Mercy Rule

APG

Robert Goodman wrote
Since a team is allowed to forfeit at any time, why is a TKO necessary? Is it just supposed to be a face saver for the coaches for their players? "I'd've liked to have subbed you in, but we ran out of time."

Come on, you should know this. Sure a coach can forfeit a game...as an official, I have no power to stop him. A little more paperwork for me is all that will result. But the coach has people to answer to and unless there are outstanding circumstances, it's highly frowned upon to forfeit...which is usually met with suspension to the coach.

Robert Goodman

APG wrote
Come on, you should know this. Sure a coach can forfeit a game...as an official, I have no power to stop him. A little more paperwork for me is all that will result.

There's paperwork?

But the coach has people to answer to and unless there are outstanding circumstances, it's highly frowned upon to forfeit...which is usually met with suspension to the coach.

I had no idea. It's not like they're playing for money. What is it, like with lawyers, they're supposed to try to win no matter what the overall consider'n of good might be? So even though you, as an official, might think it'd be better for all if the game were aborted, the coaches aren't supposed to make that judgment? Unlike boxing?

I had the impression football was a game.

maven

Robert Goodman wrote
There's paperwork?

I had no idea. It's not like they're playing for money.

Yes, there's paperwork. Officials are sometimes accused of taking the game away from the players, but a coach forfeiting in the middle of a game is exactly that. It's an abdication of responsibility, and many state associations will hold coaches to account.

APG

Robert Goodman wrote
There's paperwork?

I had no idea. It's not like they're playing for money. What is it, like with lawyers, they're supposed to try to win no matter what the overall consider'n of good might be? So even though you, as an official, might think it'd be better for all if the game were aborted, the coaches aren't supposed to make that judgment? Unlike boxing?

I had the impression football was a game.

State associations tend to want to know when a coach forfeits a game...for whatever reason.

Like I said, a coach can make that judgement if he wants...he'll just have to deal with the consequences of his judgement. Most states have provisions punishing forfeits/quitting...and if they don't hand any punishments down, it doesn't stop the schools from hashing out their own punishments.

Football is a game, and by a coach deciding to call it quits for his team, he's taken that game away from his players and the opponent. In most people's eyes, there better be a pretty dang good reason for a coach to that, or he's in some trouble.

asdf

maven wrote
It was my first year, and I mistakenly thought that we could not terminate the game.

You cannot terminate the game in this situation. It's up to the coaches.

They both have to agree. Once they do, then the officials should agree as well.

Robert Goodman

asdf wrote
You cannot terminate the game in this situation. It's up to the coaches.

They both have to agree. Once they do, then the officials should agree as well.

But if they agree, does it bring down hell on both of them, as implied upthread? Or does that happen only if only one of them wants to end the game?

Robert Goodman

APG wrote
Football is a game, and by a coach deciding to call it quits for his team, he's taken that game away from his players and the opponent. In most people's eyes, there better be a pretty dang good reason for a coach to that, or he's in some trouble.

But don't the mercy rules being advocated by many in this thread do the same thing, for the same reason?

bigjohn

Happens in Baseball all the time, run rule. Baseball is the one sport where time is not part of the equation and a team could come back and win. So why do they have the run rule where as a football game has to be played.

I don't agree with kids not getting reps. Most of the kids that play in a blowout have a JV game of their own. Now if it is two big schools playing with plenty of non JV backups, play the entire time.

APG

Robert Goodman wrote
But don't the mercy rules being advocated by many in this thread do the same thing, for the same reason?

No...one outright ends the game.

asdf

Robert Goodman wrote
But if they agree, does it bring down hell on both of them, as implied upthread? Or does that happen only if only one of them wants to end the game?

Agreeing to end a game prematurely and forefeiting a game are two different animals.

Only one will have consequences.

Robert Goodman

APG wrote
No...one outright ends the game.

The traditional 6-man rule was that a 40+ pt. difference at or after halftime was a TKO. Game over. Isn't that one of the possibilities advocated by someone upthread?

Robert Goodman

asdf wrote
Agreeing to end a game prematurely and forefeiting a game are two different animals.

Only one will have consequences.

Then what about failure to play within two minutes after being ordered to do so by the referee, which accomplishes the same thing? Does that one have consequences or not?

APG

Robert Goodman wrote
Then what about failure to play within two minutes after being ordered to do so by the referee, which accomplishes the same thing? Does that one have consequences or not?

Put it this way, anytime a team is forfeiting a game, for whatever reason, more likely than not, there will be consequences.

Welpe

APG wrote
Put it this way, anytime a team is forfeiting a game, for whatever reason, more likely than not, there will be consequences.

But what if an asteroid strikes at the 50?

Adam

Welpe wrote
But what if an asteroid strikes at the 50?

We now know the definition of "intentionally obtuse."

Rich

Adam wrote
We now know the definition of "intentionally obtuse."

That carries a 5-yard penalty and a loss of down.

Adam

Rich wrote
That carries a 5-yard penalty and a loss of down.

Even in a blow out?

bigjohn

Keep the flag in your pocket, Ref!
🙂

CT1

Robert Goodman wrote
It's not like they're playing for money.

This may come as a shock to you, Robert, but there's a great deal of money involved in HS football in some areas. Coaches are paid well (some as much as six figures), and football receipts help fund the non-revenue sports.

Any coach in our state who forfeits a game will have a bunch of 'splainin' to do.

MD Longhorn

Welpe wrote
But what if an asteroid strikes at the 50?

Hence the "more likely than not" rather than "always"

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