CLICK HERE. Those gargantuan numbers would only be approached within a pass-happy offense with literally two or fewer reliable targets. Ismail dashed for 88 yards on that kickoff. One of the college football's best receivers in 2021, Williams. Four games. Whether it's football, fashion or just breathing, it's tough to make any "Most Electrifying" list without including Deion. 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. We do not target any individuals under the age of 21. Hester set the NFL record for most return touchdowns (combining kickoffs and punts) with 20 over the course of his career, and one of his best came in Super Bowl XLIwhich was played in. NFL Career Leaders - Punt Return Touchdowns. He still showed game-breaking ability at times last season but had two punt return touchdowns wiped out due to penalties while averaging 8.8 yards on 13 attempts with a long of 19. It took about two years of post-Rocket recovery before I realized kick return TDs are actually a rare football gift. The option to go for it would replace the onside kickoff. For a quarterback to break East Carolina's Dominique Davis' record of 36 consecutive passes completed, he would have to double Mertz's streak of 17 completions in a row, then complete three additional passes for good measure. Do you have a blog? Please see our Contributors and Sources page for data source details. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. 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. 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 . By any measure, it was a near-perfect performance and the one incompletion was a dropped pass. Brown probably wouldn't have become the first receiver to win the Heisman (1987) without his contributions on special teams. 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 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. Who holds it: David Klingler, Houston, 1991 We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. We present them here for purely educational purposes. most kickoff return touchdowns in one game Kene Nwangwu, Cordarrelle Pattersonand Devin Duvernayare tied for the most kick-return touchdowns in a game this season, with 1 touchdown. As a matter of policy, Sports Reference only reports the results of games as played on the field. If any quarterback is going to approach this record in the future, hell be another Mike Leach understudy. Or write about sports? Though I understand the safety concerns, it would be a shame to tear down a stage on which some of college football's most talented players have put in work. Some school's results have been altered by retroactive NCAA penalties. I want to be the punt returner, too. He is a graduate of Indiana University. Raghib Rocket Ismail from Notre Dame returned two kickoffs for touchdowns in a 1988 game against Rice. If you don't, then you punt the ball. Looking for a great NFL history book? Talk about making an impact in your NFL debut. Interview quotes are usually edited for length and clarity. You can't knock Schiano for wanting to make the game safer. 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. Jacoby Jones has had a few standout returns in his career, and this one against the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII might be his most impressive. Keenum was granted a medical hardship in 2010 after tearing a knee ligament, but his five touchdowns over three games prior to injury count. In fact, he only scored two touchdowns in 2001, despite finishing the season with 53 receptions and 737 receiving yards. As a senior, Keenum was spectacular, throwing 48. "Obviously, it would be great to see him back there (as a returner) if thats what his role provides," Fipp said. The following is a list of the NFL career kickoff return leaders ranked by kickoff return touchdowns. The touchdown also helped Hester set an NFL record for the most return touchdowns by a player in a single season. So well just see how it goes.". His career punt-return average (23.2) ranks second all-time nationally. ruled that the play should have been blown dead. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? Here are 10 current college football records one man at SDS has deemed unbreakable: Who holds it: Oklahoma, from 1953-57 No one on the field noticed except for Bailey, who scooped up the ball and sped down the field completely untouched and unchallenged. 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. 46. Schiano referenced a statistic that more than 15 percent of the catastrophic injuries suffered on the football field happen on kickoffs, even though there are only a handful of kickoffs per game. Weaving through traffic and toeing the sidelines in ways that would make Kyle Busch and Cris Carter smile, Javier showed anybody who watched him serve four years ('06-09) as Alabama's home run threat that he is more than just Gilbert Arenas' little cousin. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. 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. Only twice since the turn of the century has a team surpassed 30 or more straight wins USC and Miami. It would take a dynamic talent like Randy Moss, who was interested in playing four seasons, to come close. 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 . So its always an accountability factor on both sides, but we expect big things from him.". Brian Mitchell, the three-time All-Pro who, interestingly enough, never once returned a punt or kickoff in college. As a sophomore, he led the nation in kickoff return yards with 442, while averaging 31.6 yards per return. Of course, some records are literally unbreakable. Both records have since been broken. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? It is the most violent, video-friendly, terrifying, electrifying, dangerous and dramatic play in football. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. Record: Four gamesRecord-holder: Barry Sanders, Oklahoma StateSeason: 1988. Michigan had narrowed Notre Dames lead to a single point right before halftime, but Rockets first touchdown returned stretched the Irishs lead to 14-6. