The Pigskin
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2013 Week 1 Clips
TECHNICAL NOTE: For those not aware, when viewing these videos in the You Tube window, you can adjust the resolution for a sharper view. Notice in the lower right hand corner of the video player window a setting icon that looks like a gear. Click on that and you can adjust the setting up to 360p, 480p or even 720p in some cases. This will give you a sharper image.
The video page is back and with your help and support, will continue bringing you clips each week which are good teaching material as we all work together to understand and enforce the sometimes complicated NCAA football rules. The videos are not meant to demean or belittle any official. They are used so that ALL officials can learn from the situations and issues other officials encounter in their games. No official has ever completed a career error-free. But by sharing our errors with others we help them avoid the same pitfalls. NCAA football officials at all levels exhibit incredible rule knowledge week in and week out. We can always get better and this page hopes to serve in that effort.
Targeting and Instant Replay Review The new rules regarding the targeting foul require an automatic DQ for any player charged with that foul. But in games where there is IR, the replay booth reviews every such call and can reverse the DQ portion of the penalty. The booth did remove the DQ in this play, apparently after determining the defender first contacted the QB’s chest with his elbow (or forearm). The subsequent incidental contact of helmets makes the foul look worse than it was. Officials can decide for themselves if there was even a roughing the passer foul absent the targeting component. Please view the video and take the poll below. (Please remember to scroll down and click on the DONE button after making your choice.)
Multiple fouls Rule 10-1-3 addresses situations where one team commits multiple live ball fouls on the same play. The offended team may only elect to have 1 of the penalties enforced. In this play, both fouls carried 3 and 1 penalty enforcement. The run ended at the neutral zone. Although 1 foul (holding) was behind the NZ and one foul (illegal block below the waist) was beyond the NZ, the penalty enforcement in both cases is from the previous spot. It is not clear why the 15 yard penalty was declined and the 10 yard penalty accepted (or if the offended team was even given an option).
New Illegal Block Below the Waist The block that was flagged in this clip is a block officials have seen for decades and not flagged as it was perfectly legal (low block from the side by an unrestricted blocker, an interior lineman). This year's rule change makes this type of block illegal once the Low Blocking Zone (LBZ) has disintegrated, as it had here. The block also would have been illegal if the ball had still been in the LBZ since the block itself was outside the LBZ. Great catch by the officials!
Zap 10 and Lost Helmet In this play, an offensive lineman lost his helmet through play (no foul flagged). The result of the play was an incomplete pass. There was less than a minute remaining in the 1st half at the end of the down. The clock was stopped due to the incomplete pass AND the lost helmet. When the lost helmet is the only reason for the clock stopping, the opponent may elect the 10-second subtraction from the game clock. As there were only 5 seconds left in this half, the half would have been declared over which is what the R announced. But since there was an incomplete pass, the 10-second subtraction should not apply. It is not known how the crew realized this after the fact, but they did get it right by putting the time back and permitting another play. In the confusion, the crew lost track of who had lost his helmet (#70) as he was permitted to play on the subsequent field goal play. Normally he was at left tackle but on the FG play he was lined up on the right side of the line. The UNS penalty was enforced correctly has half the distance and an automatic first down.
Clipping (or worse?) The player who was clipped in this play (# 7) is a high-profile defender who has been mentioned as a Heisman candidate for the year. Was the foul against him a simple clip or a flagrant clip? If officials deem a player has committed a flagrant personal foul, the offender must be disqualified by rule. Official can watch this video and decide for themselves if the foul was flagrant. Clipping may be near as dangerous to the "victim" as targeting is and may be worthy of close consideration for disqualification in situations like this where the play is over and there is no legitimate reason for the block.
Forced Touching A player who is blocked by an opponent into a scrimmage kick that has crossed the neutral zone is deemed not to have actually touched the ball (6-3-4-a). It is unclear why the back judge used his bean bag in this play. Had he deemed the ball to be touched by Team A (kicking team), then the bag was warranted. But, if only the kicking team had touched the ball before it touched ground in the end zone, the ball would be dead by rule (6-3-9). In this play, action should have been stopped as soon as the ball hit the ground in the end zone and a touchback awarded to Team B.