Delay of Game

[InsideTheStripe]

Originally Posted by Scooby

Sit.
Score 34-34, 3:29 left in the 4th quarter, 1st and 10 for A on B's 26 and A want to run as much clock a possible. Our back Judge is in his first year. I wind the clock on the ready for play and realize that A is going to wait to snap the ball. I yell at my BJ that delay of game is on 3:04. The BJ forgets to raise his hand with 10 seconds left in the play clock and does not count down the last five seconds, but throws the flag at 3:04. I know that I have to talk to the coach of A. He is upset, but handles himself well, considering the situation. He argues that we did not administrate the play correctly and I agree with him, that we screwed up. He wants us to pick up the flag. I tell him that I cannot do that.
In the locker room after the game we talked about how to prevent this from happening in the future. but once we throw the flag. Is there any way that we can fix it?

How many coaches do they have on staff?

Not one of them could be bothered to look at the game clock when the RFP was blown? While the B should have given the signal and countdown (especially if it was communicated to the coaching staff that he/she would or that's the normal state mechanic), it doesn't absolve the coaches from doing their job - coaching their athletes based on the situation.

I had this same conversation with a head coach this summer after he was complaining that the down box was wrong and their is no way he could have possibly known it was fouth down.

I told him three things:

We should have fixed it before the snap.
The fact that we didn't doesn't absolve you and your staff of knowing the down.
We're going the other way.

Obviously, the coach didn't like it, but we weren't about to give him a 5th down.