Football
The Best Games Include These Three Elements
Safe, fair and fun.That phrase — that triangle, if you will — contains the ingredients to the best game you’ll ever have. And there...
Focus on Free Kicks
You are the referee for tonight’s game. You have completed the pregame conference with your crew, met with the head coaches and conducted the coin toss. Now you hustle...
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...
Free But Not Easy
By George Demetriou
Although every game begins with a kickoff, free kicks occur much less frequently than passing or running plays. Add the fact the...
Football Crew Success Depends on Working Together
Teamwork can be traced back to the Neanderthal age. It has been used to find food, build shelter, drive away enemies and protect the...
Yawner? Blowout? Guess Again
Iremember sitting at the breakfast table on the morning of a late-season game between two cellar-dwellers. One official, a garrulous person whose normal speaking...
Anticipation Takes Hesitation Out of the Equation
Many times only the offense knows what will happen after the snap. Communication from the sidelines or a brilliant idea from a player on...
A Gridiron Geometry Lesson
Laypeople may think there isn’t a big difference between spots, lines and planes, but officials need a clear understanding of those geometry terms. Very briefly, a spot is...
Eyes Off the Ball
More than one clinician has joked about officials who should have to buy a ticket to officiate a game because they mostly watch the...
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...
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...
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....
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...
Hold(er) Everything
When thinking of players associated with the kicking game, the usual focus is on those who kick the ball and team R players attempting...
Now You’re Talking
What to Say to Whom and When to Say It
Assuming a basic knowledge of football rules and mechanics, communication is arguably the greatest single...
Early Movement By Either Team May Call For Flags
O
ffensive players are prohibited from committing a false start before the snap. There are two movements that are illegal for all team A players:...
When in Doubt, Solved
Several years ago rulemakers began putting “when in question” guidelines in the rulebook. They say that in certain cases, if a ruling could go either way, it should...
Rare Rulings Well Done
No one has ever attempted to rank fouls in the order of the difficulty in calling them. However, it’s clear there is a pecking...
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...
Dead-Ball Officiating in the Side Zone
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...
Things No Official Has Ever Accomplished
There are a few things that no official has ever accomplished. By fully understanding the following feats cannot be accomplished, officials will gain a better understanding of how to...
More Than a Dozen Intentional Acts Are Possible
When the word “intentional” is mentioned, the first thing that springs to the mind of most football officials is intentional grounding. However, intent plays a role in many more...
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...
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...
