Rutgers forced to punt on 4th and goal after hilariously bad sequence
By Adam Spencer
Published:
Rutgers was driving against Boston College, earning itself a 1st and goal from the Eagles’ 10-yard line and a 2nd and goal from the Eagles’ 8-yard line.
That was the good news. And that was all the good news there’d be for the Scarlet Knights on that possession.
Because, somehow, the Scarlet Knights eventually found themselves facing a 4th-and-goal situation from the Eagles’ 43-yard line and sent in the punt team.
Yes, really. Here’s how the drive went down. An offensive pass interference pushed the ball back to the BC 23-yard line. Then a holding penalty made it 2nd and goal from the 33-yard line. An incomplete pass followed. Then, Rutgers had a false start. On 3rd and goal from the 38-yard line, the Rutgers QB took a sack, placing the ball at the BC 43-yard line and forcing the punt team into unlikely action:
https://twitter.com/FTBeard7/status/1566104162982539264
Per ESPN Stats & Info, the only other Big Ten team to have to punt in a 4th-and-goal situation was Illinois back in 2020:
Rutgers punted in a goal-to-go situation in the 1st quarter.
There has been exactly 1 punt on a goal-to-go situation by an FBS team in each of the last 4 seasons. The only other Big Ten team to punt on a 4th-and-goal in the last decade was Illinois in 2020 against Minnesota. pic.twitter.com/IxcOqzowWW
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) September 3, 2022
Somehow, Rutgers’ defense managed to keep it in the game through the first quarter and a half, as the Scarlet Knights only trailed Boston College 7-6.
However, if the punt team has to come out on any more goal-to-go situations, it won’t be a great sign for Greg Schiano’s crew.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
