Georgia head coach Kirby Smart thinks the NFL’s new kickoff rule could come to college football at some point.
Smart likes the rule change that the NFL made this week and thinks the college football leaders will look at it if the NFL has success.
“I think the NFL is the model. They know what they want. They know what they are trying to do, and they are going to get it right. Then hopefully, we can start to look into it ourselves if the kickoff is not part of our game,” Smart said, via 247Sports.
The NFL is running its new kickoff rule on a trial basis this year. If it works, it’ll be extended for the 2025 season and beyond.
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In the new kickoff, the 10 coverage members of the kicking team will line up at the receiving team’s 40-yard line, while the receiving team’s blockers will line up five yards away.
Nobody on either side will be allowed to move until the kickoff returner touches the ball or if it hits the ground between the goal line and the 20-yard line.
Time will tell if it leads to the kickoff becoming more exciting since most kickoffs have resulted in touchbacks in the last several years.
