Question: Mr. Hall, you wrote in an earlier response that a player on the line of scrimmage can't wear numbers 50 through 79 and be eligible to catch a pss. I'm sure I've seen players wearing a lineman's number line up in the backfield as a running back in short-yardage situations. Am I correct in assuming these players would be eligible?
D. C., Londonderry

 

Answer:  No.  To be an eligible pass receiver, the player must be numbered 1 through 49 or 80 through 99. If a player is in the backfield with the number 50 through 79, he cannot legally catch a forward pass (illegal
touching, 5 yards from the spot of the touching plus loss of down) nor can he go downfield on a forward pass that crosses the line of scrimmage (ineligible downfield, 5 yards from the spot of the snap, replay the down).

One caveat to the above: During subvarsity and youth-league games, the numbering requirements are not enforced. Some teams don't have enough uniforms to go around for their subvarsity teams, so we are less stringent about numbering requirements at lower levels of play.

 

Question: Quarterback lines up under a guard instead of center and simulates a snap while the center snaps the ball directly to the tailback, who could then run or pass. Is anything about this play illegal?
M.A., Portsmouth

Answer:  Yes. This would be a foul at the snap for illegal formation (5 yards from the spot of the snap, replay the down).  When the QB lines up under the center (or, in the example that you cite, the guard) and places
his hands in a position to receive a snap, his hands are breaking the vertical plane through the waistlines of the linemen. The rules require that only one player who is not on the line can be in such a position (i.e., having a part of his body break the vertical plane through the waistlines of the linemen), and that player must have his hands in a position to receive the ball from the snapper if it is snapped between the snapper's legs.  Therefore, if the QB is lined up under the guard, he is not in a position to receive a snap from the snapper, so the formation is illegal. The play would be allowed to continue, but the defense would then have the option of accepting the penalty or declining it and taking the results of the play.  A minor point to add is that the QB, when lined up in this position, is not required to receive the snap (i.e., the snap could be snapped through his legs and a back could receive it).

 

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