False Start

Officiating a semi-pro scrimmage last night, I didn't call an obvious false start.

Ugh. Just stupid.

And then to make it worse, on the next play, I (correctly) called a not-nearly-as-obvious encroachment on the defense. Probably could've passed on that one since I totally passed on the obvious one the other way.

At least it was a scrimmage. Still, that was terrible.

I have found that watching the offense pre-snap really helps me see false starts and distinguish which happens first, the offense moving or the defense crossing into the neutral zone. Too bad I wasn't doing that at that time yesterday.

Oh well, at least it was warm where my head was during that play. Kinda stunk though.

Ryan Longwell's Cousin

I was the Back Judge in a 6th grade LYA football game this last Saturday morning when a kid subs in to the defensive huddle with "LONGWELL" on the back of his jersey.

I said, "Hey, Ryan Longwell is in the game on defense."

"He's my cousin," the kid proclaimed.

Sidenote: Ryan Longwell was the Green Bay Packers' kicker from 1997-2005. Clutch kicker. The good news is that he had just beat the Bearettes with a last second FG. The bad news is that he now kicks for the ViQueens.

Anyhow, Ryan Longwell's cousin and I chatted a little here and there between plays, as he was playing Safety back there with Yours Truly, the Back Judge.

After a few short conversations, Ryan Longwell's cousin's team scored. As the teams were lining up for the ensuing kickoff, I went to give the ball to the kicker, and I see that Ryan Longwell's cousin is on the Kickoff team--but he's not the kicker.

After I hand the ball to the kicker, I turned to Ryan Longwell's cousin and said, "Wait a minute, you're Ryan Longwell's cousin! You're not the kicker?!?!"

He explained that he was one of the best kickers on the team, but he was also good at a lot of positions and the coach wanted to give other players a chance to play.

"Ya," I reassured him, "that was my problem, too." Too good for my own good.

The story of my life. :-)

Great kid!!! Hope he does well and keeps after it.

More on Rule 7: Snapping, Handing, and Passing the Ball

The Numbering Exception is under 7-2-5b: Basically, on a scrimmage kick, any player(s) #'d 1-49 or 80-99 can take the place of any player(s) #'d 50-79 on the line, but they are ineligible receiver(s).

The FumbleRooski Killer is Rule 7-2-8 (or at least that's the way I read it): Any "A" player on LOS can't advance a planned loose ball in the vicinity of the snapper.

The matter of fumble out of bounds in the end zone is addressed in 7-4-4: A fumble or backward pass that goes OOB behind the hoal belongs to "B" as a touchback or safety, depending on which goal it is.

Rule 7

As I read through the NFHS Football rule book, here are some rules that stand out to me as important to know, either because they are tricky, get overlooked, or because a coach may hammer ask you about them.

Right now I'm spending time of the passing game, so I'll concentrate on Rule 7. Last summer I studied the definitions, so you'll also see some of Rule 2 in here.

7-1-1 Paraphrased: Snapper may be over the ball. Meaning: His head and shoulders can be over the ball just so his feet are behind it.

7-1-2 Paraphrased: Snapper may lift or roll the ball horizontally to get grip it but he cannot roll it end to end. Meaning: He can't change what yard line it's on.

Hello. I'm going to share experiences that I've come across as a referee, mostly for my benefit.