Arkansas State’s fake punt attempt Saturday against Miami was so bad it was good. Actually, it was so bad it was excellent.
The Red Wolves faced a fourth-and-5 from the Miami 40-yard line in the second quarter when Arkansas State player Booker Mays showed off his acting chops and executed the most peculiar of diversion tactics.
Although it looked like a trust fall gone bad, the playing-dead technique actually was something Mays had practiced all week.
Red Wolves coach Blake Anderson explained to NFL.com’s Chase Goodbread that the play, which is awesomely named the “Fainting Goat,” was designed, and Mays did exactly what he was supposed to do in his team’s 41-20 loss.
“Because of the formation we were in for that fake punt, Booker was covered up and couldn’t go downfield, or it would be a penalty,” Anderson told Goodbread. “So we said, ‘What do we want to do with him? Do we want to bubble him or peel him out?’ Someone said let’s just let him be a fainting goat. I loved it, so we just put that in.
“His job on that play was basically to not get a penalty by going downfield, because the fake was on the backside of the play. These kids have had five head coaches in five years, so we try to let them have fun.”
Unfortunately, the collapse fooled exactly zero Hurricanes, as punter Luke Ferguson’s pass was intercepted, and Mays was trucked by Miami linebacker Thurston Armbrister once he got up from playing dead.
But, hey, it did look like a lot of fun.
