Question #11: If one coach goes to the huddle for 30 seconds, another coach may then confer for the time remaining as long as only one coach is in the huddle at any given time.

I know the answer is false because I found the case book play (3.5.7) that states its an UC on the coach, but where does it state this in the rule book?

The rule should read, "Only one coach may visit the huddle for the duration of a timeout."

It doesn't read that way.

Rule 2 Section 6. "One coach"

Rule 2-6-2b "One coach on the field..." It doesn't say anything about leaving and another coming on.

Patton is correct in that this is one way to interpret the rule.

Proposed change: Only one coach enters onto the field to confer with no more than 11 players at his team's huddle between the inbounds mark for the duration of the conference or timeout.

I totally agree with what you guys are saying as it definitely doesn't read that way. I thought of pointing that out but simply re-quoted what another official said on either this or on another forum when I asked the same question a year ago. I didn't want to spin cycles arguing at the time and simply went along with it because I thought perhaps I was "reading into" the rule. It appears as though I may have had a decent point at the time.

I was just hoping there was something else in the rule book that I hadn't seen. Since people say that if the rules don't say you can't ... then you can, I question how they came up with the case book play.

Remember that the case book is the Federations interpetations of the rule book so that is basically the same as the rule book.

REPLY: Except when case plays are interpreted in direct conflict with the rules. Then, we're left to argue about it here and at our meetings. (Jimmy Neil...you know which ones I'm talking about!)