Went to my first football clinic over the weekend and it was outstanding. Very informative, very useful for a newbie like myself.

Everyone was very helpful - I don't know why I have low expectations, but I've been amazed so far at just how willing veteran officials are to help the new guys coming up.

So if you're new like me, definitely take advantage of a clinic in your area. It's huge.

This brings me to a question/comment. I'm in my 2nd full year of officiating football, we have some new guys starting up, but have called other sports. Sometimes I'm not sure how much they know about the rules or mechanics, and I'm afraid to come off like I already know everything since I'm only in my 2nd year. I know where I get confused the most, and I know what was the hardest to grasp. I guess I'm not real sure when to offer advice and when to keep my mouth shut and let them learn through experience. There's alot of stuff that I learn AFTER the game when I keep going over it in my head, then it "clicks". For example, I woke up around 2 am one morning and it suddenly hit my that if a receiver is NOT on the line, he's in the backfield. It was like the lightbulb going on and nobody really had to explain it, (although that would have been nice)

REPLY: schmitty...if you feel uncomfortable trying to answer all of the new guys' questions, don't. If I were you, I'd attempt to help them with the hurdles they need to clear in order to get through their first year. Tell them about the pitfalls; tell them all the mistakes you made as a first year guy; tell them what the tough spots are in the rules and mechanics; and point them in the right direction (well-versed veterans) that might be able to answer the questions you feel uncomfortable about.

And one more thing...you made a comment that <i>"...if a receiver is NOT on the line, he's in the backfield."</i> Technically, that's <u>not</u> true. A player can be in a position that is neither on the line nor in the backfield. We often call that position "in limbo." Check out the definitions for "lineman" and "back" and you'll see that there's a gap where a player can line up that makes him neither. In fact, the QB is often in that position, but he gets an exception from the requirement. It's a foul for illegal position, a violation of NF 7-2-3 and NCAA 7-5-3b-1. Now practically, we try to avoid calling this foul by declaring to ourselves that a player is either legally on the line or in the backfield as long as he's close, but technically it might be a foul. By the way, I have a picture that visually shows what the legal definitions of 'lineman' and 'back' describe. If anyone wants a copy, let me know...

That's the first I've heard of "Limbo". Can someone in Limbo go in motion? I'd like to see that picture too if you don't mind.
Thanks!

For NCAA a person in "Limbo" or also called in "no man's land" may go in motion. By rule a lineman can't go in motion but since this player isn't a lineman he can go in motion. The best thing to do on these players lining up there is to use preventive officiating. Tell the coach or the player that he needs to establish himself as being on or off the line.

REPLY: As Jason mentions, we call it "no man's land" as well as "limbo."

For Federation, that player can go in motion as long as he's at least 5 yards behind his line of scrimmage at the snap. See NF 7-2-7.

A man in motion has to be five yards behind the line at the snap?

Oh, wait, I read 7-2-7: "Except for the player 'under the snapper'...the player in motion shall be at least 5 yards behind his line of scrimmage at the snap if he started from any position not clearly behind the line..."

So if he's an end (and therefore "not clearly behind the line" because he's on the line), and he goes in motion, he has to be five yards behind the LOS. If he's off the line, he can be closer to the LOS than that.

Sorry for the misunderstanding.

glad I am not the only one. This clicked recently during one of those 2 AM wake-ups. Gosh I wish the rule book wasn't written like a series of Trivial Pursuit questions.