1 Day in Rutgers Football History, December 19, 2024

[Source]

In the second and final game of college football's inaugural season of 1869, Rutgers agreed to allow Princeton to introduce a "free kick" rule into the game. Princeton then went on to dominate Rutgers 8-0 in a home game that took only 45 minutes to complete.

While rarely seen, the descendant of the “free kick” still exists in the NFL and high school football. If a player makes an error-free fair catch of a punt or kickoff before it hits the ground, his team may immediately request to line up to kick-off from the spot of the catch back to the opposition (no tee allowed in the pros) with the benefit that if the ball goes through the goal posts it counts as a field goal. Even if the game clock has expired it doesn’t prevent the awarding of the free kick. Only five have been verified and successful in the NFL since 1933 and the last one was by Ray Wersching of the San Diego Chargers against the Buffalo Bills on November 21, 1976. The 48 year drought was broken by Camerson Dicker, also of the San Diego Chargers, against the Denver Broncos on December 19, 2024. His 57 yard kick was the longest sucessful free kick in NFL history. The “fair catch kick” or “free kick field goal” was removed from college football at the end of the 1949 season after starting on November 13, 1869 in Rutgers first road game at Princeton.

What is a fair-catch kick? Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers execute first successful attempt in 48 years | FOX Sports

Cameron Dicker of the Los Angeles Chargers made the first successful fair-catch kick in the NFL since 1976 on Thursday night.

www.foxsports.com

 

[mdk01]

Didn't Sonny Sixkiller make one of those in "The Longest Yard"?

 

[Source]

Didn't Sonny Sixkiller make one of those in "The Longest Yard"?

"It wouldn't have surprised me one bit had Nitschke had the same conversation with the officials he had in "The Longest Yard," when he was Bogdanski of the Prison Guards, and The Indian (former Washington Huskies quarterback Sonny Sixkiller) made a successful drop kick for the Mean Machine.

"Three points? For that?" Nitschke/Bogdanski asked incredulously. And when he was told yes, three points for that, Ray Nitschke started swearing and threw his helmet."

By the way, the longest fair catch kick was attempted by Mark Moseley of the Washington Redskins against the New York Giants in 1979. He missed from 74 yards.

Fair catch kick would add old-time pizzazz to playoffs

www.reviewjournal.com

 

[BeantownKnight]

When they mentioned it last night, I said "I've never heard of that". What I'd never heard of was it being referred to as a “fair catch kick”. "Free kick", on the other hand, I had heard of. Probably, because of the Chargers doing it back in '78 .. or, some other reference to it since. But, I can guarantee that there were more than a few players, coaches, officiants at that game last night who had no idea that this was a rule.