Ed Oliver, Houston’s All-American defensive tackle, lunged across the line of scrimmage. He entered the neutral zone, as it’s called. So Josh McCauley did what he was taught: He touched Oliver to draw an offside penalty.
Except McCauley, Arizona’s starting center, didn’t tap Oliver on the shoulder pad. Oliver’s head was the closest body part, so McCauley swatted his helmet. It was more of a playful nudge than a slap, and it gave ESPN’s announcers something to talk about it in a one-sided game.
Yahoo Sports tweeted the video. It had been liked 336 times and retweeted 110 times as of Tuesday afternoon.