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Originally Posted by buckzip
Are you guys saying that you don't think Nuge is trying for a touchback?
He puts some kicks thru the goal posts. Not every kick is going to be that deep.
I don't think he means to let them return the kicks.
It's not like punting. Unless you are referring to punting in which case disregard this post.
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Zip ... Kickoffs. There was some discussion last season (when Luke Fickell was Special Teams coach) from the coaching staff about trying to pin opponents deep by using shortened kickoffs. This was part of their game plan strategy. So to answer your question, yes. No doubt that last season (and I believe this season as well) Nuge was asked to kick just deep enough to encourage a return that we could cover short of the 20.
Obviously, not every kick will be perfectly struck, but Nuge has the leg (even against the wind) to put the ball deep in the end zone on a vast majority of kicks. I am mystified as to why they would continue to try this tactic. The risk vs reward isn't great enough to justify doing it.