Saturday’s NCAA Division III football game between UW-Platteville and UW-La Crosse featured an unbelievable ending that was equal parts ridiculous and heartbreaking.
UW-Platteville had the ball with 1st-and-10 at the UW-La Crosse 14-yard line trailing by a point with 24 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Platteville was certainly in field-goal range, but with no timeouts left, it was going to have to spike the ball in order to set up for a game-winning kick.
There appeared to be some confusion before the ensuing snap, with senior quarterback Colin Schuetz taking a long time to launch the play. It appeared that this was because Platteville wanted to take time off the clock so time would expire on the field-goal try. Schuetz, however, apparently blanked for a moment. Upon receiving the snap, instead of spiking the football, he took a knee.
The offense immediately tried to rush back to the line in order to give the field-goal unit a chance, but time ran out before the ball could be snapped again. Schuetz was visibly distraught as he walked off the field, almost in disbelief over his own mental error.
If it’s any consolation, even the very best make basic mental mistakes from time to time. This one, however, is pretty hard to believe.
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