An interesting play
 

Fed and NCAA Rulings:

Team A 1-10 from their own 45yd line. The QB passes to the right side where a Team B player jumps in the air and catches the ball very close to the sideline. While in the air, the interceptor finds that there is no way he will be able to land in-bounds for an interception. At this time the interceptor flicks the ball forward to a teammate (Note: the interceptor has cleanly caught the ball and made the flick forward to his teammate all while in the air w/o landing) where it is caught in bounds and progressed for approx 3 yards. What, if anything, do you have?

I don't have references but here is my stream of thought. There are two elements of a reception. The first is possession, which you have said there clearly was. The second is that the receiver must have at least one foot on the ground. Since the player was in the air, what he did basically was bat a legal forward pass backward....allbeit to a member of his own team and on purpose. Therefore, under federation rule, I have a legal play. I have no idea what the college interpretation is...but thats my story and thats what I am going with.

I agree that it would just be batting as it was not a "catch" as defined in rule 2. Rule 9.7.3 says "any pass in flight may be batted in any direction by an eligible reciever...", so would be a legal play.

It was not an illegal forward pass, becasue a forward pass is done by a player in possesion. A ball is in player possession if a live ball is held or controlled by a player after it has been handed or snapped to him (not the case here), or after he has caught or recovered the ball (which he never did since he didn't contact the ground).

This is Fed, I don't know NCAA

Exact play from the Peach Bowl several years back. In NCAA this is considered a bat and is legal as it is a bat of a forward pass. There is no "catch" prior to the bat as the player never came to earth so by definition, he did not catch.

Fed: Legal - 9-7-3.

(The way I remember the whole batting passes issue is: The only time a pass can't be legally batted is when it's the passing team batting a backward pass forward.)

Ah, the now old Auburn/North Carolina bowl game in 2001.

Was a legal play then as it is now in both rule codes. Did this really occur this year or is this just a made up play? I'd love to see a video clip if it really happened.

It was legal then but had not been widely discussed prior so I think the crew was caught off-guard. Don't recall now haw they ruled.

Team-B retained the ball on the int, but was hit for a 5-yard penalty for an illegal forward pass. A supposedly rules "clarification" was made for the 2002 season, and while some says it was a change, it was not. The play was also put on the NCAA mechanics film that next year as legal play.

I know we discussed this kind of play in 1999 at one of my NCAA chapter meetings and again the following year as it was either a quiz question or something. I do recall debates going both ways. It took an affirmative reply from a former member, then Big East supervisor saying it was a legal play. That was back in 2000.

As I recall you were one of our internet group back in those days that discussed all the crazy things "A88" might do with the ball, including this type of act.

That bee mee. Our fleet footed, jumping jack flash A88 was da man back then.

This is one of the classic "trick" plays taught to refs in the world of flag football. I've seen it used once in an intramural game.

REPLY: Ahhhh...the good ole days!

Illegal forward handling of the ball.

It would be nice to know which post you were responding to here. These words seem very out of place, and I have no frame of reference to know what you are trying to say here.

handing or handling??

It's not however, either one of them.