Officially Speaking: Waving the flag
Editor's Note: Officially Speaking with Steve Hall is a feature that allows readers to ask questions about high school football rules, and ran weekly throughout the season. Hall has been a New Hampshire high school official since 1989 and has officiated more than 200 regular-season varsity games in all five divisions. He has also officiated more than 25 playoff games and worked his 11th championship game last weekend (Pinkerton at Nashua South). Hall, who is a member of the New Hampshire Football Officials' Association Board of Directors, has been the NHFOA rules interpreter for the last seven years.
(This will be Steve's final column for the 2007 season. I'd like to thank him for all his help this year, which has made for some interesting reading. If you have questions about high school officiating you can submit them to rbrown@nhfootballreport.com or reach Steve directly through the New Hampshire Football Officials' Association.)
Question: I'm hoping you can clarify what a player can and cannot do when he goes in motion. I was under the impression that a player was not allowed to move forward at all before he went in motion, but you almost always see players take a step forward before they move left or right. My team (freshman) was on defense and received a penalty for crossing the line of scrimmage on a fourth-down play this year, and my players moved when the halfback went in motion.
A.V., Nashua
Answer: A back is allowed to go in motion provided that all eleven players have come to a complete stop for at least one full second prior to the motion beginning and that the player in motion is not moving toward the
line of scrimmage at the snap. Players in motion can take a step or two forward while in motion (or as they begin their motion) as long as they are not moving forward when the ball is snapped. Also, the act of going in motion cannot simulate action at the snap. In other words, it has to be a relatively slow and deliberate commencement of the motion. A back could not quickly charge forward for a step or two and then go in motion, because that would simulate action at the snap (it would be a false start). From your description of the play in the freshman game, it sounds like the covering officials deemed that the motion was legal. Without seeing the play, I can't give you an opinion of whether I would have considered it legal. However, if the halfback's movement was relatively slow, then I
would not consider that as simulating action at the snap. In that case, your team would have been charged with encroachment (5-yard penalty).
Question: Hello Mr. Hall, Are there any rule changes you'd like to se at the high school level?
D.S., Dover
Answer: There are a few rule changes that I propose every year to the National Federation, and they are usually accepted, but the changes that I propose are usually technical corrections to language that the average fan
(i.e., someone who isn't a "rules weenie" like me) wouldn't understand or even care about.
One rule change that I would like to see involves enforcement of a defensive penalty for a dead-ball foul that occurs after a touchdown but before the try for point. Currently, if the defense commits a late hit after a TD, the only option for the offense is to enforce the penalty on the try. Therefore, a defender could drill an offensive player after he
crosses the goal line knowing that the penalty will only be 1 1/2 yards. If the foul is deemed flagrant, the player can be ejected, but the yardage penalty will only be half the distance to the goal line on the try. I'd like the rule to be changed to give the offense the option of enforcing the penalty on the try or on the ensuing kickoff. If it was on the kickoff, the entire 15-yard penalty could be assessed.
Another rule change that I'd like to see is to make the penalty for offensive pass interference less severe. Currently, it's 15 yards from the previous spot plus a loss of down. I think that's pretty harsh. I'd like to see the penalty reduced to 5 yards and loss of down or 15 yards with a replay of the down.
Question; Could you ask Mr. Hall how the play clock (I believe it's 35 or 40 seconds) is kept on the field to determine delay of game? Is it simply a matter of looking at a second hand, or is there a device that
beeps when time is up?
Frank, Conway
Answer: A team has 25 seconds from the time the ball is marked ready for play until the ball is snapped. In New Hampshire, the referee is responsible for keeping track of delay of game. NFHS mechanics call for the back judge in a 5-man crew to keep track of the 25-second count, but in New Hampshire we use an exception to NFHS mechanics where the referee keeps track of the 25-second count. Some referees use their watches to time the 25-second count. Others (including me) use a device called a ReadyRef timer, which attaches to my belt. There's a toggle switch to activate it and a reset button to turn it off. At the end of 25 seconds, the device vibrates if it hasn't been reset. I activate it within a couple of seconds after I mark the ball ready for play, then I reset it when the ball is snapped. The advantage of using a ReadyRef timer is that I don't have to look at my watch as the end of the 25-second count approaches. This is important because if I'm glancing at my watch, I might miss a false start or an illegal shift. The disadvantage is that if a team wants to know how much time they have left to snap the ball (in order to determine whether to take a time out to avoid a delay of game penalty), I have to tell them that
I don't know because I don't use a clock to time the 25-second interval.
Question: If its fourth and 20 and the defensive team is called for pass interference, does the offense automatically get a new set of downs?
J.L, Rochester
Answer: Yes. Defensive pass interference carries a penalty of 15 yards plus an automatic first down. Penalties that include an automatic first down are roughing the kicker or holder, roughing the passer, roughing the
snapper and defensive pass interference.
I've really enjoyed responding to everyone's thought-provoking questions. I hope that it has been an informative exchange for the readers of this column. My thanks to Roger for giving me the opportunity to present
officiating in (hopefully) a more favorable light. If you have questions during the off-season or just want to drop a note to talk about football, you can do so by visiting our website at http://www.nhfoa.org/, scrolling down to "Contact Information" and clicking on the link for Rules Interpreter. Good luck next year to all players, coaches and fans. It's been a pleasure serving you.
Steve Hall
NHFOA Rules Interpreter
