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The Philadelphia Eagles seemingly broke the NFL in 2022 when it rolled out the “tush push,” which is essentially just a QB sneak with multiple players shoving the runner forward.
Now it appears that the FCS Long Island University Sharks may have just perfected the play at the college football level.
LIU squared off with the Sacred Heart Pioneers on Saturday after. Facing fourth-and-inches on its own 45-yard line with a 21-7 lead in the third quarter, the Sharks dialed up a tush push for quarterback Ethan Greenwood.
What happened next was nothing short of incredible.
🫸Ethan Greenwood breaks through the pile with a little help from his friends and covers 5️⃣5️⃣ yards for the @LIUSharksFB score. 🤩#NECFB
📺ESPN+: https://t.co/CWxqu5dNb8 pic.twitter.com/IfUYFr5mZR
— NEC Football (@NECFootball) November 9, 2024
Greenwood initially surged ahead and easily picked up the first down. But the pile kept moving, and moments later he suddenly he burst out of the pile and broke free for a 55-yard touchdown run.
The play gave LIU a 28-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Miami Dolphins star Tyreek Hill called the tush push “unstoppable” a year ago.
“It’s one of those plays that they like starting a new wave… it’s a QB-sneak, and it’s very unstoppable,” he said on his ‘It Needed To Be Said‘ podcast. “I feel like with their All-Pro offensive line that they got and then Jalen Hurts, who’s able to squat like 600 pounds… then you got A.J. Brown pushing you in the back, you got the tight end pushing you in the back. It’s hard to stop, man. I’ve seen those guys do it on 4th and 2 once and get it, which is crazy.”
But Hill didn’t want the play to be banned.
“I’m hoping that the league don’t stop it” he said. “They shouldn’t, because I feel it’s legal.”
It may be legal. But even Hill didn’t expect it to work this well.