Football
College Football’s greatest plays from Hog Wild to Iron Bowl magic
Arkansas’ “Henry Heave” sparked one of college football’s wildest finishes, launching a series of improbable plays that defined history
The clock was ticking in Oxford, Mississippi, when Arkansas tight end Hunter Henry made a decision that echoed through college football history.
Facing fourth-and-25 in overtime against Ole Miss, Henry caught the ball at the 26-yard line, 11 yards short of the first down.
With Ole Miss defensive back Tony Bridges wrapped around him, Henry did the unthinkable: he blindly heaved the ball backward.
What happened next defied probability. The ball bounced perfectly to running back Alex Collins, who scooped it up and made a mad dash to convert the first down.
The play, now known as “The Henry Heave” kept Arkansas alive in a game they ultimately won, crushing Ole Miss’s SEC championship hopes in the process.
But Henry’s heroics represent just one chapter in college football’s book of impossibilities since 2000 as documented by ESPN.
Some moments seem scripted for Hollywood, yet played out on college football fields across America.
Take the “Kick Six,” perhaps the most dramatic finish in college football history.
In 2013, Auburn’s Chris Davis turned a missed Alabama field goal into a 109-yard touchdown return, instantly transforming the Iron Bowl from rivalry game to legend.
The play sent Jordan-Hare Stadium into delirium and denied Alabama a shot at a third straight national championship.
Just two weeks earlier, that same Auburn team had authored another miracle.
The “Prayer at Jordan-Hare” saw Nick Marshall’s desperate heave deflect off Georgia defenders and into Ricardo Louis’s hands for a 73-yard touchdown.
These consecutive miracles propelled Auburn to the national championship game.
The decade’s early years gave us Boise State’s bag of tricks against Oklahoma in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl.
The Broncos used not one but two trick plays. The “hook and ladder” forced overtime and the “Statue of Liberty” for the winning two-point conversion.
The latter was followed by running back Ian Johnson proposing to his cheerleader girlfriend on national television, providing the perfect Hollywood ending.
In 2006, Florida’s Tim Tebow introduced the college football world to the “jump pass,” a play that became his signature.
The freshman quarterback faked a run before leaping and tossing a touchdown pass against LSU, a trick he would reprise two years later in the national championship game against Oklahoma.
The evolution of mobile quarterbacks brought us moments like Cam Newton’s 49-yard touchdown run against LSU in 2010, where he dragged All-American cornerback Patrick Peterson the final eight yards.
Then there’s Lamar Jackson’s hurdle over a Syracuse defender in 2016, a play that helped launch his Heisman campaign.
Some plays defy explanation, like the “Eight Laterals of Chaos” in Miami’s 2015 win over Duke.
The Hurricanes used eight laterals on the final kickoff return to score the winning touchdown, though controversy followed when the ACC later admitted officials had botched several calls during the play.
But perhaps no play better exemplifies college football’s unpredictability than the “Superman” play of 2001.
Oklahoma’s Roy Williams leaped over the Texas offensive line to force an interception returned for a touchdown, creating an image that would define the Red River Rivalry for years.
These moments remind us why college football captivates millions.
From Henry’s desperate heave to Davis’s field-length dash, these plays have become more than just highlights.
They’re stories passed down through generations of fans, moments that transcend sport to become part of our collective memory. In college football, the impossible isn’t just possible. It’s expected.
