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Tuesday, August 1 7/31/06 2006 rule changes Here are some thoughts on some of the 2006 rule changes 1-2-3g Advertising and/or commercial markings may be permitted in the end zones. We are not likely to see any advertisements this season in the endzone, but it will certainly happen soon. Any markings in the end zone may be no nearer than two feet of any boundary or goal line. No commercial markings on the field of play. 1-5-1a At least a four-snap chin strap shall be required to secure the helmet. This should not be a problem as all helmets have been sold with four snaps for several years now. 1-5-1i Mouth guards shall be of any readily visible color, other than white or clear. This may be a little more of a problem as some players may try to recycle mouth guards that are clear. 1-6-2 Phones and headsets are permitted for use by anyone during a authorized sideline time-out. Good rule change for us. No one may use headsets during an authorized conference held in the middle of the field. 2-40 The word "intentional" has been removed from the spearing rule. This change should make it easier to call this foul. 4-2-2 A holder may now recover a snap and retain the same options of going back to a knee for the kick, advance, pass or running the ball. Another good rule change for us. Now the holder can do anything he could have done had he handled the snap cleanly. 7-2-8 The option to use a "planned loose ball" has been removed. No more "fumbleruski!" Now an unscrupulous coach may say it wasn't "planned," but merely a fumble. New in the case book this year. *7.2.8 SITUATION: Between downs, quarterback A1 informs the referee via a prearranged confidential signal that during the next down A will run its trick play involving a planned loose ball. (a) Snapper A2 does not release the ball and guard A3 takes it and begins to advance; or (b) A1 takes the snap and places the ball on the ground after which guard A3, who has legally turned and faced his own goal line, scoops it up and advances; or (c) A1 takes the snap and hands the ball to guard A3, who has legally turned to face his own goal line. RULING: In (a), it is a snap-infraction, dead-ball foul whether or not the referee was informed. In (b), it is an illegal planned loose ball play even though the referee was notified (7-2-8). In (c), it is a legal play. (7-2-4) 7-5-13 The act of illegally touching the ball by an ineligible player carries the same penalty whether the act occurs behind, in or beyond the line of scrimmage. Now intentionally touching a pass by an ineligible either behind or beyond the line is illegal touching. In previous years such touching beyond the line was OPI. It is an "all but one" enforcement with a loss of down. Fouls behind the line will be measured from the spot of the illegal touching. Fouls beyond the line will be measured from the previous spot which is the "basic" spot for loose plays. Consider the following play. Tight end A88 is covered by wide receiver A82. Both players run pass routes down field and A88 catches the pass . A88 is guilty of both being an ineligible illegally down field and of illegal touching. Last year it would have been both illegally down field and offensive pass interference. Team B will most likely accept the illegal touching penalty as it carries a loss of down while ineligible down field does not. In 6-, 8- and 9-player football the 9-yard mark required in 11 player has been modified to a 7-yard mark. If 6 or 8 man fields use numbers, the bottoms of the numbers should be at 7 yards. We are likely to run into some fields that are not marked properly. Tuesday, August 1 8/1/06 Focus on the Rules Know Your Authorized Conferences Two types of authorized conferences (Time Outs) are allowed. Teams may choose between: a. One or more team members and one or more coaches directly in front of the team box within 9 yards of the sideline b. One coach on the field to confer with no more than 11 players at his team's huddle between the inbounds marks. Only one type of conference may be used by a team during any one time-out. An authorized conference may be held during an official's time-out if the officials time out is for unusual heat or humidity, a media time out or for the one-minute intermission between the first and second and the third and fourth periods and following a try, successful field goal or safety and prior to the succeeding free kick. Focus on Philosophy Default Settings Just as your computer has default settings it is important for us as officials to have any number of default settings in our brain when we take the field. The most important pre-set attitude we as officials need to establish is how we are going to approach our role in the game. Do we perceive ourselves first and foremost as law enforcement officers or do we see ourselves primarily as game managers and facilitators. I encourage you to chose the latter. See yourself as a game manager who's job it is to see that the game has pace, flow and rhythm. Understand that it is our job to insure the safety of the players. It is our job as officials to signal the ball ready for play, to mark forward