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. It's an impressive genetic and familial accomplishment to have siblings that play at the FBS level, but for them to play the same position in the same season, as starters, and both rush for more than 1,000 yards requires countless stars to align. As a West Coast resident and Pac-10 fan, I watched Reggie Bush do some incredible things. Fipp said it sometimes makes more sense to use a complmentary player in a return role so they can devote more energy to the craft, and he cited former NFL receiver DeSean Jackson, who he coached with the Philadelphia Eagles, as an example. I watched him do things in a USC uniform that Marcus Allen, O.J. Dwight's style wasn't gracefulhe was reminiscent of one of those old NFL Films segments starring Crazy Legs Hirschbut he got where he needed to go in a hurry. None of the members of this class will ever hear their names called in Canton, but as a group, and what they provided for the Titans, even though small in some cases, was a solid class top to bottom that played some excellent football and were part of some good, but not great Titans teams. During his freshman and sophomore seasons, Jones-Drew averaged over 26 yards per kickoff return, and by the time he went pro, he had scored seven return touchdowns. If you feel like you're losing control over your gambling experience, call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, PA, WV), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA), 1-888- 532-3500(Virginia) 1-800-522-4700 (NV, TN), 1-800-522-4700 (CO, TN), 1-855-2CALLGA (IL), 1-800-270-7117 (MI). Contact Dave Birkett atdbirkett@freepress.com. Houston quarterback David Klinglers single-game FBS passing record of 716 yards stood for nearly 25 years before Halliday, a lesser-known quarterback and Air Raid product, eclipsed the mark last season. Who holds it: John Reaves, Florida, 1969 Hester set the NFL record for most return touchdowns (combining kickoffs and punts) with 20 over the course of his career, and one of his best came in Super Bowl XLIwhich was played in Miami, where Hester went to collegeagainst the Indianapolis Colts. Record: 326 yardsRecord-holder: Nate Burleson, NevadaSeason: 2001. Oklahoma freshman Samaje Perine eclipsed the total the following week after the Kansas Jayhawks forgot how to tackle, carrying the pill 27 times for a new NCAA-record 427 yards. 5. All rights reserved. NFL Kick Returns for Touchdown Single Game Leaders All-Time Kick Returns for Touchdown Leaders Build your own custom leaderboards with Stathead Football. Find out more. Washington took the kick from one yard inside the endzone and proceeded to juke his way past the front line of the Chargers special teams unit. It'd be like turning a demolition crew on the Apollo Theater. Grant, who is six inches shorter than the 6-foot-1 Williams, has made his biggest impact in the NFL as a return man. 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? 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. Both of Ismails kickoffs returned for touchdowns were in the second half, the first coming on the second-half kickoff. 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. After the game, Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz told reporters he simply told Ismail to run to middle. East Carolina's Bryson Worrell kicked off the first round of the DI baseball tournament with a bang, not once, but twice against Greenville Regional opponent Coppin State. Or write about sports? Why its untouchable: Houston quarterback David Klinglers single-game FBS passing record of 716 yards stood for nearly 25 years before Halliday, a lesser-known quarterback and Air Raid product, eclipsed the mark last season. Join our linker program. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. Keenum was granted a medical hardship in 2010 after tearing a knee ligament, but his five touchdowns over three games prior to injury count. The Detroit Lions are reportedly considering using wide receiver Jameson Williams as a returner for the 2023 NFL season. The day before Halloween 2004, from the press box at Washington State's Martin Stadium, I watched him run into a crowd on a punt return on a wet field, then with one cut, leave a trail of flailing arms and jockstraps on his way to the end zone. Find out more. Read more about our data coverage. Stats: 2,854 passing yards, 30 passing touchdowns, 1,473 rushing yards, 20 rushing touchdowns, 42 receiving yards, receiving touchdown Newton got his one SEC chance after his troubled time. 4-ranked Auburn Tigers (10-1, 6-1 in the SEC). 20 college football teams we aren't sold on in 2023, SEC Basketball Power Rankings: Mizzou shocks Tennessee, Alabama downs Auburn and more, SEC Basketball Power Rankings: Alabama stays unbeaten in SEC play, Tennessee outlasts Auburn and more, SEC Basketball Power Rankings: A new top team emerges, Alabama loses in blowout fashion, Mizzou lights it up again. Al Diaz/Miami Herald/TNS. As good as Jones-Drew was, UCLA has never seen a return man as dangerous as Antonio Perkins. And that wasn't even the most impressive part of the return. Kick return touchdown in the Super Bowldoes it get any more exciting than that? The Cougars simply refused to run the football. And his most memorable returna 91-yard dash with one minute left in the 1991 Orange Bowl that (would have) dashed Colorado's national championshipdidn't even count due to a clipping penalty. + Indicates Hall of Famer, season age in parentheses, Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Friday, March 3, 2:32PM. All rights reserved. Fast, flashy and fearless, Howardaveraged 27.9 yards per kickoff return and 16.2 per punt return in his Wolverines career ('89-91), scoring three return TDs. Cecil Turner (4/1970), 1. Single game leaders only reflect years for which we have complete boxscore data (1950 onward), all playoff games, and all 100 yard rushing/receiving or 300 yard passing games from 1940-1959. In 2010, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. most games with two kickoff returns for touchdowns, A Brief History of The 1970s Pittsburgh Steelers vs Houston Oilers Rivalry. It's almost unfathomable to see a stat line of 12 receptions, 326 yards, 27.2 yards per reception andzero touchdowns. O.J . That's roughly what Nevada's Alex Van Dyke averaged during his two-year career Nevada. But scan through the FBS record book and you'll find other records in the highest level of college football that are likely so untouchable either due to rule changes and the evolution of the game, or due to a flash of brilliance (or the opposite of brilliance) that we think they'll stand in the history books forever. 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. 3 running back Justin Jackson as their top kick returner last season. Watch Newton go 49 yards against the LSU defense. But wiping out the kickoff? Twenty-five players in college football history have run two kickoffs back for touchdowns in the same game. After a final lateralmaking for eight laterals in totalall the way across to the opposite side field, the Hurricanes took the ball up the sideline and found wide open space, scoring the game-winning touchdown. Subscribe to Stathead Football: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Pro Football Reference Database. Mitchell was a full-time quarterback at Louisiana-Lafayette. The former Seattle Seahawks running back was ready to go on the opening kickoff of this game against the San Diego Chargers. "Theyre like, 'Well, just throw him back there.' Who holds it: Derrick Thomas, Alabama, 1988 NFL Single Season Leaders - Kickoff Return Touchdowns The following is a list of the NFL single season kickoff returnleaders ranked by kickoff return touchdowns. Again, that's with Kmic playing in 3 more games. 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. Elite running backs rarely play four seasons in todays game where the shelf life for ballcarriers has diminished and players arent often asked to carry it 30 times-plus every Saturday to save tread.