Officially Speaking: Think safety first
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: Mr. Hall. Thanks for clarifying things for me last week. I have a follow-up question regarding kicks that enter the end zone. It's my understanding that if a kickoff is muffed by the receiving team outside the end zone, but the ball then travels into the end zone, it's a touchback. Correct? Is there any way the kicking team can recover the ball in the end zone for a touchdown? I'm assuming this would be the case if the receiving team fumbled the ball into the end zone.
-- Peter Siers, Rutland, Vt.
Answer: You are correct. A muffed kick entering the receiving team's end zone is a touchback. You clearly have a good understanding of the definitions and rules. For those readers who need some explanation, a muff is the touching of a loose ball by a player in an unsuccessful attempt to secure possession. A kick doesn't end until a player secures possession of the ball, so if a kick is muffed then travels into the end zone, it's a touchback. The only way the kicking team can recover the ball in the end zone is if the receiving team fumbled the ball or threw a backward pass after a receiving team player had secured possession in the field of play. Once possession is secured, the kick ends. If the receiving team then fumbled the ball or threw a backward pass and the ball travelled into the end zone, the ball would remain live and the kicking team could recover in the end zone and score a touchdown.
of it?
-- Gary Brennan, Gonic
Answer: To avoid a safety, the ball must be completely out of the end zone. If any part of the ball is in the end zone or if the ball is touching the goal line plane when it becomes dead, the ball is in the end zone.
An editorial comment on what you hear on Sunday (from TV announcers): Do not assume that they are correct when they authoritatively state what the ruling on a particular play is or should be. There is a high likelihood that they are incorrect. Moreover, even if they correctly state the NFL rule, Federation rules are significantly different, so one cannot assume that what happens on Sunday on TV is the way the rules are applied during high school games.
Question: I have never seen this play happen, but was wondering where the ball would be placed if it did. Offensive team has the ball near its own end zone and runs the option play. When the ball is pitched to the running back a defensive player tips the ball and sends the ball through the end zone.
-- C. Hoffman, Milford
Answer: It would be a safety and the offensive team would free kick from its own 20-yard line. To understand why it's a safety, we need to understand the concept of force. I have to warn you in advance that the
following is rules-geek drivel, so if you don't want to be bored to tears, stop reading now.
Force is the result of energy exerted by a player that provides movement of the ball. Force applies only at the goal line and only in one direction: from the field of play into the end zone. Initial force results from a carry, fumble, kick, pass or snap. After a fumble, kick or backward pass has been grounded, a new force may result from a bat, illegal
kick or muff. The muffing or batting of fumble, kick or backward pass in flight is not considered a new force.
In the play above, the defensive team bats (tips) a backward pass in flight and causes the ball to go into and out of the end zone. Since the batting of a pass in flight is not considered a new force, the force that put the
ball into the end zone is the offensive team's backward pass. Therefore, you have the offensive team forcing the ball into its own end zone where it goes out of bounds. That's a safety.
Let's now assume that the backward pass hit the ground in the field of play and was then muffed by the defensive team into and out of the end zone. The covering official would have to judge whether the muffing of the ball by the defense was a new force. Essentially, the covering official must determine whether the ball would have gone into the end zone on its own absent the muff by the defense. If yes, then the muff is not a new force and the result would be a safety. If the ball would not have gone into the end zone absent the muff, then the muff is considered a new force and the responsibility for forcing the ball into the end zone would be attributed to the defense. If the ball then went out of bounds in the end zone, it would be a touchback, and the offense would be awarded a first down on its own 20-yard line.
