Pre-count snap

[JugglingReferee]

Originally Posted by nebref

Before completing the pre-snap count a TO is called. Low and behold team B has 12 players on the field. Do you throw the flag for illegal substitution or ignore and tell the coach to count players?

CANADIAN RULING:

It is not a foul to have more than 12 on the field during a dead ball period. Having more than 12 becomes a 10-yard Illegal Substitution foul when a legal snap has taken place.

[waltjp]

Originally Posted by JugglingReferee

CANADIAN RULING:

It is not a foul to have more than 12 on the field during a dead ball period. Having more than 12 becomes a 10-yard Illegal Substitution foul when a legal snap has taken place.

While working a JV game on Monday afternoon I hear one of the coaches on my sideline yelling to his players on the field and asking them if they have 12. I turn to him and say, "This isn't Canada, coach."

[JugglingReferee]

Originally Posted by waltjp

While working a JV game on Monday afternoon I hear one of the coaches on my sideline yelling to his players on the field and asking them if they have 12. I turn to him and say, "This isn't Canada, coach."

A story from one of our vets:

They throw a flag for too many men. R penalizes 10 yards, repeat the down.

So coach sees a kid on the field who shouldn't be there. Kid comes off, next play. . . .

Flag again for too many men. Coaches goes bonkers. "I took a guy off."

"That's fine coach. But before you had 14 on the field."

[Robert Goodman]

In the 1980s I saw the Bronx Crusaders -- Mid-East Football Conference (adults) -- get away snapping as team A with 12 for one down; they'd subbed in one more than came out. Next down subbed in 1, took out 2. Doesn't it work like quantum uncertainty?

Robert

[svm1010]

Originally Posted by Robert Goodman

In the 1980s I saw the Bronx Crusaders -- Mid-East Football Conference (adults) -- get away snapping as team A with 12 for one down; they'd subbed in one more than came out. Next down subbed in 1, took out 2. Doesn't it work like quantum uncertainty?

Robert

Will I get in trouble if I say I'm uncertain

[Ed Hickland]

Last season in a playoff game I detected A had 12 players at the same time as the coach, he quickly called timeout seeing I was ready to toss the flag.

Later my LJ caught 12 and we banged them.

My philosophy is complete your count as soon as possible. If you have twelve and no one is moving off or the player who came on stayed, you flag it.

[ajmc]

Just a question, but exactly who is doing all this "downgrading"? Is there some kind of "Downgrading Guide" that stipulates what every observer of a game should be looking for?

I suspect observing is a lot more organized and structured at the collegiate level, but at the High School level I would suspect observing varies considerably from area to area.