Editor's Note: Officially Speaking with Steve Hall is a feature that allows readers to ask questions about high school football rules, and runs weekly throughout the season. Hall has been a New Hampshire high school official since 1989 and has officiated nearly 300 NHIAA regular-season varsity games. He has also officiated more than 25 playoff games, and worked his 11th championship game last year (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 since 2001, and is also the New Hampshire representative on the National Federation of High Schools rules committee. Questions can be submitted to rbrown@nhfootballreport.com.

Question: A ruling in an NFL game Sunday prompted me to write this question: What is called if the whistle blows before the play has ended? This may be a far-fetched example, but let's assume the quarterback fakes the ball to the fullback and then the quarterback runs it into the end zone. While the quarterback was running, an official blew his whistle because he thought the fullback (who had been tackled) had the ball. Play is dead?

 Craig Hersom, Rochester

Answer: This question seeks an explanation of the dreaded inadvertent-whistle rule. I saw the game you are referring to (San Diego at Denver) and I feel sorry for the referee, Ed Hochuli, who is being unfairly pilloried by the press. Fortunately, inadvertent whistles are relatively rare, but since officials are human and make mistakes like everyone else, there is rules coverage describing what to do if they occur. As is the case with many rules, the National Federation inadvertent whistle rule differs from the rule in the NFL.

Under Federation rules, if an inadvertent whistle sounds while the ball is in flight during a legal forward pass or legal kick, the down is replayed. If an inadvertent whistle sounds while the ball is in possession of a player, the team may choose to accept the play at that spot or replay the down. If an inadvertent whistle sounds while the ball is loose following a fumble, backward pass, illegal forward pass or illegal kick, the team last in possession may accept the results of the play at the spot where possession was lost or replay the down. The only caveat to the above is that if a foul occurs prior to the inadvertent whistle, penalty enforcement always takes precedence over the inadvertent whistle. If the penalty for the foul is declined, then the inadvertent whistle rule is applied and the
team in possession is given its appropriate options.