Penn State tried the most ambitious fake punt of the season and it failed miserably

While some bemoan the deteriorating importance of non-College Football Playoff bowl games, these contests remain a great opportunity for teams to evaluate their depth and, more importantly for fans like us, to try out new plays and concepts.

It’s also a time to be more aggressive than you would be during the regular season, so it’s understandable why Penn State would choose to go for it on fourth down from the Arkansas 36 with a 10-7 lead in the Outback Bowl. However, the Nittany Lions had 13 yards to gain for a first down, and instead of running a play — a higher-percentage option — coach James Franklin opted for trickery.

He dialed up a fake punt, and while the idea was interesting, the execution left a lot to be desired. Rather than lining up in a normal punt formation, PSU lined up with five players on the outside, one near the long snapper and two on the right (one of which had his hand in the dirt, for some reason) while the upback came in motion and ran a screen.

Punter Jordan Stout took the snap, and with no protection up front, he immediately felt the heat. He actually made a nice move to juke out the rusher, but what happened next was… a choice.

Stout channeled his inner Patrick Mahomes and launched the ball as hard as he possibly could toward the end zone. It sailed more than 40 yards through the air, which would have been impressive if it went toward anyone in particular. But it flew past the receivers, hit an Arkansas defender on the hands and fell to the turf as Penn State turned it over on downs.

Look, I’m all for being aggressive in a bowl game, and punting from your opponent’s side of the field is among the most cowardly acts in football. But perhaps the Nittany Lions would have been better served to have quarterback Sean Clifford, the guy whose job it is to throw passes, attempt that conversion instead.