formation (NFHS)

[Bob M.]

REPLY: I've been participating on these boards for a few years now and I'm frankly amazed at the number of things that some officials want to rule unsportsmanlike 'deception.' I truly mean no offense to Huskerblue, but as mcrowder pointed out, football is a game of deception--and not only by the offense. Even the defense can fake a blitz just prior to the snap to throw off the offense's blocking assignments. And how often do you see the defensive secondary line up in man coverage and drop into a zone just before or at the snap? The only three categories of deception that the Fed has explicitly ruled unfair are: (1) using a player, sub, or replaced player in a substitution or pretended substitution to deceive opponents at or immediately before the snap or free kick (a "hideout" play), (2) lying on the ground to deceive opponents at or immediately before the snap or free kick (see this one quite frequently ?!?!), and (3) using actions and/or language just before the snap to indicate that something is wrong and the snap is not imminent ("Where's the tee?"). And, by the way, the former two infractions are not unsportsmanlike conduct at all, but rather illegal participation. The latter is not specifically spelled out in the Fed rule book, but is rather prominently covered in the Case Book in play 9.9.3 Situation B and is defined as USC. The only two places where the words "deceive" or "deception" appear in the FED Rule Book are in the illegal participation rule (9-6) and when excusing a defensive player's hold on an offensive player pretending to be a runner (2-3). We've got to get over this notion--and spread the word--that any deception that is 'unusual' automatically qualifies it as USC. OK...off my soap box now.