Had a play the other night, that I am now uncertain whether my crew handled properly. My rulebook is at home so I'll ask here. Jr. High team attempting an onside kick, I am linesman on a four-man crew. They kick the ball into the air, it comes down right about on the 50 where K player leaps into the air and catches the ball and lands on the R 48. My line judge is right on top of it and flags it because the ball didn't touch the ground or an R player even though it travelled the 10 yards. The white hat gives the call and tells R they can accept the penalty and make them re-kick or take the result of the play, K's ball. My question is should they have been given the option of an awarded fair catch at the spot of the illegal touching by K? Thanks in advance, Devon.

You have kick catching interference and R can take an awarded fair catch at the 50.

can you give me a rule reference?

Sorry, I don't have my book on me ... somebody help out ...

maybe not KCI
 

Where does the original post say anything about the receiving team making any effort to catch the kick? If the players on the front line were not trying to catch the ball and were not within two yards of the ball.....then it is a great play by the kicking team and the ball should be theirs where they caught it.

Rule 6-1-5 ...Any kicking team member may recover a free kick if it has both touched the ground and gone beyond the plane of R's free-kick line. The two requirements may occur in any order... Can't be a "great play by the kicking team" because it is a penalty.

Re: maybe not KCI
 

Big whistle, K cannot touch a free kick in flight, whether R is in a position to catch it or not.

The proper call is a flag and a whistle. KCI on K. R may accept an awarded fair catch at the spot of the foul or have K re-kick, 15 yards from the previous spot.

6-5-6
While any free kick is in flight in or beyond the neutral zone to the receiver's goal line or any scrimmage kick is in flight beyond the neutral zone to the receiver's goal line, K shall not touch the ball or R, unless blocked into the ball or R or to ward off a blocker, nor obstruct R's path to the ball. This prohibition applies even when no fair-catch signal is given, but it does not apply after a free kick has been touched by a receiver, or after a scrimmage kick has been touched by a receiver who was clearly beyond the neutral zone at the time of touching.

Seems like more crap can happen during a kick than at any other time! :)

NCAA ruling
 

My apologies......

In Texas we play under NCAA rules instead of NFHS, and the only requirement for it to be a free ball is to travel 10 yards.

Please forgive me.

Re: NCAA ruling
 

No need to ask for forgiveness. I thought about the possibility of the NCAA rule being different but I was unsure.

This is a perfect example of why it's necessary to list all the particulars when asking for a ruling on a situation.

Bob