A Massive Blocked PAT Gave Florida State Its Seventh Win In A Row Over Miami

Sometimes, a PAT seems like a given in college football. It’s a kick from the two-yard line and kickers can go their entire collegiate careers without missing one. But every now and then, something flukey happens during the “simple” kick that has a huge impact on the outcome of a game.

That happened during Saturday night’s game between Florida State and Miami. Late in the fourth quarter, the Hurricanes scored a touchdown to make the game 20-19, and it seemed like a foregone conclusion that the game would head into overtime – Miami’s kicker, Michael Badgley, hasn’t missed a PAT since 2014. But Florida State’s DeMarcus Walker took advantage of a poor snap, a sloppy hold, and a low kick by pushing through the line and getting a hand on the ball to force it wide left. Instead of a tied game, Miami found itself down by one point with not enough time to get the ball back and try to score.

Thanks to this, the Seminoles got the ball back and managed to bleed out the rest of the clock en route to their seventh straight win over their in-state rival. Football is a game of inches, and that was on display here, as the kick was only a few inches wide of the goalpost.