Hudl's Top 5 High School Football Trick Plays of 2014

One of the problems with NFL football is the dearth of trick plays.

With head coaches under such scrutiny, zany play designs and careful cunning to deceive an opponent may delight fans but can also blow up in a coach's face, especially against a thoroughly prepared defense or special teams unit. 

But in high school football, the playbook is wide-open, and these five trick plays left the tricky teams cheering and their opponents in disbelief. 

Kaleb Sauter

When the kickoff team does something unusual in an onside-kick situation, it's very important to account for all 11 players on the field.

The receiving team failed to do that here, as they lost track of Kaleb Sauter from Hebron High School in Carrollton, Texas. Sauter remained near the sideline during a fake huddle and snagged the expertly executed trick onside kick. 

Cole Poncheri

The football players from Waldorf, Maryland's North Point High pulled a move straight out of the basketball team's playbook for this trick play by Cole Poncheri.

The quarterback intentionally bounced a backward lateral, fooling the defense into assuming an incomplete pass. The receiver then heaved the option pass downfield. 

The execution wasn't perfect—much like the camerawork—though it was good enough to get two different receivers open down the middle of the field. Fortunately, one of them caught it and ran it in for the score.

Mike Collins

It gets cold during football season in New England, and residents there know the importance of layering to stay warm.

Apparently, the same principle applies to their gadget plays. 

On this multidimensional touchdown involving Mike Collins from Connecticut's New Canaan High School, the play called for a direct-snap reverse option. They cleared out the entire right side with a drag route, leading to a wide-open receiver in the end zone and easy points.

Dom Cosentino

This baffling play from Dom Cosentino of St. Francis High in Wheaton, Illinois, works so well that you have to watch the highlight numerous times to even understand what happened.

While it didn't go for a touchdown, it did take advantage of Cosentino's natural gift for being rather small. Listed as 5'5" at Hudl.com, he squatted behind a standing offensive line, took the sneaky inside handoff and rushed 30-plus yards into the red zone. 

Darian Taylor

Branch Rickey once said that "luck is the residue of design." And then there are other times it's just pure dumb luck, as with Darian Taylor from Pennsylvania's Franklin Varsity. 

This trick play started off well, with the slot receiver taking the reverse toss and hurling an option pass over the middle. However, he completely overthrew the intended receiver, and the ball caromed off a defensive back for a play reminiscent of Franco Harris' "Immaculate Reception."

Naturally, the jump ball landed in the hands of a streaking receiver for an improbable touchdown—just like they drew it up. 

*These plays were uploaded to Hudl.com – a leading video service for coaches, players and recruiters – and hand-picked by their staff from thousands of submissions. Hudl "helps athletes and coaches win" with video analysis tools usable on any computer or mobile device.