NCAA rule change addresses controversial penalty in last year's Mizzou football loss to Kentucky
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — It will come as no consolation to Eli Drinkwitz and Missouri fans, but under one of college football’s new rules for 2023, the controversial play in last year’s MU-Kentucky game could have had another result.
Under a rule change explained Tuesday by Southeastern Conference coordinator of officials John McDaid, there is no penalty for running into the kicker or roughing the kicker if the kicker or punter is displaced more than 5 yards behind his original spot on the field when the ball is snapped.
Call it the Will Norris Rule.
In his session with reporters Tuesday at SEC football media days, McDaid showed the fateful play from last year’s Missouri-Kentucky game to illustrate the language change in the rule.
It was last Nov. 5 when a high Kentucky punt snap deep in UK territory sent Wildcats punter Colin Goodfellow scrambling to chase down the ball and avoid Mizzou’s Norris near the goal line. Goodfellow somehow got off a punt to UK’s 41-yard line, but Norris tackled him after he kicked the ball. Down 21-17 with 2:25 left, Mizzou celebrated the play thinking the Tigers would have favorable field position to lead a potential go-ahead drive. Instead, Norris was flagged for roughing the punter, giving Kentucky a first down at the Mizzou 44.
UK eventually punted on the drive but burned nearly two minutes off the clock. Taking over on their 13-yard line, the Tigers couldn’t get a first down to extend the game.
After the loss, Drinkwitz was confused and frustrated by the penalty.
“The explanation that I was given was that the ball was snapped over his head and that the ball was still in the tackle box and that he was still a protected punter when he picked up the ball,” Drinkwitz said that night. “How a guy can still be a protected punter 50 yards down the field and how our guy is supposed to know that he can’t tackle him is beyond me.”
On Tuesday, McDaid further explained why the penalty was called last year while showing footage of the Kentucky punt.
“You can see we have a snap well over the kicker’s head. And if we play it back to the beginning and you watch the ball, it follows those inbound lines at the top of the screen, which tells you that ball is still in the tackle box,” he said. “The definition of the tackle box is 5 yards laterally from the position where the ball is snapped all the way back to the end line behind the offense. So in this particular play last year, the ball was in the tackle box and it came down to the standard: Is it obvious a kick is going to be made?
“Our official had a flag down for roughing the kicker and I asked him after the game, ‘Why did you believe running and roughing are in play?’ And he said, ‘I never had the kicker possessing the ball and showing any intent to run. And I had the defender coming in not making any effort to block the kick, but just to contact the kicker.’ That's fairly reasonable to me. That's the two judgments he brought to bear to try to determine is it obvious that a kick’s going to be made. I supported him on that.
“But in looking at this play this past offseason the caretakers of the games said, ‘Maybe this doesn't meet the spirit of the rules to give him protection in this particular instance.’ So the editorial change comes into play here. Obviously the kicker possesses the ball more than 5 yards behind his original position. He will no longer be afforded protection for running and roughing. He could be fouled with an unnecessary roughness foul but on this particular play, I don't think we have we have that here. So with this editorial change this play from last year would be no foul. The correct call would be no foul.”
The loss was one of four for Mizzou decided by a touchdown or less and the second of the season seemingly decided by one play. On Sept. 24, the Tigers lost in overtime at Auburn when running back Nate Peat fumbled as he crossed the goal line for what would have been the game-winning touchdown. In the same game, kicker Harrison Mevis missed a chip-shot field goal at the end of regulation that would have won the game.
Flip those two outcomes and Mizzou would have finished 8-4 in the regular season, clinched its first winning record under Drinkwitz and could have posted the program’s best overall record since 2014 with a bowl victory. Instead, the Tigers had to beat Arkansas in the regular-season finale to secure a sixth win and bowl eligibility, then lost to Wake Forest in the Gasparilla Bowl to finish 6-7 for a second straight season.
