The Pigskin Page
2015 Regular Season Clips (1)
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.
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The video page will continue bringing you clips which are good learning 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.
Is there anything that can spur more discussion and disagreement among players, coaches, fans, and officials than what constitutes a "catch" in the modern football game? The rulebook definition of a catch used to be relatively clear: Secure firm grasp and control of a live ball in flight with hands or arms before ball touches ground and then touch ground inbounds with a body part. The advent of HD technology and instant replay has permitted millisecond by millisecond review of the catch process. As a result, we now have other factors to consider when making the ruling. Was the player going to the ground in the act of making the catch? Was he able to make an act common to the ground after gaining possession? If he does a "toe tap" at the sideline, does the heel then come down on or outside the sideline? Is there any movement of the ball during the process? This week's poll play features a situation at the sideline. Please look at the clip and then vote in our poll. (Please remember to scroll down and click on the DONE button after making your choice.)
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The emphasis on cutting down targeting hits has led to the philosophy that when in doubt, targeting will be called. In games with Instant Replay (IR), the automatic review process should help ensure only true instances of targeting end up getting penalized. But even before IR steps in, or in games without IR, other members of the crew can step in to make sure only the true targeting hits are penalized. The penalty is so expensive, we must work hard to ensure we get it right. Hats off to this crew for helping out a crewmate and getting it right
Kickoff Out of Bounds and Sideline Issue
The NCAA has emphasized sideline control for several years now and instructed officials not to tolerate coaches and teams getting into the restricted area during play. In this play, not only was the coach in the area, he physically contacted the official who was trying to work a very tight play at the sideline on an onside kick. The foul was correctly flagged and penalized. It is noted that since this is a live ball foul penalized as a dead ball foul, both it and the live ball kick out of bounds foul were punishable. Coaches and teams simply MUST give our officials a safe area to work from and kudos to all officials who take this guidance to heart and keep their sidelines cleat.
As Instant Replay (IR) has become an integral part of the game there has been debate over how it has affected officiating the game. Do officials who have benefit of IR work their games differently than those who do not? One area where there seems to be agreement is that in an IR game, the ball is normally left "in play" when it is questionable whether or not it has become dead by rule or by some action. That does not always happen. In this play, it seems impossible for the flank official to have seen the ball when he ruled the runner down. He had to guess at a spot for what he had to know was going to be a close play for a 1st down. Unfortunately, what he did not know was that possession of the ball he could not see was changing.
Chop Blocks
Long time viewers of the page know how much attention we give to chop blocks. They are potentially one of the most dangerous fouls in the game and officials work hard to find them and penalize them. However, sometimes this effort may result in our brains "seeing" something that really isn't there. One thing officials should keep in mind is that the low components of a chop block are "too" low only if they are at the thigh or below. It is not simply "below the waist". The first block appears not to be a foul Block #1 The next example for this week is "textbook" Block #2.
The Clipper has never understood how some of the very men who are charged with coaching players on proper form, technique, and rules, seem to be unaware of basic rules. We often see examples like this play where the apparent planned play for the onside kickoff is clearly illegal. 6-1-2-b requires all the Team A players except the kicker be within 5 yards of their restraining line. The rule clearly states that if someone other than that "kicker" kicks the ball, it is a foul. Good job by the crew here to catch this foul. Many teams use true officials to help at their practices precisely so plays like this one can be vetted in advance and tweaked as required to make them legal.