The Old "Water Bucket" Play: Still Legal?

Bama 13-0

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Answers my question cbi. Thanks!
Ummm, how did this answer the question? I thought the scenario you were describing was a player leaving the huddle and heading for the sidelines, as if he is being substituted, but he stops just short of the sidelines. In that case he was inside the 9's, and there was no substitution. Then the rest of the offense breaks huddle and does a quick snap. Seems legal to me, but you couldn't get away with if often. :)
 

RollinTide75

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Oct 19, 2012
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Don't know what made me think of this old play...maybe it was the thread about new twist for the Georgia game.

Back in the 80's the "Water Bucket" play was a popular trick play. A wide receiver would trot to the sideline, as if he were coming out of the game, but instead he'd stop at the very edge of the playing field on sides. When the play was snapped he'd generally be wide open streaking down the sideline.

I haven't seen this tried at any level in the last few years. I assume it wouldn't work beyond the high school level (where I saw it used) anyway now days, but I was wondering if this play is still legal?
I remember we had a play similar to this my freshman year in high school... except it was a fake field goal... We would line up in FG formation and our kicker would run to the sideline yelling for the coach looking for the tee and when he got close to the sideline the ball was snapped and he would streak down the sideline and our holder would hit him wide open... Only downside is... our coach tried it twice in one game... and needless to say, it didn't work the 2nd time...
 

Alasippi

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The wide receiver now also has to be lined up inside the line judge if I'm not mistaken..which kind of eliminates the receivers ability to hide close to the sideline.

I got burnt as a corner by that play once in high school and it still ticks me off til this day lol...

sip
 

CHATTBRIT

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While Manning was at UCheat, didn't he and other members of the Offense go to the sideline to supposedly talk with coaches and then take the snap from the sideline?
 

92tide

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I know of schools that run that PAT formation. One team didn't correctly line up. Rather than lining up with the rest of the team, all 11 lined up in FG block. The holder took the snap and immediately threw it to someone for a 2 point conversion.

Didn't A&M run a gimmicky play against us? Still think their OL wasn't set when the ball was snapped.
yep, and they were not set. thats a big problem with the hurry up/no huddle/prairie dog offenses, many times they don't set. i first noticed it a lot when urban first got to florida.
 

capnfrog

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Don't remember who we were playing or which coach, (Maybe Stallings) but Bama had a man trying to hurry off the field and he stopped short of going off and the QB threw him the ball but Bama got a penalty for 12 men being on the field. I remember the announcers saying that Bama only had 11 men on the field but the play fooled the refs. They should have alerted the refs to what they were doing and the play would have worked.
 

Snuffy Smith

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I went back and watched the first drive from the *U game. It was a bit difficult to tell for sure because the camera cuts to wide stadium and sideline shots but it did appear that during the first several plays Cooper was wide left and Norwood was wide right. Neither of them appeared to reenter the area between the hash marks between plays while we ran the hurry up. Looks like that rule is not enforced during a no huddle offense.


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RTR91

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something similar from arky

[video]http://www.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/741318/[/video]
I know Juwan Simpson's high school coach, and he told me after the game that Juwan should have known to cover that play because they ran it at Austin High a few times.
I went back and watched the first drive from the *U game. It was a bit difficult to tell for sure because the camera cuts to wide stadium and sideline shots but it did appear that during the first several plays Cooper was wide left and Norwood was wide right. Neither of them appeared to reenter the area between the hash marks between plays while we ran the hurry up. Looks like that rule is not enforced during a no huddle offense.


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The rule may not be enforced because there are no substitutions in a hurry up offense.
 

Hamilton

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Don't know what made me think of this old play...maybe it was the thread about new twist for the Georgia game.

Back in the 80's the "Water Bucket" play was a popular trick play. A wide receiver would trot to the sideline, as if he were coming out of the game, but instead he'd stop at the very edge of the playing field on sides. When the play was snapped he'd generally be wide open streaking down the sideline.

I haven't seen this tried at any level in the last few years. I assume it wouldn't work beyond the high school level (where I saw it used) anyway now days, but I was wondering if this play is still legal?
Houston Nutt did it against us at Arkansas one year. Didn't work.
 

Snuffy Smith

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I know Juwan Simpson's high school coach, and he told me after the game that Juwan should have known to cover that play because they ran it at Austin High a few times.

The rule may not be enforced because there are no substitutions in a hurry up offense.
Rule doesn't just apply to substitutions. It also applies to players participating in the previous play. Rule says they have to have been in the area between the hash marks at some point between the end of the previous play and the next snap. That simply isn't happening with the wide outs when they run the no huddle offense.


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BamaMoon

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Rule doesn't just apply to substitutions. It also applies to players participating in the previous play. Rule says they have to have been in the area between the hash marks at some point between the end of the previous play and the next snap. That simply isn't happening with the wide outs when they run the no huddle offense.


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So you're telling me there's a chance???

Let's work it in against Georgia then. Chris Black???:wink:
 

Snuffy Smith

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So you're telling me there's a chance???

Let's work it in against Georgia then. Chris Black???:wink:
Haha - I think we kinda digressed from the original question. I would say the rule is probably loosely enforced. If we had a wideout hiding on the edge of the field outside the view of the line judge it would most likely draw the flag.


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