progress, to spot the ball for the next down. It is our job to signal when the ball becomes dead, when it goes out of bounds, falls incomplete or crosses the goal line. It is our job to count players, manage the clock, the down marker and the line to gain. It is our job to exchange balls, give direction signals and stop and start the clock. And, yes, it is our job to penalize when one team illegally gains a significant advantage over the other or plays in an unsafe manor. But, see this job as just one of many that we are charged with doing. Don't put it at the top of the list of tasks that you will be faced with during the game. If we as officials take the field with an approachable game manager default setting rather than a law enforcement setting we will be much better received by coaches, players and fans. We will be seen as being game, coach and player friendly, rather than feared, unapproachable and distrusted. Wednesday, August 2 8/02/06 FOCUS ON THE RULES and their application More on time outs Each team gets three charged time outs per half. Unused second half timeouts carry over to overtime. The length of a charged time out is by rule 60 seconds. Use some discretion and don't be afraid to let it run a little longer depending on weather conditions, game score, which team called the time out and time remaining in the game. Notify coaches 5 seconds before time out is to end. Remember the new rule change from a couple of years ago that allows the head coach to call time out. Anticipate a coaches need for a time out and be looking and listening for his request, especially when time is a factor toward the end of both halves. If the head coach chooses to coach from the press box or has been ejected, then time out may not be called from the sideline. It these cases only a player may call time out. Don't grant a time out until any pending option for a penalty has been selected. Don't grant a time out until a measurement is completed. The length of time outs can only be reduced when both teams are ready to resume play. There can be successive time outs called, either two or three in a row by the same team or the successive time out being called by the opposition. If a coach asks you for a time out make sure the referee and the crew knows it is a charged time out. Make sure you keep written track of the time outs by recording the number used, who called them and at what time during the game. Confirm with your crew mates the number of TO's each team has remaining. Also keep the coaching staff apprised on how many TO's they have remaining. Sunday, August 6 Crew Notes 8/3/06 This is how wing officials officiated in the 50's through the 80's running for their life FOCUS ON MECHANICS..Some basics for wing officials Initial Positioning The LJ and the L are our forward progress guys. They get 98% of our forward progress spots. Forward progress is our most important product. It is what we do. Wing officials are encouraged to start wide, with your heels on the sideline or even out of bounds if the flanker dictates so. It is easier to officiate going forward than it is backing up. See pic above. Initial Keys Read the tackle and guard on your side of the snapper. They will tell you immediately at the snap what type of play will be developing and in many cases their block will tell you where the play will be going. The blocking will tell you if it is a dive play in between the tackles, or a sweep or if it is going to be short or long pass. Reaction Break down field. As you read, start down field. The play is designed to go down field. Get a head start. You can always stop and come back if the result of the play dictates it. Don't be a spectator. Spectators paid, they can watch the ball carrier. You didn't pay, watch the lead blockers. We want our wings whenever possible to be at the LTG (Line to Gain) before the ball carrier. We want our wings to be in the "sweet spot" (in between the short and long pass routes)on pass plays. Finish the Play Get the FP using a sharp 90 degree square off. Officiate back or forward from the LTG to the progress plane. By using this technique you will know immediately whether or not you have a first down. Close under control, and rubber neck!! Special Considerations On plays that die out of bounds we want our wings on the sideline facing north, west or south watching the action OOB. Be at the goal line waiting for the ball on any play snapped inside the B'20-yard line. Break back to the goal line anytime Team A snaps inside their 5-yard line. Reverse goal line! