Active players are listed in bold. NFL Single Season Leaders - Kickoff Return Touchdowns The following is a list of the NFL single season kickoff returnleaders ranked by kickoff return touchdowns. It's also worth noting that numerous Nevada players from the 1990s and early 2000s hold FBS passing and receiving records, so Van Dyke's record might be a case of the right player in the right system in the right era, which is why it may never be topped. That's why Dominique Davis' record for consecutive completions in a season is unbreakable, even as passing efficiency in college football has improved over the course of the last decade. Im going to go track that thing down. The Kick Six (also known as Kick Bama Kick) was the final play of the 78th Iron Bowl college football game played on November 30, 2013 at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama.The game featured the No. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Saturday, March 4, 6:41AM. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. No one on the field noticed except for Bailey, who scooped up the ball and sped down the field completely untouched and unchallenged. The notion of putting up "video-game numbers" can be overstated at times, but a stat line like that to start a game is something you're far more likely to find in an arcade or a friend's basement than on the gridiron in an actual FBS game. Spiller racked up 2,052 yards and seven touchdowns (an FBS record) on kickoff returns and added 569 yards and a score on punt returns for good measure. Join our linker program. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. This might be the most controversial of all our classes to be No.3, but this class had depth and a star on the field, and a headache off it all rolled into one class. + Indicates Hall of Famer, season age in parentheses, Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Friday, March 3, 2:32PM. An asterisk (*) after a player's name indicates bowl stats are included.Read more about our data coverage. You want to see over 100,000 people afraid to move? Theres no way Im going to let that ball hit the ground. CLICK HERE, Ranking Titans All-Time Draft Classes, No.4: "It's time for The Freak." We do not target any individuals under the age of 21. A compilation of every kick return touchdown of the 2020 college football season. (Looking at you, Liberty quarterback Malik Willis, Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder, and Ohio State wide receivers Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson.). Gordons incredible 408-yard performance through three quarters, no less against Nebraska was short-lived. Well, in this case, its probably a good idea that Jones didnt listen to that advice. The return went for 109 yards, setting a record for the longest play in NFL history. NFL Single Season Leaders - Kickoff Return Touchdowns So, Sanders' Heisman-winning season in '88 when he ran for 332 yards against Texas Tech, 320 yards against Kansas State, 312 yards against Kansas and 304 yards against Tulsa hasn't been matched by any other running back in their career, let alone a single season. The score set records for the longest kickoff return and longest play in Super Bowl history. It took about two years of post-Rocket recovery before I realized kick return TDs are actually a rare football gift. Reaves led the SEC in passing yards and attempts all three seasons in Gainesville and is the leagues all-time leader in interceptions thrown with 59. Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. Punts are a much, much less physical play.". All rights reserved. Miami kick returner Jakeem Grant, in his fourth NFL season, had a 101-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in Week 11, his second career kick-return touchdown of at least . All rights reserved. Rocket Ismails record of most games with two kickoff returns for touchdowns set in 1989 still stands today. Division III Mount Union's Nate Kmic had 2,790 in 15 games in 2008, compared to Sanders' 12. The team that would now be kicking off would have the option: They could punt the ball or they could go for it. Before there was Devin Hester, there was Dante Hall. Who holds it: Case Keenum, Houston, 2007-11 One of the most controversial endings in college football history, Colorado scored a last second touchdown on the last play of the game on mistakenly-given . As a sophomore, he led the nation in kickoff return yards with 442, while averaging 31.6 yards per return. Here are 10 current college football records one man at SDS has deemed unbreakable: Who holds it: Oklahoma, from 1953-57 The Minnesota Vikings receiver was literally as far back into the endzone as he could be on an NFL field when he received this kickoff against the Green Bay Packers. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. ), is safe in our opinion. Brown probably wouldn't have become the first receiver to win the Heisman (1987) without his contributions on special teams. On one September day in 2003, Perkins tortured the Bruins for 277 yards on seven punt returns, scoring touchdowns from65, 74 and 84 yards out. Most games scoring two or more touchdowns, season. Ron Brown (3/1985), 3. Hester blew through an open lane to go basically untouched into the endzonehigh-stepping his way in all the way from the 20-yard line. Active players are listed in bold. For a few years in the early 2000s with the Kansas City Chiefs, Hall electrified the NFL with his dynamic speed and hard-to-believe kick and punt returns. We support responsible gambling. The Cougars simply refused to run the football. The guy loves playing. The score marked the first time an opening kickoff was returned for a touchdown in Super Bowl history. A compilation of every kick return touchdown of the 2021 college football season. That season, he averaged 19.8 yards per kickoff return and scored three TDs on punt returns. Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp embraced the idea of incorporating Williams into a return role next season, when the team expects him fully healthy after missing most of last season while rehabbing from a torn ACL. Do you have a sports website? Ranking Titans' Best Draft Classes: No. 3 The 2005 Group Anchored By Hall was fasthe once recorded a 40-yard dash time of 4.29 secondsand his slender frame at 58, 187 pounds made it easy for him to slip around tacklers. I got kick return, too, I would have housed that one.' Making the play even more amazing: The Saints basically had Cobb wrapped up, but he was able to spin out, flipping nearly upside downbreaking multiple tackles along the way to the Packers win in his first-ever NFL game. 1 pick in the NFL draft (Mayfield), the former of whom is arguably a generational talent at the position and the latter of whom was named the best player in the country one year later. Baltimore Ravens ground game rules in NFL Week 11 and more 5th down. SEC Women's Basketball Tournament action suspended due to weather delay, Alabama basketball adds commitment from 4-star forward, 2 SEC players named to late-season watch list for Oscar Robertson Player of the Year Trophy, Bruce Pearl tosses headset during radio interview after Auburn-Alabama game, Overrated? Daynes record is safe. Some might argue how much of a hit Jones really was, but he produced on the field, and if he had spent his off-field time as efficiently, who knows where he might rank with the all-time greats of the game. Most rushing touchdowns, game [ edit] FBS: 8 - Howard Griffith, Illinois, 1990; Kalen Ballage, Arizona State, 2016; Jaret Patterson, Buffalo, 2020 FCS: 7 - Archie Amerson, Northern Arizona, 1996 Div II: 8 - Junior Wolf, Oklahoma Panhandle State, 1958 Div III: 8 - Donavan Henderson, Manchester, 2019; Carey Bender, Coe, 1994 It was a challenging discussion, but in the end, the Titans 2005 class grabbed this position despite some of the antics of their first-round pick, Adam "Pacman" Jones. He was a man among boys off the edge in Tuscaloosa and later set an NFL record with seven sacks in a single game for the Kansas City Chiefs in 1990. Hester took the opening kickoff from his own 10-yard line and darted through the first wave of would-be tacklers with a fantastic juke step, and he was offHester made it 90 yards before anyone on the Colts touched him, but by then he was already in the endzone. Simpson, Charles White and Anthony Davis wouldn't have imagined. All NFL TeamsNFL All NFL TeamsNFL Hail Mary passes, knockout tackles, and deep throws down the sideline are all cool plays in football, but there's nothing quite as exciting as a kick return touchdown. Spiller racked up 2,052 yards and seven touchdowns (an FBS record) on kickoff returns and added 569 yards and a score on punt returns for good measure. The longtime Chicago Bears return man forced teams to think hard about kicking him the ballhis electrifying speed and agility made him arguably the best kick returner of all time. Interview quotes are usually edited for length and clarity. The Lions used backup receiver Kalif Raymond as their primary punt returner and No. was better than Barry when it came to returning kicks. Hundreds waited in line for Jamaal Williams to sign autographs at DC Sports on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023. The Yellow Jackets posted two 63-point quarters in the first half during a beating that will never be forgotten. In 1988, "Prime Time" led the nation in punt-return average and left FSU as the school's all-time leader in punt return yards. Looking for a great NFL history book? NFL Career Leaders - Kickoff Return Touchdowns - FootballDB.com He took a kickoff in his own end zone with 4:31 . Kick Six - Wikipedia Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? Adams slipped through a couple tackles and appeared to be at a dead end againbut with blazing speed he darted up the sideline and got a key block, sending him straight towards the end zone with nearly the entire Tennessee team chasing him, but all coming up short. Attaboy, Leach. In order for this record to fall and reminder, this is two brothers and even a family with three active FBS running backs would struggle to best the Sanders' combined total it would likely take a pair of brothers to each make a run at a 2,000-yard season in the same season. Beforehis breakout Heisman season (1988), Barry played backup to Thurman Thomas and made his mark on special teams. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. 3 running back Justin Jackson as their top kick returner last season. Most Kickoff Return Touchdowns In One Game | StatMuse The best kick-returners have a knack for making big plays in big games. As a senior in 1997, Rossum finished fourth nationally in kickoff-return average; as a junior he led the country in punt-return average. Patterson somehow broke through the throng of tacklers and then it became a track meetand he won. Ismail said his job was to find a crease, run through it, and make somebody miss. NASHVILLE - It's time to reveal our No.3 class in the top-ten draft classes of the Titans history countdown. After receiving the pooch kick at their own 25-yard line, Miami started lateraling the ball to keep it alive, eventually getting all the way back to their own 3-yard line before making their way upfield again. Roos and Stewart were bookend tackles throughout their career, and it's not often a team finds a pair of starting offensive tackles in the same draft. He tossed six touchdown passes in the second quarter of a blowout win over Louisiana Tech in 1991. Keenum was granted a medical hardship in 2010 after tearing a knee ligament, but his five touchdowns over three games prior to injury count. These opinions are mine and mine alone. See our list of forfeits and vacated games for more details. The national leader in receiving yards per game during the 2020 season was Ole Miss' consensus All-American wide receiver Elijah Moore, who averaged 149.1 yards per game. In 2019, Wright finished with 10 returns for 380 yards, 38 yards per return and two touchdowns. Just look at Moore's freshman (36.2 receiving yards per game) and sophomore (70.8 yards per game) seasons to see that it took Moore time (and potentially a coaching change to offensive mind Lane Kiffin) for him to develop into a receiver who could average that many yards per game. Thomas is a member of both the College Football and NFL Hall of Fame. 7 college football records *we think* will never be broken Travis Williams (4/1967), 3. It takes speed to return kicks well, but it also takes field vision, anticipation, agility, and some video game-like juke moves. NFL Kick Returns for Touchdown Single-Season Leaders He is a graduate of Indiana University. Or write about sports? As a senior, he won the Mosi Tatupu Award as the nation's top special teams player. Whether it be a kickoff return or a punt return, football players put their amazing athletic ability on display as they weave in and out of tacklers, rushing down the field after receiving a kick. 1977 1976 1947 NFL Punt Returns for Touchdown Single Game Leaders All-Time Punt Returns for Touchdown Leaders Players must meet the minimum requirements to show up on this leaderboard. I want to be the punt returner, too. The next year, in 1989, he returned to kickoffs for touchdowns against Michigan at Michigan in the Big House. Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. ROAD WARRIORS: College football's longest active road winning streaks, Record: 3,690 rushing yardsRecord-holder: Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State and Byron Sanders, NorthwesternSeason: 1988. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine.