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Ah, mechanics questions... ask a simple question and you'll get a dozen different (and probably all valid) answers.
Bottom line should be... follow the mechanics for the code your officiating under. NFHS publishes an officials manual with all this good stuff in it. CCA published mechanics manuals for NCAA 5,6 and 7-man games. Everyone has to be on the same page from game to game.
Alterations to the bottom line are that you do what your supervisor of officials wants you to do. Call them authorized modifications if you will.
NFHS states exactly what to do for signals to stop the clock and says to do them twice. Each one is independent, i.e. a pass incomplete signal is sufficient to stop the clock. They also discuss the winding when the ball becomes dead near the sideline and near sideline and first down is gained.
See page 14 and 15 in the Officials Manual if you are interested.
I'm an "older" official and never have been instructed to signal #10 then signal #3 on an incomplete pass. Nor signal #6 then #3 on a TD or other score.
It is redundant and we don't do it that way.
NCAA mechanics manuals document this good stuff too. On pages 27, 45, 49 and 53 in this years 6-man mechanics manual as an example, it's all there. We ALL do this unless the supervisor of officials for your conference says otherwise. Ours says to follow the manual or else.
There is at least one D-1 conference I'm aware of where the officals are required to use the redundant signals. So be it. Is it wrong? No, but it is different from what the rest of us do.
The game clock timer is instructed and hour before every game by the appropriate official on just what signals are used to start and stop the clock are. It's more than just #3 and that timer better know it. CCA manual documents this very clearly and they receive a copy of this manual in my conference.
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