The most frequently utilized crew size for high school varsity contests across the country consists of five people. As stated in the NFHS Football Game Officials Manual, “Game officials must utilize hustle, angles, distance and planned compromises to observe and control the action.” With 22 players moving at high rates of speed, it’s altogether unreasonable to expect five individuals to see everything. Consider the following five holes for a crew of five and some advice about how to deal with them.
1. Kickoff Toward the Pylon
For a standard kickoff situation (not relocated by penalty), NFHS mechanics dictate the referee be lined up on team R’s goalline between the hashmarks. The umpire, head linesman, line judge and back judge will start outside the sidelines. The umpire and line judge will be on the press box side of the field at team R’s 20 yardline and the 50 yardline, respectively. The head linesman and back judge will be opposite the press box at team R’s 30 yardline and team K’s 40 yardline, respectively. In NFHS mechanics, the referee is responsible for ruling on a touchback, but the umpire and head linesman should be on high alert to assist with kicks that threaten the pylon, especially when a team R player is in position to recover the ball near a sideline. In this case, the umpire and head linesman should back off the sideline to widen their field of vision and work to have their heads on a swivel to provide the referee information, while still observing their primary responsibility of blocking action as kicking and receiving team players come together in the field of play.
2. Surprise Onside Kicks
When game situations dictate, crews should be ready to move into traditional onside kick positions. They must also be ready to deal with occasional onside kicks to start the game or second half, or when the momentum of a game influences coaching decisions. Coverage of team K’s free-kick line opposite the back judge and team R’s free-kick line opposite the line judge can become especially problematic when the umpire and head linesman are in normal free-kick positions. Back judges must extend visual focus all the way to the opposite sideline and make sure formations and movement by the kicking team are legal. It is accepted practice to warn, and not flag, a kicking team the first time it barely breaks the free-kick line prior to kicking the ball on a normal free kick, but when an onside kick is executed, no such latitude is granted.
Line judges must extend visual focus all the way to the opposite sideline, especially when a surprise onside kick goes away from them. Touching and blocking, especially in the neutral zone, become of utmost importance and the line judge is usually in the best position to provide information to the crew. Umpires and head linesmen must be ready to move swiftly when a surprise onside kick is recognized.
Giving the signal to start the clock when a kick is touched legally in the field of play, other than a clean recovery by a grounded player or one making a fair catch, becomes the responsibility of the umpire and/or head linesman as they move toward the action. Providing information to the crew about first touching, forced touching and recovery is vital to the crew’s success. Often, piles of opposing players are more common at the end of an onside kick play than they are on a normal kickoff and return. Dead-ball officiating becomes even more important, and everyone plays a role.
3. Deep Pass Threatens the Sideline
Passes that threaten the sideline, especially deep down the field, are often problematic because the crew is unable to “box in” the action with multiple sideline officials. Wing officials should move downfield and follow their initial receiver responsibility when a pass is likely. When the moment of decision presents itself — often when control, a body part down inbounds and the sideline are all in question — officials should work to be in a set position so their eyes are still and focused. Back judges can be of great assistance to sideline officials by moving toward the location of the pass and making eye contact with their crewmate. If, after eye contact, the officials agree with the decision with a head nod, they can both signal. If verbal discussion is required, withhold a ruling until after the brief discussion is concluded.
4. Back Judge Starting Position in End Zone
NFHS mechanics dictate that snaps from team B’s 10 yardline and in require wing officials to move toward the goalline (directly to the line from inside the five yardline) at the snap. The back judge shall be positioned on the endline. When team A is snapping the ball from between team B’s 20 and 25 yardline, the back judge is positioned on the goalline to begin the play. This leaves the problem area for snaps between team B’s 10 and 20 yardline, and there is no official NFHS mechanics guidance on these plays. Crews must make this part of their preseason and pregame discussion. Style of play, offensive formation and game situations are likely to play a role in the back judge’s decision. The worst-case scenario is leaving a bang-bang progress spot at the goalline or catch/no catch at the endline uncovered. Back judges must be ready to move to the goalline when wing officials are not in a position to get there and to the endline when a pass threatens it. Crew communication ahead of time is key.
5. Leaving a Sideline Vacant on Scoring Kicks
NFHS mechanics dictate the referee will take a position face-to-face with the holder of a scoring kick. The wing official facing the referee remains on the line of scrimmage during scoring kicks and the opposite wing official joins the back judge underneath the uprights. This is really the lone instance of a sideline being left “unmanned” to start a play. It behooves the crew to communicate when a sideline will be left without a crew member. In the case of a fake or botched field goal or try, the referee and wing official who is under the upright must move quickly if a play goes toward the uncovered sideline. Do your best to cover the action as completely as possible — there are no sweet spots. The referee may need to take an unconventional route if the play rolls that way.
In the case of the potential “ice the kicker” timeout or other requests from the sideline, the crew should discuss who might have eyes and ears on a coach. The referee will likely be closest to the uncovered sideline and is best suited to hear an audible request for a timeout from that side. The wing official on the opposite sideline or either official under the uprights will be better able to recognize a visible request coming from behind the referee. If a timeout is anticipated prior to the snap, a quick reminder to the coach on the uncovered sideline that he should make the referee aware audibly or the deep officials aware visually is a good practice that might save the crew some headache after the play.\
Joe Jarosz is an associate editor for Referee. He officiates football and basketball at the high school and small-college level.
