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For the next 12 weeks, The End Zone will be advice from the "Next Level" series in Referee Magazine. I hope you all take advantage. There is some great advice here. This is a great way to enhance your off-season training. Whether you're a grizzled veteran or a just getting started, this is information we can all use. Enjoy! WEEK 7: END OF PLAY 1. The ankle or wrist are considered part of the foot or hand. A runner is down when any part of his body other than a hand or foot touches the ground (the ankle or wrist are considered part of the foot or hand, respectively). Additionally, a runner is not down if any part of his body touches another player (teammate or opponent) who is lying on the ground. 2. When judging forward progress, if a runner appears to be stopped, he should be given an opportunity to escape. If a runner is stopped, forward progress is marked at the ball’s farthest advance. If he breaks free and renews his charge, or runs backward of his own accord, progress is marked at the farthest ball point of his subsequent advance. The most judgmental scenario occurs when a runner breaks free and renews his charge, but staggers and goes down without further contact by the defense. In that situation, “down by contact” is a factor. If the official judges the runner went down as a result of the initial contact, the runner is entitled to forward progress at the spot he was first contacted. If not, forward progress is marked at the spot he went down. When a runner is taken backward, the spirit of the rule entitles him the spot where he was originally contacted unless he is subsequently able to move forward under his own power. Whether the defense continually maintains contact with the runner is not a factor. 3. If legal contact occurs before the runner has a foot down out of bounds, consider it a legal hit. A runner tightroping the sideline presents a challenge for opponents as well as officials. If the defender holds up, thinking he is risking a penalty for a hit out of bounds, the runner will continue to advance. On the other hand, a late hit can lead to player injury or the precursor to a confrontation. As long as the runner is clearly inbounds, and the contact is otherwise legal (e.g. not a horse-collar, striking blow, etc.), consider the hit legal.
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For the next 12 weeks, The End Zone will be advice from the "Next Level" series in Referee Magazine. I hope you all take advantage. There is some great advice here. This is a great way to enhance your off-season training. Whether you're a grizzled veteran or a just getting started, this is information we can all use. Enjoy! WEEK 6: CATCH
1. Consider all external factors when ruling catch vs. no catch. Sometimes players make a tough call for you. One example is an attempted diving or shoestring catch. If the receiver’s shoulders slump, he expresses disgust verbally or otherwise indicates disappointment, he’s telling you the pass was incomplete. Not that seeing him jump up and “show you the ball” automatically means he caught it. But lack of that or a similar gesture is a pretty good clue. A spray of those tiny black rubber pellets on a turf field, a splash of water on a wet day or a poof of dirt on a dry track may also be helpful. 2. In order to complete a catch, a player must touch the ground while he is in control of the ball. If the ball is lost after the receiver has touched the ground, due to contact or not, it should be ruled an incomplete pass instead of a fumble unless the receiver has clearly demonstrated complete control of the ball. Complete control is indicated by taking a step, tucking the ball away or some other action ordinarily associated with running with the ball. 3. The umpire can be extremely helpful in determining a catch or trap. Some high school umpires continue to watch the action in the line after a pass is thrown, sometimes for several seconds, whereas collegiate umpires are taught to pivot the instant the pass is off so as to help the wing and deep officials with catch or trap plays over the middle. Indeed, a catch or trap 10 yards from the line of scrimmage and in the middle of the field is one of the toughest calls to deal with. An alert umpire who spins when the pass is thrown can save the crew by making the call himself or helping another official who has to try to make the call while looking through the receiver’s back. 4. When in doubt, the pass was trapped rather than caught. If it is not certain a catch was made, it is an incomplete pass. The covering official can be guided by the position of the receiver’s hands. If his hands are under the ball, the likelihood that it’s a catch is increased. At least one official must observe the ball possessed by a player without it having touched the ground. 5. The official who is closest to play may not always have the best look when judging catch/no catch. The official who is closest may be so close he is not be able to see the whole picture. An official who may be a little farther away can see the whole picture and may have the best look to determine a catch or no catch. Think of taking a group picture with a camera without a zoom lens; you have to back up away from the group of people to get everyone in the photo. ick here to edit. For the next 12 weeks, The End Zone will be advice from the "Next Level" series in Referee Magazine. I hope you all take advantage. There is some great advice here. This is a great way to enhance your off-season training. Whether you're a grizzled veteran or a just getting started, this is information we can all use. Enjoy! WEEK 5: PASSING
1. When in doubt if a pass is forward or backward, rule it forward. When a pass is thrown, it’s not always easy to draw an imaginary line from the passer to the receiver. An uncaught backward pass may be recovered and advanced by either team. So ruling it backward when it could go either way actually benefits the defense. Calling it an incomplete forward pass is fair to both teams; the offense can’t gain yardage and the defense benefits because the offense has used up one of its downs. 2. When in question on action against the passer, it is roughing the passer if the defender’s intent is to punish. Remember the prime criteria is whether the contact was unavoidable and part of a legitimate effort to tackle a player holding the ball. If the defender is within one step of the passer, in almost all cases he does not have enough time to react to the release of the ball and legitimate contact should be excused. At the other end of the spectrum is the rusher who is three steps or more away from the passer. In that case, it is clear the defender has enough time to avoid contact. A defender who is two steps away forces the referee to exercise his judgment. Could the contact have been avoided? In making that decision, it is prudent to consider not only whether the defender had control of his feet, but also the control of his arms. In other words, was he truly trying to make a tackle and couldn’t stop, or was he trying to deliver a blow or otherwise inflict punishment upon the offensive player? If the referee believes the defender dove at the opponent’s knees for a purpose other than tackling him, it’s a foul. Likewise, any forearm or shoulder to the head should be considered illegal. 