Dropping the ball at the goal line has become an epidemic in college football. Ohio State has rules in place to make sure it doesn’t happen to them.
You could probably put together a minute-long highlight reel with all the “ball dropped before the player reached the end zone” plays in college football. Do you really think head coach of Ohio State, Urban Meyer is going to let his team be the next victim? No. That’s why the team now has rules to prevent ball-dropping from happening.
The problem hit close to home this past weekend for Ohio State when their opponent, Oklahoma, made the fatal mistake. Joe Mixon was in the process of returning a kickoff to the house when he decided his celebration should start at the 1-yard line:
So this was called a Joe Mixon touchdown...but maybe it shouldn't have been. pic.twitter.com/OiNnIkE6j2
— Cover 3 Podcast (@Cover3Podcast) September 18, 2016
Ohio State star quarterback, J.T. Barrett explained to reporters the rules that will prevent their team from being on SportsCenter’s Not Top 10: “When you score, you hand the ball to an official and you go hug a big guy.”
Barrett went on to say that he feels for the next Buckeye who drops the ball before the end zone: “I could only imagine what that day would be like for that man — or the rest of they year — with Coach Meyer.”
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This is a prime example of why Ohio State and Urban Meyer find themselves at the top of the college football ranks each year. They set rules for players who decide to put themselves before the team by basking in the glory of a touchdown before reaching the goal line.
In the strange alternate universe where I’m a college football coach, I’d like to think this is one of the rules I would instate. However, in the actual universe were living in, this is a rule that other college programs need to install quickly.