LaGrange, Illinois High School Football Team Tries 104-Yard Field Goal In Rule Loophole

How much faith would you have in your kicker?

There are loopholes in any set of rules and one high school football coach in Illinois found one.

Last Friday, in the IHSA Class 8A high school football playoffs, the Lyons Township Lions were in a 4th & long situation, backed up against their own endzone. Instead of punting, coach Jon Beutjer sent out his placekicker for a 104-yard field goal attempt.

The kick got to the 25-yard line (a touchback in high school is 20) but there's a loophole in the high school rules.

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High School Rules

The NFHS rules treat field goals like a punt when it comes to possessions. So if a field goal attempt goes out of bounds, the receiving team takes over where the ball went out. If it reaches the endzone, it's a touchback and goes to the 20-yard line.

So in this game, once the kick landed, the Lions' opponent, the Bolingbrook Raiders, started their drive where the ball landed, not at 1st & goal.

The Lions had been doing this tactic all season.

Multiple high school coaches around the country do it, including Fort Payne, Alabama coach Chris Elmore (who coached Auburn's current kicker Alex McPherson). While it's a viable tactic in high school ball, it's not something to try in college:

The thing in high school is, if he doesn't make it, it's probably going in the end zone anyway, and they get the ball at the 20. Obviously, you don't try that in college, or they get the ball at the 50. I knew it was a little out of his range, but I thought it was worth a shot.

If that same play had been done in college or the NFL, it would've resulted in the opposing team taking over at the original line of scrimmage.

Bolingbrook defeated Lyons 22-14 and will advance to the quarterfinals.