[Déjà Bru]

Originally Posted by Cobra Mgr

If I was as a coach, you could not keep my foot out of a player's behind if he lost a TD because he fumbled the ball celebrating before he crossed the goal line

Originally Posted by Cobra Mgr

Come on, man...................

That is an interesting play when you (or more precisely, I) think about it. The first thought (again in my mind) is that while the runner gave up possession of the ball before he crossed the plane of the goal line, the defense did not have possession of it either. So, the offense should retain possession, with a loss of down, at say the one-yard line.

But no:

In American football, a touchback is a ruling that is made and signaled by an official when the ball becomes dead on or behind a team's own goal line (i.e., in their end zone) and the opposing team gave the ball the momentum, or impetus, to travel over the goal line, but did not have possession of the ball when it became dead. Such impetus may be imparted by a kick, pass, fumble, or in certain instances by batting the ball.

The result of a touchback is that the team in whose end zone the ball became dead receives possession of the ball and starts play with a first down at its own 20-, 25-, or 35-yard line, depending on the situation and league. A touchback is not a play, but a result of events that may occur during a play. A touchback is the opposite of a safety with regard to impetus since a safety is scored when the ball becomes dead in a team's end zone after that team — the team whose end zone it is — caused the ball to cross the goal line.

But wow, do these guys follow the news at all? Sporting news, at least? These are not rocket scientists, many of them.