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Originally Posted by yankeesfan
i believe there was a slight change to the illegal participation this year, but i would like to know the final verdict on this play situation. A11 thinking he has been replaced comes off the field, then realizing he is suppose to be in the game, goes back on the field and does not get in between the numbers and the play gets off. is this illegal substitution, participation, or what? and if so, penalty(live ball?) and yardage.
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REPLY: A lot of things to consider here. First of all, the 2006 rule change was to fix the problem caused by the 2005 rule change. In the simplest terms, it is once again set up to penalize a substitute who enters the field during the down as a non-player illegal substitution foul as long as he did
not participate in the play (the way it was back in 2004 and prior). If he
does participate (and now the term "participate" is defined in rule 2), it's then penalized as a live-ball illegal participation foul under the all-but-one principle. And remember in this case, the spot of the foul is where he
participated, not necessarily where he re-entered the field. Also note that if you do rule it illegal substitution, it's a non-player foul, and penalized from the succeeding spot. That means that any action that occurred during the down--including a score by A--will stand.
For this play, none of this seems to apply since A11 is neither a replaced player nor a substitute.
If A11 has not been between the nine yard marks at some time after the ready and prior to the snap, then he is guilty of illegal formation, a live ball foul that occurred simultaneous with the snap and penalized from the previous spot.
Also, as mentioned earlier, A11 is subject to all the rules related to Team A movement (motion, shift).
However, please do
NOT flag this as unsportsmanlike conduct. Two reasons: (1.) if you feel that it was a ploy to deceive Team B just prior to the snap, it's clearly covered under the illegal participation restrictions (see NF 9-6-4d), and even more importantly (2) flagging it as USC calls for succeeding spot enforcement which means that anything that happens during the play stands--including any score by Team A!