Football
Play Time
By Jeffrey Stern
In an effort to ensure a consistent interval play-to-play and game-to-game, the NFHS Football Rules Committee adopted the 40-second play clock beginning...
No-Huddle? No Hurry
The key word for officials is accommodation. You can’t deter a team from setting its own pace in a game. Teams have a right...
The ABCs of A-B-A
T he ABCs of A-B-A A rare and challenging play involves a double change of possession, known as an A-B-A play.
In PlayPic A, the...
It’s OK to pick up a flag or put one down late
Back in the day there were two commonly accepted officiating axioms: Don’t pick up a flag once it’s put down and don’t put one down late. The idea...
Swap Meet
By George Demetriou
One of the more common misconceptions in football is that a kick receiver must signal for a fair catch in order to...
3 Times When You Can Take Back A Flag
Once a flag is thrown, there are circumstances when it can be picked up — disregarded if you will. Except for some very specific...
Before, During or After the Play When to Throw the Flag Determined by Foul...
All team A players are set before a snap. Then two backs go in motion. Both are still moving just before it appears the...
Forward Fumbles Lead the Way
By Joe Jarosz
Forward fumbles ruled out of bounds between the goallines will now be brought back to the spot of the fumble due to...
Goalline Extended?
By definition, progress spots are relatively simple concepts. In practice, when airborne players, striding runners, out-of-bounds status, goallines and pylons are introduced, rulings can...
Now, Later and Never
The idea of a flag being waved off brings to mind an overbearing referee trumping the decision of a younger crewmate. That has happened...
No Chain Of Fools
In the vast majority of games, the officiating crew is handed a chain crew not of their selection. In fact, at some schools no...
How to Handle a New Crew Member
If you’re used to working on a crew with the same people from week to week, you know that you can quickly reach a...
Plays Not Seen Often Challenge Officials
No one has ever attempted to rank fouls in the order of the difficulty in calling them. However, it’s clear there is pecking order....
Breaking a Ball-Hawking Habit
The desire to rubberneck, gawk, stare and gape is often an involuntary behavior. Humans are innately curious and are often attracted to the most...
Passer Gets Extra Attention
Philosophies, rules and mechanics have increasingly stressed the need to officiate through the passer — in other words, pay particular attention to contact on...
The Game Of The Century – Notre Dame vs. Michigan State 1966
In a game that featured number one against number two — Notre Dame vs. Michigan State — college football fans were highly anticipating which...
Formation Consternation Demands Concentration
Defensive players can align themselves anywhere for scrimmage plays as long as everyone is on the proper side of the neutral zone. There is...
4 Questions a Referee Never Wants to Ask
There are four questions that no referee wants to ask when a foul has been called. That’s because they should have been asked and answered by the calling...
Sideline Officials Cannot Just Wing It
R
eferees have a great deal on their plate. Before the opening kickoff they perform organizational duties, and conduct the pregame meeting and onfield tasks...
Ditch the Dinosaur Mechanics
The semifinal game was sold out. Although the visitors were seeded lower, their playoff performance made them the favorite. The home team held its...
Forward Thinking on Backward Passes
I created a list of words and expressions commonly used by fans, coaches, announcers and sometimes by officials. However, nothing in my list appears...
Body Slam
By its very nature, the game of football can be rough. With 22 heavily padded players moving at full speed in a confined space,...
Judgment Necessary at Line of Scrimmage
Judgments are a large part of football officiating. All rules require some degree of judgment. Perhaps the simplest application is determining whether a team has too many players on...
Police the Pile
How does the runner usually react when he’s been tackled? The norm in college and pro football is that runners lay patiently after they...
