Officially Speaking: Hold that thought
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, which may be edited for clarity, can be submitted to rbrown@nhfootballreport.com. Please include your hometown.
Question: I'm a youth football coach and far from a rules expert. Last weekend one of the players on the team we were playing waved for a fair catch on a punt. The ball went through his hands, but he picked it up after it bounced off the ground and probably gained another 40 yards before he was tackled. The next play was run from where he was tackled. I'm not trying to call out any officials, but I am curious if this was the right call. My first thought was that the offensive team should have the ball where the kick returner picked it up. That would be about 5 extra yards from where he called for a fair catch. Now I'm not sure if that extra 5 yards should be allowed.
-- Pelham
Answer: You are correct that the ball should have been placed where the receiver picked it up. Following a fair catch signal by any receiver, the ball becomes dead when the kick ends. When a kick goes through a receiver's hands, it's referred to as a "muff," which is the touching of a loose ball in an unsuccessful attempt to secure possession. A muff doesn't cause the kick to end. The kick ends when it is caught or recovered by either team. Therefore, in the play you describe, the kick ended when the receiver picked up the ball. The whistle should have been blown and the receiveing team should have been awarded the ball at that point. Maybe the official didn't see the fair catch signal. The extra f yards gained would be allowed, because the ball becomes dead where the kick ends, even if it's in advance of the spot of the muff.
-- Keene
Answer: A personal foul occurring after a touchdown is scored is a dead-ball foul. All dead-ball fouls are enforced from the succeeding spot (the spot where the ball is next put in play). The penalty for a dead-ball foul following a touchdown would be enforced on the try, which is the succeeding spot. Penalties for dead-ball fouls after a touchdown is scored cannot be carried to overtime. You may be referring to the rule that allows the offense to choose the enforcement spot for fouls by the defense during touchdown scoring plays (live ball fouls, not dead ball fouls after the TD is scored). In that case, the offensive team can have the penalty enforced on the try or on the succeeding kickoff. However, if the foul occurs during the last timed down of the fourth period, the penalty cannot carry to the overtime period because New Hampshire uses the 10-yard overtime procedure, so there is no succeding kickoff. In this case, the offensive team's only option for enforcement is to have the penalty enforced on the try.
Question: Roger, thanks for providing this forum. Could you ask Steve about the definition of holding? Also, could you ask him how much "common sense" is used when a holding call is made? Is it still called if it's far away from the play or has no impact on the play? I'm assuming officials don't go strictly by the book on this one. Thank you,
-- Portsmouth
Answer: This is a difficult question to answer because, like many fouls, holding is subject to judgment. The rule book definition of holding is the "use of hands or arms to hook, lock, clamp, grasp, encircle or hold in an effort to restrain an opponent other than the runner." An official has to exercise good judgment in deciding whether to call a holding foul. During any play, there could be many blocks that one could deem to be holding by rule but that do not get called. My judgment probably differs from that of other officials, but hopefully those differences are slight. Here's the decision making that I use in determining whether to call holding. First, an advantage must be gained as a result of the hold. This means that the hold must be at the point of attack, or I must judge that absent the hold, the player could potentially have had an impact on the play. For example, if there's a sweep to the left and the runner is clearly breaking away, and the right tackle grabs the defensive end, I probably would not call holding, unless it's what I call a "stadium call", meaning that it's a "take down" type of block. Second, I watch the person getting held to see if I observe an "unathletic move." By that I mean that I look for the person getting held to be pulled away from his intended direction, see his upper body moving or turning in one direction while he is trying to move his legs in another direction, or see if he's literally tackled by the opponent. Third, I must be certain that a holding foul has occurred. If I'm not sure that a foul has occurred, it's not a foul, even if it's at the point of attack. During almost every game, defensive players will tell me that they're getting held. I always respond that they've got to help me see the foul by attempting to get away from their opponent. If they attempt to get away and I observe an unathletic move or if I see a jersey being pulled, and the action is near the point of attack, I will throw a flag for holding.
