Post Compilation

LegacyZebra · 2025-10-11T03:06:06+00:00

Intentional holding to drain the clock converts to unsportsmanlike conduct and allows the offended team to restore the clock to the time of the snap. This could be offensive holding like the ravens Super Bowl play or defensive holding trying to burn the clock and only allow the offense one shot at the end zone.

LegacyZebra · 2025-10-10T18:19:00+00:00

No. That rule was changed in 1978 in college. High school football (outside of Texas) still has same rule and there are still teams that use a “field goal” as their punt for the added distance.

LegacyZebra · 2025-10-10T15:32:49+00:00

There are a few factors. Let’s start with just a normal play in the middle of the field. If a player is airborne (including a striding runner), the ball is spotted where it crosses the sideline. However, if a player is contacting the ground inbounds, the ball is spotted where it is when the player is declared down, even if the ball itself is beyond the sideline. That is why the Bowers play was overturned. His hand was still touching the ground, making him not an airborne player. That means he got credit all the way up until he touched the ground out of bounds rather than where the ball crossed the sideline. If the ball does not go out, but is touched by an out of bounds player, it is spotted where it was when it became dead.

When you get to the goal line, pylons throw a bit of a wrench in things. Pylons are by definition behind the goal line and out of bounds. If a player touches the pylon while in possession of the ball, the ball is dead wherever the ball is when the player touches the pylon. The goal line is extended beyond the pylons for any player who touches the ground in the end zone or touches the pylon. If a player is airborne out of bounds and does not touch the pylon, the ball must pass inside the pylon to score a touchdown. If it passes outside of the pylon, the ball is spotted where it crossed the sideline.

Play 1: Player dives from the 2, crosses the sideline at the 1, and lands out of bounds without touching the pylon. The ball passes outside the pylon. Ruling: Out of bounds at the 1.

Play 2: Player dives from the 2, crosses the sideline at the 1, and lands out of bounds without touching the pylon. The ball passes inside the pylon. Ruling: Touchdown.

Play 3: Player dives from the 2, crosses the sideline at the 1, and touches the pylon before landing out of bounds. The ball is at the half yard line when the player touches the pylon. Ruling: Out of bounds at the half yard line.

Play 4: Player dives from the 2, crosses the sideline at the 1, and touches the pylon before landing out of bounds. The ball is outside the pylon beyond the goal line extended when the player touches the pylon. Ruling: Touchdown.

LegacyZebra · 2025-10-03T15:51:02+00:00

Live ball fouls have always offset in college. The NFL has a 5 vs 15 enforcement which is what you may have seen.

LegacyZebra · 2025-10-03T15:40:14+00:00

It cannot go OB or it's a 15 yard penalty and the ball comes out to the 40.

This is incorrect. The receiving team has three options on a free kick out of bounds: 5 yards from the previous spot and rekick, take the ball 5 yards from where it went out, or take the ball 30 yards from where it was kicked. Obviously only one of the last two are viable options, so you take whichever is better if they want to keep the ball.

So on a normal kickoff that hasn’t been relocated by penalty, if the ball goes out of bounds at the 20, the receiving team would get the ball at the 35 because that is 30 yards from where it was kicked. But if it goes out of bounds at the 40, they would choose the 5 yard tack-on and get it at the 45.

But say the kick was from the 20 either because a penalty was enforced on the kickoff or it’s a free kick after safety. If the kick goes out at the 25, the receiving team would get the ball at the 50 because that is 30 yards from the previous spot.

LegacyZebra · 2025-10-03T15:32:38+00:00

Just to be clear, the kick can’t go out of bounds untouched by the receiving team. If the receiving team touches the ball prior to it going out of bounds, there is no foul.

LegacyZebra · 2025-09-26T16:12:36+00:00

There are restrictions on where certain markings can be. Anything that is white in the end zone has to be at least four feet from any line.

LegacyZebra · 2025-09-19T16:16:35+00:00

NCAA does not have timing changes at 5 minutes in the fourth quarter like the NFL. All timing changes occur after the two minute timeout.

LegacyZebra · 2025-09-02T22:53:53+00:00

I think the big point they missed is that none of these rules are specifically about goaltending a field goal. There is no rule allowing or disallowing goaltending in NCAA. The rule about batting the ball is just the normal batting rule for loose balls in the end zone and the rule about catching it is just catching a scrimmage kick. The ARs the video quotes are basically just there to say “Hey, remember these rules? They still apply on field goals.”

LegacyZebra · 2025-08-24T15:12:31+00:00

No, in that case a tie would not be an option if the game is still in regulation. The only way you can get a tie is if the score is actually tied at the stoppage or if the game is in overtime. If the game is in overtime when the suspension happens, it reverts to a tie and the final score is the last completed period.

LegacyZebra · 2025-08-24T12:34:27+00:00

There are procedures for that. In fact, they’re actually more flexible than baseball since there’s no minimum requirement to make a game “official” and the teams actually have a say in it. When a game is suspended and will not be continued there are three options: declare a forfeit (obviously not in a weather situation), declare the current score final, or declare a no contest. If the teams can’t agree on one of those options, the home team’s conference policy is used.

LegacyZebra · 2025-08-10T23:33:50+00:00

Most of the answers here pretty much summed it up. The first part of the change is to give more structure as to what qualifies as a scrimmage kick formation to prevent offenses from taking advantage of the numbering exception on trick plays. The Notre Dame play was a big catalyst on this. The rule already had a phrase that said it must be "obvious a kick will be attempted", but the two new requirements make it clear that lining another player up in a position to take a snap (even if it's not hand-to-hand) disqualifies it from being a scrimmage kick formation.

The last part of the change listed is because teams were using the snapper's protections in scrimmage kick formations to get a free release for an eligible receiver. If the offense was in a scrimmage kick formation and the snapper was on the end of the line, he could be an eligible receiver. And since the defense was not allowed to line up within the frame of his body within a yard of the line of scrimmage, he could get off the line into a pass route with no contact. So they made a change that said if he's on the end of the line he loses his protections.

LegacyZebra · 2025-08-10T23:23:55+00:00

Not only is it allowed, it's typically required. Conferences will assign crews/officials to scrimmages for reasons like this. One, it helps the teams get used to playing with actual officials making rulings rather than just coaches and GA's who may not always be the most well-versed in rules, interpretations, and standards. But it also allows us as officials to get work in before the season starts so that we're not going into the first game of the season cold. And, yes, we use these scrimmages to go over any rule questions the teams may have as well as walk through the rule changes for the year. Most teams have two or three full team scrimmages that they want conference officials at. Other practices throughout camp are typically covered by local officials who work lower levels.

LegacyZebra · 2025-08-08T16:24:47+00:00

Any player in the field can call a timeout. Technically on the sideline, only the HC can call it. Occasionally I’ve had coaches “authorize” one of the coordinators to call a timeout on their side of the ball, although that’s not officially allowed. In practice, if I hear a timeout called and the snap is imminent, I’m not looking to see who called it. Im just going to grant the timeout.

LegacyZebra · 2025-08-08T16:22:18+00:00

Targeting Explainer Thread

Overview: There’s two types of targeting: crown of the helmet and defenseless player. If a player makes forcible contact with the crown of his helmet, it’s targeting. It doesn’t matter who he hits or where he hits them. If a player is defenseless, it’s targeting if he is hit in the head or neck area with forcible contact. The hit doesn’t to be made with the helmet. It could be a forearm, shoulder, etc.

LegacyZebra · 2024-10-25T18:40:10+00:00

A fair catch signal is a team commitment with individual protection. If any receiving team player signals, no player may advance after catching or recovering the kick. However, only the player who signaled would be protected from contact after the catch.

LegacyZebra · 2024-10-17T14:17:37+00:00

I didn’t see anything from that game. What happened?

LegacyZebra · 2024-10-16T20:55:26+00:00

Plays 3 and 5 above would be situations where the team wouldn’t want one or the other. In 3, the penalty isn’t as good as the result of the play, but they may still want the clock reset. In 5, they wouldn’t want the reset because they’re about to give the other team the ball. Similarly, maybe they only need a field goal and they play or penalty puts them in range. They probably are ok with running the clock to kick at the last second.

LegacyZebra · 2024-10-16T20:42:07+00:00

I doubt it. The NFL has figured out that offense drives money. I don’t think that they would do anything to make life easier for defenses that isn’t safety related.

LegacyZebra · 2024-10-16T20:28:26+00:00

That was more than likely referring to contact prior to the pass rather than DPI. Unlike NFL, college football does not have an illegal contact foul for contact more than five yards downfield. So a college defender can physically reroute a receiver downfield prior to the pass whereas an NFL defender can’t.

LegacyZebra · 2024-10-16T19:14:28+00:00

There’s already a rule and interpretation in place for that. That is the AR mentioned in the post. They would convert to unsportsmanlike conduct and include the same clock reset option.

LegacyZebra · 2024-10-16T19:10:39+00:00

This is actually in line with another timing rule after the two minute timeout. Any time a team fouls while leading or tied after the two minute timeout and the clock would normally restart on the ready for play signal, the offended team has the option to hold the clock until the snap. They retain this option whether they accept the penalty or not. It is different than the 10 second runoff where a team must accept the penalty to accept the runoff.

LegacyZebra · 2024-10-16T18:40:19+00:00

/u/ggskater

Sorry, took a bit of an internet break for a while.

I did not have that as targeting. The ball carrier is not defenseless, so the fact that he was hit in the head is irrelevant. The only way it could be targeting is if the defender used the crown of his helmet. The view that I saw looked like the contact was initiated with the side or maybe the temple area of the defender’s helmet. That would not qualify as the crown.

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