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A loose ball is not dead when it stops. It is dead when it is on the ground motionless AND no player attempts to secure possession. See NFHS 4-2-2-e-2.
The problem on this play is not the official -- it is the fact that K didn't pick the ball up and force the whistle. I will let the ball stop and then scan the field for approaching players. As long as someone is coming towards the ball I am not going to blow it down.
What we are talking about is the play where a defensive player KNOWS the runner is down but continues to hit or piles on because "there wasn't a whistle."
Put yourself in our place. We absolutely need to make sure we see a ball in possession before we blow down a play. Sometimes, in smaller crews, it means the whistle may come in a half-second late while we "see ball."
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