[Bob M.]

REPLY: Earlier this month, the NFHS Interpreters' Meeting was held in Indianapolis. Note: This was not the Rules Committee so they were not at liberty to make any rule changes. The A11 was discussed. Here's a brief synopsis of the discussion from one of the attendees who regulary publishes on the NFHS board. So, this is the real scoop--from the Federation:

"After reading the previous earier thread about what the Fed might have said regarding the legality of the A-11 offense, I'm offering the following summary of what was discussed at the recent interpreters meeting in Indy.

There was a presentation on the A-11 at the meeting. The presentation included video of all of Piedmont's offensive plays in the first half of a game. It was very confusing and difficult to tell how many players were on the LOS. Moreover, on several plays, ineligibles ran downfield on pass patterns, then blocked defensive backs. In those situations, a pass was thrown and completed behind the LOS, thus avoiding any OPI or ineligible downfield fouls. On a few other plays, it looked like there were not enough players on the LOS.

The conclusion of the group (including members of the editorial committee) is that there is nothing in the rules to make the offense illegal. While no one liked it, I think that penalizing it because we don't like it would be inappropriate.

Attendees were asked a somewhat rhetorical question as to what should be done: make it illegal, or do nothing and hope it dies on its own. We discussed the NCAA language ("obvious kicking situation") but some felt that description was too general and subject to too much interpretation. Others felt that the offense would go away on its own, because a sharp defensive coordinator could easily find ways to neutralize the offense. Moreover, everyone understood that any rule change to make the offense illegal will have to be done at the rules meeting in January. Until then, there's not much we can do to prevent it, and we shouldn't penalize a team for using it, notwithstanding our feelings about the offense.

If anyone wants to suggest a language change, the deadline is October 31. Work with your state association, because the NFHS will only accept proposed rules changes from state associations."