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11/07 21:24 CST No. 20 USC pulls off fake punt after the Trojans' 3rd-string QB
switches to punter's uniform number
No. 20 USC pulls off fake punt after the Trojans' 3rd-string QB switches to
punter's uniform number
By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) --- No. 20 Southern California pulled off a remarkable fake
punt against Northwestern on Friday night by sending out third-string
quarterback Sam Huard in the same uniform number as the Trojans' punter.
Wearing a No. 80 jersey, Huard came on the field with the punt team in the
second quarter and completed a 10-yard pass to Tanook Hines. The first down
extended the Trojans' second drive, which ended with a TD run by Jayden Maiava.
This bit of trickery was quite legal, apparently: Huard wore No. 7 earlier this
season for the Trojans, but he is listed as No. 80 on the USC roster for this
week after Lincoln Riley's team quietly made the change.
USC punter Sam Johnson also wears No. 80. College football teams frequently
feature two players wearing the same number.
Huard, who is a couple of inches shorter than the 6-foot-3 Johnson, grinned
widely as he high-fived his teammates on the way off the field. He is a former
five-star recruit who began his college career at Washington.
Bowling Green pulled off a similar stunt in last season's 68 Ventures Bowl in
Mobile, Alabama.
Third-string Falcons quarterback Baron May switched his uniform number before
the game from 8 to 18 --- very similar to punter John Henderson's No. 19 jersey.
Late in the first quarter, May came on the field instead of Henderson and threw
a 43-yard touchdown pass to Malcolm Johnson Jr. --- although Arkansas State
overcame it for a 38-31 victory.
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/college-football
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