Week Zero Notes & Rules Review Area Meeting – Sept 2, 2015

Set the Tone Early  Keep sidelines under control early. Make sure coaches stay inside the box.  First violation – No yardage, warning only.  Second violation – 5 yards, Sideline Warning  Third violation – 15 yards, Sideline Interference (charged to Head Coach as Unsportsmanlike Conduct)  Case 9.8.3A – Four times during a game. RULING: The third and fourth infractions are both 15-yard penalties. Since the head coach is responsible for the team box, the fouls are all charged to the head coach. The second penalty for a 15-yard unsportsmanlike foul results in the disqualification of the head coach.

Set the Tone Early  Sideline Warnings (leaving the team box) does not involve contact with the officials. Contact with the officials outside the team box is always a 15-yard Sideline Interference foul.  This does not affect the Sideline Warning progression.  Sideline Warnings are for team box violations only, not as “warnings” for Unsportsmanlike Behavior. If such behavior persists, a 15-yard penalty should be enforced.  Set the tone early – don’t wait until things heat up to throw a flag, if the behavior starts early. Talk to the players/coaches if you can, but throw a flag if necessary.  This applies to sidelines AND on the field.  Emphasize sportsmanship with coaches in pre-game.

Disqualifications  If any foul is deemed flagrant, officials should get together to discuss.  Talk through the situation, get outside input from other officials.  Referee should ask questions to determine the behavior and come to a decision.  Don’t be too hasty to disqualify. Sometimes it is necessary due to the nature of the foul, but make sure the crew communicates. A report of a DQ came where on film, the act should not have been considered flagrant.  Remember, DQs cannot be “undone”, so make sure you are certain, and always get multiple officials talking, even if the Referee is the one who sees it. Don’t be hasty.

Unsportsmanlike Conduct vs. Personal Foul  A foul involving contact with other players cannot be an Unsportsmanlike Conduct foul; such fouls would be Personal Fouls.  Personal Fouls do not count toward the 2 Unsportsmanlike Fouls for disqualification.  Any single Personal Foul can be considered flagrant or excessive, and cause for disqualification.  A player could have multiple Personal Fouls and not be disqualified.  Do not call a contact foul “Unsportsmanlike Conduct” simply to have it count towards the limit.

Coach Headsets  As officials, we have no jurisdiction over coach headsets, apart from the restrictions listed in Rule 1-6 (IE, players inside the hashes cannot use communication equipment during timeouts, etc).  If one team’s headsets are not working, and the other team’s are working, officials have no authority to force the coach with working headsets to stop using them.  We can let the coach know, but there is nothing we can do if they choose to continue using them.  Let the coach know they can inform CHSAA, but we have no jurisdiction on headset usage or functionality. (Officials can note it in the game report, however).

Length of Periods  Varsity  12 minutes  Junior Varsity  12 minutes  Freshman  12 minutes  8 th Grade  8 minutes  10 minutes is only used for games with 9 th graders mixed with 8 th graders (not used in Colorado?)  Any period can be shortened if both coaches and referee agree (including termination of game).

2014 Rule Change Review  Targeting definition added: Targeting is an act by any player who takes aim and initiates contact against an opponent above the shoulders with the helmet, forearm, hand, fist, elbow or shoulders.  NOTE: Targeting is NOT an automatic flagrant foul. It could be, but it also might not be.  Defenseless player definition added: A defenseless player is a player who, because of his physical position and focus of concentration, is especially vulnerable to injury.  This is the basis for the “Blindside Blocks” philosophy.  Applies away from play, or to players on the ground or already tied up, etc.  The whistle does not have to be blown for a dead ball, and a player could be defenseless during a live ball.

2014 Rule Change Review  Free Kick formations: 4 on each side of kicker (2015 – at time of kick), only kicker can be 5+ yards behind kicking line (all others must be within 5 yards).  BJ should inform players and try and prevent problems.  R would judge the 4-on-each-side requirement  BJ would judge the 5-yard restriction  Any personal foul against a passer is Roughing the Passer  A passer is a player who throws a legal forward pass. He continues to be a passer until the legal forward pass ends or until he moves to participate in the play.  If he doesn’t pass, it cannot be Roughing the Passer  Backwards passes cannot have Roughing the Passer  Personal Fouls after he ceases to be a Passer are not Roughing the Passer  Non-Personal Fouls against the Passer are not Roughing the Passer (2015 clarification)

Blindside Blocking  A blindside block is one where the person being blocked does not see the blocker, regardless of which direction the blocker comes from  This can be due to the block occurring away from the play, or due to the player being blocked having attention focused on the runner.  For a blindside block to be legal, the blocker must make initial contact with his hands.  A shoulder-initiated block from the front could be an illegal blindside block if the player being blocked doesn’t see it coming – blocker should use HANDS.  Remember: A push in the back is still an illegal block in the back, even if hands are initial contact point.  Blindside blocks in Free Blocking Zone are legal.

Ball Placement  When spotting the ball, the ball should always be placed with the long axis parallel to the sideline.  Rule indicates that the center cannot do anything that changes this alignment: “The snapper may lift the ball for lateral rotation but may not rotate end-for-end or change the location or fail to keep the long axis of the ball at right angles to the line of scrimmage. OK NO

Face Guarding vs Pass Block  Rule : “It is forward-pass interference if: … b. Any player hinders an opponent’s vision without making an attempt to catch, intercept or bat the ball, even though no contact was made.”  The defender does not have to be looking at the ball for it to be legal.  Blocking vision in and of itself is not illegal.  Putting hands up in hopes of blocking the ball, even if it also blocks vision, is probably legal.  Putting hands in the face of the opponent is probably not legal.  Make sure you see the whole play. While blocking vision can be PI, it’s only so if there was no attempt at playing the ball. Looking for the ball is not a requirement.

Kicks in End Zone R Bounce TOUCHBACK!!

Kicks in End Zone R TOUCHBACK!!

Kicks in End Zone R Muff TOUCHBACK!!

Kicks in End Zone R Muff TOUCHBACK!! Bounce

Kicks in End Zone R Catch & Fumble LIVE BALL!

Eligible Receivers (Non-Exception) on line with Eligibles: Ends, Backfield Doesn’t matter that 88 is lined up as “Tackle”, he’s on the end 88 not eligible by “position”. (See case 7.2.5A) “Position” does not refer to being a tackle, but simply refers to being in an interior position.

Other Notes  If streakers or other non-participants enter the field, do not get involved with removing them; let game management and/or law enforcement handle it.  If the action affects the play, officials could invoke Illegal Participation if appropriate.  If K touches a scrimmage kick while it is still moving, the ball remains live; R could pick it up and run. If the ball has come to rest before K touches it, a touch by K could cause the ball to become dead (4-2-2f).  A fumble should never be killed when not in player possession, unless it went out of bounds or is on the ground motionless with no player attempting to secure possession. Be careful of Inadvertent Whistles during fumbles – take it slow and watch.