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2012 Top 10 Plays: (4) Jamal Golden's 97-Yard Kickoff Return for Touchdown on Homecoming

The fourth play in our countdown gives Jamal Golden the hat trick with his third appearance. This was one of my favorite moments all season.

Danny Karnik/Georgia Tech Athletics

Countdown to Kickoff: 41 Days...

The Situation: BYU has just scored a TD two plays after blocking a punt to extend their lead to 21-7. Georgia Tech's offense has struggled mightily, only managing 4 first downs as the game approaches halftime. With 4:46 left in the half, BYU is kicking off to Jamal Golden.

The Play: Golden takes the kickoff from the 3 yard line and starts working towards the right. After a few yards, he puts his foot in the ground and cuts back towards the near sideline. A slight change in trajectory had a huge impact due to BYU's coverage team committing the cardinal sin of leaving their lanes. With Golden's speed, he immediately runs past 5 Cougars and is able to evade the kicker around midfield with the same tactic. Golden sheds a couple of tackles, and shows patience and vision in following his caravan of blockers to the end zone. As Wes Durham alludes to in the video, this was Georgia Tech's first kickoff return for a touchdown in almost 14 years to the day. Given the offense's struggles to this point in the game, it couldn't have come at a better time.

The Aftermath: Don't worry about it. It was Homecoming and you probably had a good time anyways.

Where does this play rank on your radar for the season?