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Johns Hopkins takes advantage of the most obscure rule in football for game-winning field goal over Muhlenberg

Division III Johns Hopkins took advantage of one of the least-known rules in college football to get a 31-28 win over Muhlenberg on Saturday.

Kaleb Wayt made a 39-yard field goal with two seconds to go after Johns Hopkins called a fair catch following a Muhlenberg punt with five seconds remaining. As the Mules were forced to punt out of their own end zone, the high kick was very short and caught at the 29-yard line.

And instead of having to kick seven or eight yards from that point like a traditional field goal, Wayt was able to kick uncontested from the line of scrimmage thanks to the very obscure fair catch kick rule.

What is the fair catch kick rule?

It's a rule that's hardly ever utilized by teams at the collegiate or NFL level, even though it's available at any point in a game after a team fair catches a kick.

After a fair catch is made on a punt, the receiving team immediately has the option to attempt a field goal from the spot of the fair catch instead of sending the offense out on the field on first down.

The opposing team can't rush the kicker, either. The non-kicking team must line up 10 yards in front of the line of scrimmage and has no real chance of blocking the kick. However, it can return a missed kick, provided the miss is caught in the field of play like when Auburn's Chris Davis won the game for the Tigers on the Kick-Six in 2013.

If the kick misses and lands out of bounds, the team that kicked it cannot retain the ball. The other team gets the ball back at the spot of the kick.

The rule is also a reason why teams can be reluctant to punt deep in their own territory in late-game situations similar to Muhlenberg's. Even if a fair catch is made as time expires in a half, the team that made the fair catch has the opportunity for an untimed down to attempt a fair catch kick.

Wayt's kick gave JHU just its second win of the season. The Blue Jays are now 2-5, while Muhlenberg is 4-3. And his kick will probably the last fair catch kick we'll see for a while. It'll be an absolute shock if another one happens this season.

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