick for a fair catch if you have to.
"How many kickers do you keep on scholarship now?"
The new kickoff rule was discussed among coaches during ACC spring meetings and while there numerous suggestions discussed, the group did vote on any formal recommendations.
"I think the push from here at this point in time is let's try to find something that works, that protects the players, even from the point of not having kickoffs," Swofford said of the coaches' conversations. "The absolute consensus was that it needs to change."
Eliminating the kickoff altogether may seem a radical solution, but there is support for it.
"Our coaches have had discussions and have contemplated eliminating the play, no question about it," Berry said of AFCA members. "... We would like to avoid that, but if that's the direction we need to take, then I think we certainly need to take it based on the data points that we have in relation to that play."
Richt said ACC coaches discussed what sort of impact eliminating the kickoff would have on an onside kick. Richt said that could include giving the scoring team the football on the 35-yard line in a sort of fourth-and-10 situation.
"If you make it, you get the ball. If you don't, the other team gets it," he said. "It's a way to continue to be able to make a comeback because we feel that the ability to comeback in the college game is pretty exciting and we don't want to lose that."
Shaw added, "The Rules Committee is clear that they want to make this a safer play in the game, so we keep the play in the game. There's no guarantee that it will be here forever. It's such an exciting play; it warrants what we can do from a player safety standpoint to make it safer. The NFL is going to make changes as well."
The NFL voted during the league meetings in Atlanta to make its own set of changes to the play, including moving a majority of the blockers on a receiving team forward to be closer to the football as a way to reduce speed of collisions. The team kicking off will also have to do so from a stationary position rather than getting a running start.
Shaw said the committee will track the information throughout this season and study the data afterward to determine if more changes are needed. The group will meet coaches again in January to hear their thoughts.
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