Illinois and Nebraska certainly aren’t two of the best teams in the Big Ten this season, but their game Saturday produced one of the best, but most awkward trick plays we’ve seen this year.
With a 28-10 halftime lead, Illinois got the ball to open the third quarter, and eventually found itself on 4th-and-8 on its own 31-yard line. Time to punt, right?
Well, as senior punter Blake Hayes took the snap, his teammates took off downfield and left him with an enormous amount of space to work with on the fake punt. And Nebraska had no idea how to respond.
Instead of putting it, Hayes took off to his right into an open field before shifting to the other side of the field around the 27-yard line.
Blake Hayes (@HayesBla1) had so much field ahead of him on this fake punt that it looked like he was about to reconsider. 😂@IlliniFootball delivers one of the most unique fakes you'll ever see #ForTheBrand: pic.twitter.com/bMv8OWtmN9
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 21, 2020
Hayes seemed hesitant to run in any direction — despite running largely by himself — almost like he wasn’t comfortable with the ball.
Was he simply nervous? Was this an audible? Did he have so much room he didn’t know what to do with it all? Would Hayes just really prefer to punt and nothing else? Who knows, but it didn’t really matter where he went because only one Cornhusker was in his general vicinity for most of this trick play.
Hayes picked up 14 yards and brought Illinois up to its own 45-yard line before getting tackled out of bounds. Illinois ultimately settled for a field goal to take a 31-10 lead early in the third quarter.
It’s funny and weird and entertaining, but hey, it worked. And college football Twitter loved it but was also a little perplexed, understandably.
Behold the funniest fake punt of the season.
Take a bow, Blake Hayes. pic.twitter.com/kLihqVhttC
— Yahoo Sports College Football (@YahooSportsCFB) November 21, 2020
the best part is when there are no defenders on the screen and he makes a cut https://t.co/1L7EHKVdbO
— Rodger Sherman (@rodger) November 21, 2020
Illinois with the successful delayed fake punt, and my god everything is on fire.
— Adam Kramer (@KegsnEggs) November 21, 2020
Illinois executes a fake punt so easy the punter damn near confused himself into not getting it.
— Sam McKewon (@swmckewonOWH) November 21, 2020
Illiniois' punter looks like an EA Sports glitch… pic.twitter.com/SM1XqZDO3C
— Jim Weber (@JimMWeber) November 21, 2020
gonna need somebody to slow down the Illinois fake punt and add Chariots of Fire
— Sam Cooper (@SamDCooper) November 21, 2020
Here it is, the most Big Ten play of all time pic.twitter.com/QJKQ0fCy34
— Farmer Jones (@thefarmerjones) November 21, 2020
My man went on a JOURNEY here. pic.twitter.com/MLdfbYNn9j
— Bryan Mac (@Bry_Mac) November 21, 2020
Gonna need an oral history of this fake punt pic.twitter.com/YSnPCkjacj
— CJ Fogler #BlackLivesMatter (@cjzero) November 21, 2020
Illinois' fake punt was … a thing of beauty?
— Mitch Sherman (@mitchsherman) November 21, 2020
Look at him set up his blocker! The patience, the vision! https://t.co/QUIa0ZTM4U
— Adam Jacobi (@Adam_J_Tweets) November 21, 2020
The most Illinois fake punt of all time…. but I love it https://t.co/Y94thiEUto
— Chuck (@Bailey_S1) November 21, 2020
