Memphis WR gets hit in unfortunate area with penalty flag

Though not quite on the Orlando Brown level, one Memphis Tigers player suffered a painful moment at the hands of a penalty flag on Saturday.

Memphis wide receiver Joseph Scates had a textbook case of “wrong place, wrong time” in his team’s win over Charlotte. Scates was minding his own business in the first half when a pass was thrown incomplete to his fellow Tigers wide receiver Roc Taylor. A referee tossed a flag for pass interference against Charlotte on the play, but the flag, in a Chaplin-esque twist of cruel fate, hit Scates right in the groin area.

Here is the video.

Memphis player gets hit directly in the nuts by a flag pic.twitter.com/9z3mDfeayn

— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) November 11, 2023

The senior receiver Scates was doubled over in pain for a good few moments there but seemed like he was ultimately able to walk off the discomfort. He finished the day with four catches for 55 yards as Memphis won the game in overtime 44-38.

Penalty flags are usually made of nylon but with a weighted center to make sure they hit the turf effectively. Thus, it is not very pleasant to take one of those south of the waist line.

We always don’t see groin shots in football, but when we do, it is usually the wide receivers who are on the wrong end of them.