College Football HQ

Kirk Herbstreit calls out 'unethical as hell' fake injuries in college football

"It's not necessarily against the rules, but it's unethical as hell," college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit said of what he thought were fake injuries in Saturday's game.

James Parks

College football analyst Kirk Herbstreit gives his opinion of what he believes are fake injuries that come at just the right time.
College football analyst Kirk Herbstreit gives his opinion of what he believes are fake injuries that come at just the right time. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

College football analyst Kirk Herbstreit is highly suspicious of players who claim to be injured just when it appears their opponent is trying to play a little faster on offense.

Herbstreit called such injuries “unethical as hell” and “pathetic” during Tennessee’s win against Oklahoma on Saturday night.

“This is college football. It drives me crazy,” Herbstreit said during the game.

“They look over after a big play, and all of a sudden, he looks over and he just goes down. It’s not necessarily against the rules, but it’s unethical as hell. When you see this all over against these tempo offenses, guys just go down with the quote-unquote ‘injury.’”

Herbstreit’s remarks came as Sooners defensive lineman Da’Jon Terry went down and grabbed his left leg moments after Vols quarterback Nico Iamaleava connected with Bru McCoy on a 38-yard pass play that put Tennessee’s offense on the Oklahoma 10-yard line.

That timing was a little much for Herbstreit.

“It’s pathetic,” he said.

The strategy may have worked, as Tennessee’s offense stalled and settled for a field goal and the early 3-0 lead, en route to a dominant 25-15 victory that spoiled the Sooners’ SEC debut.

Tennessee football reporter joked about the apparent injury to Terry, who was able to return the game soon after and make an impact play.

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James Parks
JAMES PARKS

James Parks is the founder and publisher of College Football HQ. He previously covered football for 247Sports and CBS Interactive. College Football HQ joined the Sports Illustrated Fannation Network in 2022.

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