[Bob M.]

REPLY: When a coach asks for this conference, a time-out is immediately charged to the requesting coach’s team. You don't wait to see what the outcome of the discussion is to determine what kind of time-out to charge. Note: It’s a charged time-out. This means that three attendants are allowed to enter the field and either of the two authorized conferences is allowed to commence. If the coach/referee conference ends quickly and the referee’s ruling is upheld, the charged time-out stays charged and will continue to its conclusion (not more than one minute). If the coach’s position prevails and the referee concurs that a mistake was made, the charged time-out reverts to an official’s time-out and ends immediately. All attendants leave the field and play is resumed after the required correction is made.

If the discussion takes longer than the one-minute allocated to the charged time-out, the extension is considered an official’s time-out, since a charged time out may not exceed one minute in length.

The big myth that exists here is that an official’s time-out is taken to discuss the rule with the requesting coach, and then it turns into a charged time-out if the referee’s ruling prevails, when in fact, it’s just the opposite. The charged time-out always occurs first and is then rescinded if the coach’s appeal is proven to be correct.