Quote:
Originally posted by mikesears
My thoughts are that nobody has the correct answer for this. Two sides to the issue:
1. According to the rules, stop the clock when the ball becomes dead and clock should be stopped.
2. Because the clock operator is so far from the action it is sometime difficult for him to know if he should kill the clock so sometimes he must wait for a signal.
3. Officials are taught to have SLOW whistles. IW's are a terrible nightmare. However the time difference between a slow whistle and the time the ball actually becomes dead could be as much as a second.
I don't think we will ever have a definite answer until someone issues an official ruling on this.
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There will probably never be an official answer. How could there be? Operation of the clock is a judgement call. The referee is empowered to correct the clock if he has enough information to reset it.
A good mechanic is to have an official who is always in position to see the play run a clock on the field, typically, the line judge. If for whatever reason, the clock operator is a homer, he is watching the game, etc. the on-field official does not have the luxury a clock operator does and will time the game consistently regardless. There can often be a second or two difference in those timings just simply based upon reaction times.