3. A late flag when ruling officiating intentional grounding is the optimum procedure. Two essential elements — duress and the lack of eligible offensive receivers in the area where the pass is thrown — drive the mechanics that make a late flag the optimum procedure. The referee’s primary focus is on the quarterback. If there is duress on the play, the referee must stay with the quarterback a bit longer than usual to ensure that player is not fouled. The opportunity for the referee to watch the flight of the pass is extremely limited. That will only happen if the pass is thrown away from the referee and remains within his field of vision. Consequently, the referee will always know if the pass was released under duress, but will rarely know if there was an eligible offensive receiver in the area where the ball was thrown. That means unless the ball was spiked to the ground for an obvious foul, the referee will not have all the information necessary to throw his flag. For those plays to be called properly, the referee can be assisted by any member of the crew who should run in immediately and tell the referee if the ball went into an area devoid of eligible team A receivers. The referee will then throw a late flag. 4. The referee should drop back the same number of steps as the quarterback drops back. The referee wants to keep everything in his line of sight. By dropping back with the quarterback, the referee is always the same distance away from the quarterback with his actions and can see the whole picture of the field. 5. If an interception is near the goalline (inside the one yardline) and there is a question as to whether possession is gained in the field of play or end zone, make the play a touchback. Team B has just made a great play by intercepting a pass deep in its own territory. To make that team start a new series on or inside its own one yardline effectively negates that play. Also, starting a play at the 20 yardline takes some pressure off you, since you won’t spend the next play(s) on the ensuing drive having to decide if a runner was tackled inside or outside his own end zone. For the next 12 weeks, The End Zone will be advice from the "Next Level" series in Referee Magazine. I hope you all take advantage. There is some great advice here. This is a great way to enhance your off-season training. Whether you're a grizzled veteran or a just getting started, this is information we can all use. Enjoy! WEEK 4: HOLDING
1. Actions that constitute offensive holding include but are not limited to the following six categories: • Tackle. A tackle as a block is most likely to occur as part of a block below the waist at the line. It is also an act of desperation by an offensive lineman badly beaten by a defender. • Takedown. A takedown is often fairly obvious. It may momentarily look like a wrestling match. A size mismatch between blocker and rusher increases the probability of a takedown. A factor to keep in mind is that backfield pass blockers are often smaller than defensive linemen, making the need for an “equalizing” technique more probable. • Pullover. The pullover almost always occurs on a pass play. The offensive lineman grabs his opponent at the armpits or chest plate of the shoulder pads and then pulls him over himself, making it look like the defender ran over his blocker and fell down in the process. • Hook and resist. In order to hook an opponent, the blocker must allow his hands to get outside the frame of his body. That is usually easily discernible. For a foul to occur, that act must result in a restriction that affects the play. If the defender immediately blows through the extended arm, no holding has occurred. • Grab and restrict. If the defender beats his blocker, the blocker may grab the defender’s jersey as he is moving away. The jersey grab can be subtle or patently obvious. • Jerk and restrict. This type of hold begins with two hands on the opponent’s chest. After contact is made, the blocker slides his hands up under the opponent’s shoulder pads and grabs the jersey. With that firm grasp, the blocker jerks the opponent aside or moves him away from the point of attack, thus delaying his advance. 2. Defensive holding is generally limited to four types: • Pull and shoot. That tactic used by defensive players (usually linemen) is designed to create a gap in the offensive line. The defensive lineman grabs the offensive lineman and pulls him to one side, allowing a teammate to rush through the opening and rush the quarterback or block a kick. • Holding a pulling lineman. In order to prevent the offense from setting up the blocking in front of a screen pass or sweep, a defensive player (usually a lineman) will hold a pulling lineman. It often shows up as a shirt-grab or outright tackle. • Holding on a chip block. That hold begins when an offensive lineman fires out at the snap and legally blocks the defensive lineman (usually but not always a nose guard) below the waist. An adjacent offensive lineman will either fire out or chip block the nose guard, trying to work his way to the second level of defense, usually a linebacker. If the defensive lineman holds the adjacent lineman, he prevents the lineman from getting to the linebacker. • Holding an eligible receiver. A defensive end will sometimes hold the tight end, preventing the receiver from getting off the line to execute a block or get into a pass pattern. Cornerbacks in press coverage are also known to latch onto wide receivers. 3. If there is a potential offensive holding but the action occurs clearly away from the point of attack and has no (or could have no) effect on the play, offensive holding should not be called. The runner hits the right side, makes it through the line and gains enough for a first down. But action that qualifies as holding occurs on the opposite side of the line, away from the point of attack. Was there a rules violation? You bet. Should a flag be thrown? Yes, if officials were inclined to throw the flag for every single violation committed in the game. That, no doubt, would result in a long day for players, coaches and fans. But officials must embrace the advantage/disadvantage philosophy. Color that play gray. When considering holding, if the offensive player’s act cannot be described using one of the six categories of holding, think twice before throwing the flag. Likewise, if the questionable block is on a player who could not reasonably make the tackle, a verbal warning is in order. |
Blog AuthorLance Ulrich has been a football official since 2002, and a member of SEFOA since 2009. Archives
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