Failure to wear required equipment

[bigjohn]

during a play. is it a 5 yard USC?

[Ed Hickland]

Failure to wear during a down, 15 yards.

Try to catch failures before the snap when it is 5 yards.

[bigjohn]

PENALTY: Unsportsmanlike conduct (Arts. 2, 3, 5) – (S27) — 15 yards. See 9-
8-1h. Failure to properly wear required equipment during a down (Art. 6) –
(S27, S23) – 5 yards. See 3-6-2d for failure to properly wear required
equipment when the ball is about to become live.

I know it is 5 yards, is it USC. Can signal 27 mean, just noncontact foul and not USC?

[Ed Hickland]

I stand corrected, it is all 5 yards. It is 15 yards and unsportsmanlike conduct if the coach has certified equipment as legal and it is not.

If a player fails to wear hip pads and the coach has certified player legality it is 15 yards at the discovery.

If a player removes his tooth protector during a play it is 5 yards.

[BktBallRef]

No, it is not USC.

Nor are you likely to see it called.

[w_sohl]

Had a kid run out onto the field still trying to strap his shoulder pads on. Clips and straps flying everywhere. It was late in a game that was already decided, but it was so out there it needed to be flagged. It looked like he had wings. My WH was pissed at first because he thought I threw the flag for a mouth guard or something, then he saw the kid and said I was lucky. We laughed about that one. I didn't want to throw the flag, but I had to there.