I have a 9" cake that will have a small foam football topper half implanted in the cake.  So I need to dig out a good sized hole to bury half of it.  Should I do this after the fondant is on the cake? I have the crumb coat on it now, and noticed that the cake is crumbly.  (I've tried a new marble cake recipe that I will not use again!).

Do you have any suggestions/advice?  Thank you all!

Diane

I would suggest instead of digging out a big chunk of cake, cut your topper off just below the frosting line.  That way you won't lose much cake but do it after you frost and fondant.

Agree that would be the best. Unfortunately I can't do it, since the football is inflated.  But the cake isn't an issue, since I had to make two different cakes for the same party, for twins, and there will be plenty.  The foam ball was too large, so I had to go with the smaller inflatable one:

Thanks for answering!