Yesterday we posted a video from an FCS game between Sacramento State and Northern Colorado where a blocked extra point turned into one of the most ridiculous plays of all time.
It's unreal.
Here's a look at that clip again.
Shortly after posting that, we got a Twitter reminder from @ESPNYonAJ reminding us of "The Miracle in Mississippi", a 15 lateral play between D-III programs Trinity and Millsaps that went for 61 yards and the winning touchdown.
It's every bit as fantastic as it sounds (end zone view included as well).
That got me to thinking...what other lateral-happy plays are there from years past that would be worthy of conversation among a "best ever lateral plays" conversation?
Here's what I came up with, with both substance and situation in mind. I had so many in mind that I came up with two distinctly different categories; Those that scored, and those that failed.
You can't even mention great lateral plays without mentioning "THE BAND IS ON THE FIELD" play of Stanford vs. Cal lore.
Not far behind that one (at least in my opinion) is the simple hook and ladder from Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl against Oklahoma in 2007.
I remember watching this one as it happened back in 2003. New Orleans had 7 seconds left and the ball on the -25 when they threw the deep ball to Donte Stallworth, who makes a couple guys miss and starts the lateral craziness before Jerome Pathon makes his way to the end zone.
Unbelievable play...followed by an equally unbelievable miss on the extra point by John Carney that proves that football is an emotional roller coaster at times.
Also in the category of one lateral classics is the "Miracle City Miracle", which if you're at least 25, you've probably watched at least 1,500 times, with fluctuating opinions on whether it was forward, or indeed legal.
Then there's the "what if" category where there is lots of magic, but the end result is just short of making the play special.
Like this one from the 2005 Alamo Bowl in San Antonio between Michigan and Nebraska.
So, so close.
Or this one from the Notre Dame vs. Stanford game from 2007 with the game tied up at 14 with :02 seconds left on the clock. The play was eventually nullified based on the handoff.
Or this especially heartbreaking one from Valley Center HS vs. Orange Glen HS.
And then there's this one from December of last year between Pittsburgh and Miami. This multi-lateral (5 in total) play was literally inches away from going down in history.
I'm sure I missed passed over one or two worthy additions.. Send me any you feel I overlooked (in either category) at Doug@FootballScoop.com or via Twitter @CoachSamz.