[Robert Goodman]

Originally Posted by sir_eldren

A bit of an update on this. Apparently, my association really prefers the NCAA/NFL rule on face mask calls.

As was explained to me by our most experienced, and gruff, official, "we" don't call face mask on the offense unless it's worth 15 yards. Otherwise it should be illegal use of hands for 10 yards. The theory is that there is no reason, whatsoever, for a player's hands to be around anybody's face or helmet. On teh defensive side of the ball, the same applies, unless it's a tackler, in which case you may be able to call the 5-yarder.

You'd think, after 11 years of officiating football, that a philosophy like this would have been stated or written down somewhere or explained to me some time in the past. *shrug* Oh well. When I stop learning, I'll stop getting better.

It's the product of a Fed rule on illegal use of hands that overlaps in most cases with the incidental face mask situations. Conceivably if the blocker's palms are toward the blocker, and initial contact is made below the neck, the hand could slide up to the mask without its being illegal use of hands, but how often is that going to happen? If you have a single act that's 2 fouls, then the non-offending side should get the benefit of the greater penalty.