Illegal Touching Clarification
 

Gentlemen:

I received a telephone call from a cadet/trainee today. I believe he's been given improper enforcement on the rule for illegal touching by an ineligible receiver of the offense. You may all recall when a covered player who was eligible by number who went downfield and touched a pass it used to be OPI. 15-yards from PS and LOD. When the rule was written that way (for OPI) the foul for illegal touching was a foul that could ONLY be from behind the NZ. So, in the past if a player ineligible by position (or number) touched the ball (not accidentally) behind the NZ the foul was 5 yards from spot of touching and LOD.

Last year (or year before) the Fed has changed the OPI rule to be an illegal touching foul I guess thinking the 15 yards and LOD was to expensive of a foul. The table on page 63 says enforcement is from the spot of touching. I'm thinking perhaps they forgot to update the table.

Situation: 3rd and 3 at A's 40 yardline. #83 who is covered on the LOS runs down to B's 10 and catches a pass and is subsequently tackled at B's 5.

Ruling: Under the old rule it would be 4th and 18. What they're being told is because the table shows "spot of touching" that team B is given the opportunity of enfocing an ineligible downfield (which I agree) but they are NOT given the opportunity of giving B the option of making it 4th and 8 from A's 35.

I disagree with this. I said the tables are only a supplement to the rules and are not the official rule. Of course I don't have my rule book with me.

Additionally, they were told this is a multiple foul situation (which I agree) so if the ineligible downfield was declined then A would get a first down at B's 15after enforcement of the illegal touching foul. The LOD wouldn't apply since the LTG has been established due to the long pass. I disagree with this. :eek:

I believe this person was not properly informed.

What have you been told? Or, at a minimum, what is your interpretation?

the penalty is 5 yards from the previous spot and loss of down.

The table in the book is incorrect. There is a correction on the NFHS web site. Yankeesfan is correct - this is a loose ball play so enforcement is from the previous spot - 5 yards plus loss of down. In your play it would be A's ball, 4th & 8 from A's 35 yard line. This is a multiple foul, but the illegal down field is only 5 yards with no loss of down. Illegal touching included the loss of down so that's what B will accept.

Not regarding the administration of the penalty and how they Fed communicates it, I'd just like to say this change is stupid split-the-difference thinking on Fed's part. Either an ineligible player's touching the ball interferes with the opponents' opp'ty to play it and they penalize it as such, every bit as much as K's knocking a free kicked ball from the air away from R, or it should be treated as a no-yardage violation, like first touching of a kick, but in this case an incomplete pass. (But then, I also think an illegal forward pass should be a no-yardage violation.) 5 yards from the spot of touching just makes no sense no matter where the spot is.

Robert