Is it me or wouldn't it be easier to just penalize the defense from the line of scrimmage on all fouls.
For example. 1st and 10 from the A35, A22 is trapped behind the line of scrimmage and is tackled at the A15 by the facemask. Under current rules the enforcement would make it 1st and 15 from the A30, not really a fair deal for the offense.
Same aspect if A22 runs and is tackled at the B45, A can take the 15 yard penalty and make it first and 10 from the 50 or decline it and make it 1st and 10 from the B45.
What do you think??

[Edited by cowbyfan1 on Jul 28th, 2005 at 07:49 AM]

Well your second scenario would open up the game to a lot of unnecessary fouls. If the defense knew that by committing the facemask far down field that is would have to be declined then they would be taking cheap shots like that all the time while the ball was still live. A defensive back catches a runner 40 yards down field and takes his head off there is no "penalty" there because A has to decline the penalty just to keep all of the yardage.

As for your first scenario, A did do something very wrong in the play to have the ball so far behind the neutral zone. So to let them mark off a penalty from the previous spot can be argued that it isn't fair to the defense to do that, kind of a get-out-of-jail-free card. The offense does get to replay the down. The penalty did cut A's losses. NCAA avoids this because all personal fouls also get an automatic first down.

cowboyfan1, you have to "tack it on" so it would be 1-10 at the B30, otherwise the penalty means nothing, as warrenkicker stated.

If you enforce apenalty correctly, a team will always get "the advantage of the distance gained, without assistance of a foul." This is the basic principle of penalty enforcement found of page 72.

A lost 20 yards before being tackled. Why should A get any of that back that they themselves caused to lose?

[/QUOTE]

A lost 20 yards before being tackled. Why should A get any of that back that they themselves caused to lose? [/B][/QUOTE]

Thankfully NCAA this is enforced from the previous spot. Team A lost yards due to a foul by team B. Had it not been for the foul team A may have gained yards.

OK too much of a blanket statement. Maybe all fouls by B behind the previous spot should be enforced from the previous spot.

It was stated A lost all that yardage, why should they be helped? Well B committed a serious foul, why should they be helped as well? Sure A gets to replay 1st down but at a 5 yard disadvantage. I like the NCAA rule.

Well there is nothing wrong with liking the NCAA rule. The NF rule just doesn't have the exception that the NCAA rule does.

(whipsering) the NF rules are written so as to not confuse us dumb high school officials with a lot of exceptions ;)

Is that their goal? I was kinda confused on that point...