UCLA Running Back Looks Like He Hit The Wrong Button On A Video Game While Going Full-Send On A Hurdle Over Nobody
UCLA football could not come back from a first-half deficit to beat Oregon on Saturday. That didn't stop running back Keegan Jones from doing everything he could to try and help his team.
Jones, a 5-foot-9, 175-pound junior, took a handoff on 1st-and-10 in the fourth quarter and tried to pull off a highlight reel hurdle. It didn't work and it looked like he hit the 'Y' button way too early on a video game.
After toting the rock around the right side with two blockers out in front, it looked like Jones had a clear path to the end zone. However, one of the Oregon defensive backs broke loose and stared him directly in the face.
In that moment, Jones had a choice. He could either dip out of bounds and take the five-ish-yard gain, lower his shoulder and try to run the defender over, hit the jets and try to slip through the gap, or go up and over.
UCLA running back Keegan Jones chose to go for the hurdle.
He planted his left foot, planted his right foot and absolutely sent it. His vertical leap saw him soar into the air with some pretty significant height.
The only problem was that there was nobody under him. The defensive back that Jones tried to hurdle stopped his forward momentum and was waiting patiently for the running back to land.
As he came back down to earth, Jones essentially landed right in the Ducks defender's arms. To his credit, he did not stop churning his legs and gained the first down. But not because of the hurdle.
Pulling off a successful hurdle is one of the most difficult evasive maneuvers in sports. It's really impressive when it works. In this instance, Jones went full-send for no reason. He got a little overzealous and hit the 'Y' button without needing to do so. Oops!