Onside Kick Ideas

[tometom]

So, due to the Nebraska game, I was just thinking, there has to be better or more inventive ways to try an onside kick.

so a couple ideas that I got to thinking about and I want to hear your guys thoughts.

Plan A - this will probably only ever work 1 time, but you line up for the normal onside kick from the 35 yd line. Here's a pretty typical lineup:

Now, would it be possible to instead of kicking it 10 yds and hoping the other team can't corral it, you kick it about 35 yards so it will stop around the opponents 30 yd line. This basically makes it a foot race to the ball? so the kicker just kicks it straight down the middle and your guys have a 5yd run to get up to speed and could then cover 35 yds in what like 3.3 seconds, while the other team guys will need to go 25 yds from a standing position to get to the ball (not to mention their suprise that you kicked it past them). In the mass sprint, you hope the other team accidentally misses falling on it or accidentally bats it or you can just out right sprint faster than the other team.

does that make sense?

I'm assuming the deep guy is back at the goal line, if he up on the 10, then you would need to adjust the depth you kick it to.

 

[potzer25]

 

[outofyourmind]

I always thought the best way is to kick it high, about 15yards and let your guys have time to get under it.

 

[tometom]

Plan B. what about making it a 1 on 1, instead of a 5 on 6? Setup one side like normal, then put 1 guy out by his lonesome on the top (or bottom) and the other 4 guys right next to the kicker. Then see how the receiving team reacts. If they stay spread out, then just kick the normal onside. But if they fail to cover your lone man, then you kick it that way and hope your 1 guy can get it. or if they only cover that 1 guy with 1 guy, hope your guy can win that battle.

also, would it be illegal to try and sneak that one guy on the field late or just not have him huddle up with the team? so you run 10 out to the huddle and have this guy just step on the field from your sideline. you have the kicker set it up and get the whistle from the ref, then if the other team just doesn't notice your one guy, you can quick kick it and hope he gets it.

 

[tometom]

that's the general idea for Plan A. (except IA state had a return team on instead of all the guys up front.)

 

[963BUSC]

I always thought the best way is to kick it high, about 15yards and let your guys have time to get under it.

I'm fairly certain that if you kick it 15 yards in the air the receiving team player can just signal for a fair catch and then the kicking team has to get out of his way and let him catch it.

If you saw the first onside kick in the USC ASU game I thought that was a perfect onside kick. The ball went about 7 yards and then bounced 10 yards in the air. Since the ball bounced no fair catch is allowed.

 

[BucksFanInGA]

Yup, they can call a fair catch if the ball doesn't hit the ground after leaving the tee... Why you see kickers kick the ball directly into the ground and hope for a good hop way up in the air in order to get that desired effect...

 

[Archangel]

^^^Iowa State bad call...

 

[Wild Turkey]

I always thought the best way is to kick it high, about 15yards and let your guys have time to get under it.

^^^This but it has to hit the ground first or they can just fair catch and that is EXTREMELY hard to do. This has also become more difficult with the targeting rules because before once it hit the ground you could just plug the crap out of everyone on the opposing team but I have feeling that wouldn't be allowed now with their "defenseless player rules".

 

[potzer25]

^^^This but it has to hit the ground first or they can just fair catch and that is EXTREMELY hard to do. This has also become more difficult with the targeting rules because before once it hit the ground you could just plug the crap out of everyone on the opposing team but I have feeling that wouldn't be allowed now with their "defenseless player rules".

I wondered about that. Previously the best way was how auburn does it - kicker hits a slow rolling ball and follows it closely. Other guys run ahead and block. May not work now.

 

[xpuctaqpGT]

One thought I had was during a regular kickoff, kick it full speed and just below waist level at one of the people standing 10 yards away. There's a good chance it will hit them and bounce off allowing your team to recover the ball. If it doesn't or you somehow miss the player, the ball will still be a "knuckle ball" going fairly fast and fairly far downfield and there's a good chance the receiving team may bobble picking it up.

But it might be considered dirty pool to kick full speed at the guy's legs. dunno.

 

[tometom]

One thought I had was during a regular kickoff, kick it full speed and just below waist level at one of the people standing 10 yards away. There's a good chance it will hit them and bounce off allowing your team to recover the ball. If it doesn't or you somehow miss the player, the ball will still be a "knuckle ball" going fairly fast and fairly far downfield and there's a good chance the receiving team may bobble picking it up.

But it might be considered dirty pool to kick full speed at the guy's legs. dunno.

that was a third idea I had, but forgotten about it since Saturday night.

 

[rmilia1]

I always thought the best way is to kick it high, about 15yards and let your guys have time to get under it.

Thats tough because you can just call a fair catch as the offensive player.

 

[rmilia1]

I always thought the best way was to just try to line drive it at a guy on the receiving team. Thats a tough ball to catch and if they dont try to catch it then you have the same scenario as your OP

 

[Archangel]

I always thought the best way was to have your team recover the ball.

 

[podsox]

I always wondered by a kicker couldn't get a nasty hop over both lines of the receiving team.

 

[963BUSC]

One thought I had was during a regular kickoff, kick it full speed and just below waist level at one of the people standing 10 yards away. There's a good chance it will hit them and bounce off allowing your team to recover the ball. If it doesn't or you somehow miss the player, the ball will still be a "knuckle ball" going fairly fast and fairly far downfield and there's a good chance the receiving team may bobble picking it up.

But it might be considered dirty pool to kick full speed at the guy's legs. dunno.

That's what we used to do in High school if they didn't have their hands team in. Just tried to drill some big lineman. Had a special teams coach watch film just for lineman that regularly turn their head early to run back to their spot. Even with all that it hardly ever worked, usually the kicker would miss the opposing lineman and the kick would just look and work just like a squib kick. But we got a couple.

 

[pennstatenut]

There's a reason the odds are slim for a successful one. It's hard.

Oh A big LOL for kicking it straight up in the air.

 

[Red_Alert]

What is the actual percentage of on-side kick success anyway?

I assume less than 5%.

 

[Red_Alert]

The reason I ask is because Nebraska tried one Saturday with 3:30 on the clock and down by 5 points.

Granted they had no time-outs, but you'll still need to get a 3 and out and the other team could be in FG range to make it 8.

I think I kick it deep in that scenario.