Wednesday question

[mcrowder]

Good point, Theisey, except that it's flat wrong. It IS simple, but opposite from what you say. If the ball went out of bounds first, it's out of bounds. Simple. If the ball crossed the endzone line in bounds first, it's a TD - also simple.

The definition of the pylon is that it's in the endzone, but nowhere would anyone imply that the pylon is IN bounds. In fact, there are numerous other references saying that it is OUT of bounds, (including 4.2.3-b and the rule refering to a receiver that touches the pylon while making a catch).

Think of it this way - even if you insist that 423b applies here, and that a ball touching a pylon is, at that moment, out of bounds beyond the end line, that does NOT say that the ball in question is a TD, and while at that moment the ball is out of bounds beyond the end line, if the ball hits the FRONT of the pylon, it was previously out of bounds SHORT OF the endline. It doesn't suddenly become a TD just because the ball, already out of bounds, is stretched to meet the pylon. This argument is ludicrous.

PS - just to make sure I'm not the idiot here, I consulted with the local NCAA rules gurus (2 high school, 2 college). Unanimously, they stated that a ball striking the "front" of the pylon carried by an airborne player is OUT OF BOUNDS, and not a TD.