A ‘tornado kick’ from FSU punter Daniel Hughes won high praise during the NCAA football game against SMU on September 7. The video quickly went viral on social media.
The video shows Hughes hit a ‘tornado kick’ the moment he gets the ball. The score between the Florida State Seminoles and SMU Mustangs is tied at 24-24 at the time of writing.
Meanwhile, the 'tornado kick' has gained special attention during the high-octane match.
‘Tornado kick’ earns high praise
Hughes was praised online for the spectacular punting technique. “This is SO sick by the Australian FSU punter Daniel Hughes. The tornado punt looks like a sideways blitzball coming at you full speed. Yamir Knight had no idea what to do with it,” one wrote.
{{/usCountry}}Hughes was praised online for the spectacular punting technique. “This is SO sick by the Australian FSU punter Daniel Hughes. The tornado punt looks like a sideways blitzball coming at you full speed. Yamir Knight had no idea what to do with it,” one wrote.
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Another added “The Tornado Kick might take over college football”. Yet another said “That was awesome - a punt called a “tornado kick” and the announcer said “that’s not a bad kick that was done on purpose” . That was awesome. What a great job by Florida State Punter!”.
Other posts on X too praised the technique that went behind the ‘tornado kick’.
What is a 'tornado kick'?
A 'tornado kick' is a punting technique where the player deliberately puts extreme forward spin on the ball to create erratic, difficult-to-handle bounces for the returner. It is a specialized technique which was seen in the American college football game.
Polymarket's football account on X noted “This punter intentionally puts forward spin on his punts which causes crazy bounces. The returner muffs it and FSU gets the ball,” adding that the ‘tornado kick’ was here to stay.
In a ‘tornado kick’ the player opts for a different technique over the traditional end-over-end or spiral punt Hence, the kicker strikes the ball to generate rapid forward rotation. When it hits the turf, the forward momentum and spin cause the football to bounce unpredictably or spin sharply backward or even sideways.
This in turn forces the punt returner to make a split-second decision on a live ball that behaves abnormally, and therefore greatly increases the chance of a muffed catch or a turnover. In the case of Hughes, the ‘tornado kick’ did result in a turnover.
Who is Daniel Hughes?
Hughes has been grabbing attention long before he went viral with the ‘tornado kick’. He is 6-foot-5 and rocks a bleached-blonde mullet, while sporting numerous tattoos.
Hughes is from Australia and used to play for Victorian Football League side Northern Bullants. This is Hughes' third season playing college football at a different school. He is 28 years old and was born on June 2, 1998, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Apart from Florida State, he's played college football for New Mexico and City College of San Francisco.