Middle School Football Team Scores Touchdown with Brilliant Play

I think that's poor sportsmanship, even if it's not technically against the rules, and its teaching those kids a terrible lesson: it's OK to deceive people to get what you want, as long as you don't technically break any rules. Shame on the coach.

Dude, that's the American way! Finding an opportunity and exploiting it, all within the rules of the game and without hurting anyone. It is, however, the sort of thing that will only work once.

It would be poor sportsmanship to pull this in an advanced league or to get overly upset after falling for such a simple trick. In this case it's just a bit of fun in middle school, and an awesome lesson in how caught up with preconceptions of how something "should" be people get that they can be blind to the obvious.

Craig,
Football is full of little tricks like these. They will work once and then everyone will remember them for a few years and no one can get it to happen again. Eventually everyone forgets about it and someone tries it again. All of the coaches know about these things and will cook up a new one every now and then.

Jenjen is right about it only working once. If that team tries it again any time in the next year or two they will probably have to cart a quarterback off of the field with injuries.

Football is in a way, the simulation of war. Sometimes you have to think outside the conventional box of tactics.

I mean, we've seen some weird stuff in college and NFL football too. By some people's logic, the fumblerooski is bad sportsmanship too, or kicking on onside kick any time outside the fourth quarter.

I couldn't care less about football or team sports in general, and never watch the game... but that was HILARIOUS.

I've seen this attempted once in a high school game and the QB got destroyed by a linebacker.

There is no poor sportsmanship here at all. The game is about play calling. I'm sure the defensive players got chewed out by their coach for just standing there after the ball was snapped.

A trick play is poor sportsmanship? They better stop those fake punts then, too. And good god stop the surprise onside kicks!

I think we can agree the best part of the clip is when the QB gets dumped during his celebration by his much larger teammate.

I'll guarantee you that all the whiners above never took their asthma inhalers out of their mouths and play a sport--any sport--for a single game. Sports are war, not parties for wusses.

swagger

Anyone who complains about this being cheating or poor sportsmanship needs their head examined. In a sport, you do whatever you have to within the limitations of the rules to win. Period. When I was on the defensive line in football, about once a game I'd look down and say, "OH MAN! FIVE BUCKS!" And when the guy looked down and the play started, I would dart past him and get a sack. If he's too darned dumb to continue focusing on the task at hand, then he deserves it.

This was a brilliant move! Bet the other team felt like idiots when they realized what had happened!

i went to vanderbilt...which has pretty much always had a football team not up to the competition in the sec...during the last game i attended the defense fell for a "shoe string" play twice in a row...pretty much the college equivalent of the play in the video where the qb fakes like he's tying his shoe and catches everybody offguard...i was ashamed

This wasn't poor sportsmanship and all. And they didn't even the toe the line of what is legal on the field

The ball was actually snapped. That starts the play. So they followed the rules of the game.

And the other team was just thrown off by the quarterback strolling through their line. But the ball was clearly snapped.

I mean it was a trick, like all the plays in any sporting game. Its a good lesson in paying attention that's for sure. And it was funny.

Never played this kind of game but I saluted this guy for brilliancy, agreed it works once but the truth of the matter is it works! So how of all of you out there who disagreed with this tactic think of an idea to undo it? That’s a touchdown within the bounds of the rules of this kind of sport. Sportsmanship applied only in words if you want to win a game you would do anything to get a touchdown, am I right? This is one of it! Just like “MC” said “it sometimes a simulation of war” so, this tactic is worth living for if your enemies is out there to whack you off. Losers please let it go.

One more thing about the lesson learned. Never trust your opponents. Always open your eyes and presence of mind. No surprise like these.

WW II is won by a lot of sacrifices but deception played a role too, remember?

Politics is alive and deceptions are also winning. Accepting the truth is what we called sportsmanship as well.

It's a fine trick play, to be sure, but would likely be illegal in high school or any other league playing under NFHS rules. In the late 1990s the committee specifically forbid plays with verbiage or signals specifically designed to confuse or put the defense to sleep or plays that cause confusion to make the defense believe that a snap is not imminent. This made plays like the "Wrong Ball Play" or "Fake Substitution Play" or "I can't hear you coach play" illegal in leagues playing under NFSH rules.

The point was to encourage sportsmanship and reduce the liklihood of injuries.

Awesome. Tricksy little s.o.b.

Ender would be proud.

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Ender was a stupid little kid who let himself be used.

I can't believe anyone would think this was something bad in any way. It is football people. Middle school football at that. It was a great play and everyone is talking about it. I think it was funny and entertaining as football should be. I bet the team that got played will learn a valuable lesson from this. Everyone who is complaining about it being bad must be the parents of the young men standing there looking silly.

That little squirt chasing him was funny.