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunday, August 6 crew Notes 8/04/06 Focus on Mechanics....Some basics for UmpiresInitial Positioning One-yard or a yard and a half deeper than the LB's is I think, a perfect pre-snap location. This location typically keeps you out of LB's way as they move forward to "fill" or as they move laterally to "pursue." Never line up directly behind a LB. That is a good way to get stepped on. Linebackers usually "drop" on a pass read You can line up a yard deep off of either shoulder of a middle LB. They typically drop straight back. Line up on the inside shoulder of outside LB's. They typically drop to the outside on pass reads. Try to never be in the same side zone as the Referee. If he is the side zone find a spot in the middle zone. Five good steps should get you to the LOS. Initial Keys See the snap and key the guards, The guards will lead you to the play. Reaction If your read indicates a running play take your eyes to the point of attack and focus on those critical blocks and especially on the blocks of the LB's. If your read indicates pass, move to the LOS while observing the blocks of the snapper and the guards. Be aware of any offensive linemen driving their opponent into the expanded neutral zone. Pivot and be ready to help rule on the catch when the ball is thrown. Here is a good look at an umpire who has turned and watched the point of attack. Finish the Play. We want our umpire to be active and to hustle to the pile, and if necessary to expand out to the numbers to retrieve the ball, and to spot it at the inbounds line. Be verbal when approaching the pile and let those players in the pile be aware of your presence. Special Considerations On scrimmage kicks align yourself at least ten yards deep and TE wide, but with a vantage point where you can see the snapper. This initial positioning gets you out of the way of covering interior linemen and allows you to pivot and follow in behind them looking for Blocks in the back. Personal Peril is a valid issue for officials working the umpire position. If the initial line blocks indicate the play is developing right toward you, move obliquely(at an angle)forward and pivot toward the play. this is called the matador move and it allows the umpire some semblance of safety and a view of the action. If at all possible never back up. You are liable to be run over by the ball carrier as well as the corners and safeties closing for the tackle. If a dive play goes to the other side of the line from you as the empire, take a coupe steps obliquely forward away from the play and then pivot and watch the point of attack. This gets the umpire out of the way if the ball carrier "cuts back" against the flow of the pursuit. Draw Plays can be especially dangerous for inexperienced umpires. If you are moving up to the LOS on a play that you read as a pass and all of a sudden you see a fullback coming at you with the ball, your best bet is to stand still and let him decide where to go. Easier said than done. Umpires moving up UMPIRES MOVING UP TO THE LOS On a forward pass that is complete behind the LOS, ineligible lineman are allowed to go down field and block their opponents immediately at the snap. On a forward pass that is thrown beyond the line of scrimmage Offensive linemen may not cross the neutral zone expanded until the pass is in flight. The umpire is the official who determines whether or not a pass has gone beyond the neutral zone. In order to be in the best position to make this determination he must, upon reading pass from his keys, move up to the LOS. The umpire may also be called upon to determine whether a pass was thrown from behind or from beyond the neutral zone, another reason for him to be on the line. Umpires who don't understand the importance of this mechanic, or just plain fail to execute this mechanic abdicate their fiduciary responsibility to rule on this game critical situation. Most linebackers line up four yards behind the LOS. If umpires line up a yard behind and off either shoulder of the middle linebacker or off the inside shoulder of outside linebackers, they should be within five steps of the LOS. When reading pass, from his keys, the umpire simply takes five steps forward observing blocking techniques as he goes and being aware of what the offensive lineman are doing. When the pass is caught the umpire should "punch" either forward or backward, a signal to his crew whether the pass was complete beyond or behind the LOS. If the pass is caught behind the line the Umpire simply observes the play. If the pass is complete beyond the line the umpire quickly observes the location of offensive linemen. Do not split hairs over an offensive lineman being a yard or two down field when the pass is caught. Remember O linemen can start down field when the pass was thrown. By the time the Umpire sees the pass caught, then observes offensive linemen, they may be several yards down field legally. Here is the big play we want to get. The umpire reads pass and begins to move up to the LOS. As he moves forward offensive linemen are running past him going down field. The umpire reads screen pass. The umpire is correct, as a wide receiver screen develops to the left side. However, the umpire observes the ball caught by the wide receiver clearly two yards beyond the LOS. The umpire then observes at least three ineligible O lineman 5 to 7 yards down field and blocking. Rag this play for ineligibles down field and OPI. This is the play we want to get. There is a clear advantage not prescribed by the rules and this play shows up well on tape. FUNDAMENTAL An official's whistle seldom kills the ball. It is already dead. (It is a mess if the official's whistle does kill the ball.) Aug 14, 02 |
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