Nothing in the rules prevents you from punting before fourth down; in fact the whole idea behind the “quick kick” is to do it on third down when no one is expecting it (and thus giving your opponent crappy field position).
QBs can legally kick the ball. (Can any player? BobT where are you?)
Kickers appear to be entitled to unique protection under the rules – no “roughing” and such.
Here’s my Q:
Can a QB in trouble – say, one who’s about to be sacked with no receivers open on third or fourth down – “try” a qk/punt in the hope of drawing a roughing penalty?
Reeder has the rule correct and it’s pretty much the same at every level. Roughing the kicker penalties are designed to protect kickers who are performing a set position, like a regular fourth down punt or a field goal attempt.
These guys aren’t expecting to be hit. But if you’re running around with the ball, you should expect to get hit.
I wondered this exact thing watching Monday Night Football tonight, (WHAT A GAME!!!). There was a high snap on a chip shot field goal and the holder scrambled. He eventually heaved the ball into the endzone.
I was thinking he should have just kicked a 15 yard punt out of bounds, pinning them inside the 10.
It is possible, Oregon did it against my WSU Cougars this year, although without your lince not having prior knowledge you MIGHT be risking an illegal reciever downfield. Still an interesting thought though.