NCAA muff question

[sloth]

Gee that title sounds like the set up for a great joke...

Seriously, I'm looking for confirmation (or better yet a reference). I'm having one of those NCAA versus FED rules brain cramps. I know that in NCAA a free kick or scrimmage kick, untouched by recieveing team, must touch in the end zone before being blown dead as a touchback.

If the reciever muffs the ball (in either a free kick or a scrimmage kick and either in the field of play or the end zone) the ball is not declaired dead until either the ball is possesed by a player or goes OOB (the impetus being that the origional kick put the ball OOB behind the goal line in that specific case so that the result is a touchback).

I'm pretty sure that is the case, but I haven't been able to find the specific rule reference for the muff cases. I'm working a scrimmage as BJ this Saturday, so I really need to make sure I have this straight in my head.

Thanks!

sloth

[With_Two_Flakes]

You are correct that if the ball is touched by R before it touches in the EZ, then the ball will still be live in the EZ. Of course the impetus is still with A's kick so it's not gonna be a safety (which many coaches believe, bless 'em!). If he catches it or recovers his muff in the EZ, give him the opportunity to run it out if he really wants to give up the guaranteed 20 yds.

NCAA Rule references you asked for, so here they are....

6-1-7. When a free kick untouched by Team B touches the ground on or behind Team B's goal line, the ball becomes dead and belongs to Team B.

6-3-9. The ball becomes dead and belongs to the team defending its goal line when a scrimmage kick that has crossed the neutral zone is subsequently untouched by Team B before touching the ground on or behind Team B's goal line.


In FED, the key difference in wording is when it says "breaks the plane of R's goal line". I think it is 6-3-1-a, at least that is what it is in my 2007 Fed book the latest I have. I only get over to the US to do Fed games every 3 or 4 years, we use NCAA rules over here in Europe.

[AUgrad2006]

Originally Posted by sloth

If the reciever muffs the ball (in either a free kick or a scrimmage kick and either in the field of play or the end zone) the ball is not declaired dead until either the ball is possesed by a player or goes OOB...

Just to be clear it's not dead when the player possesses it, but when he is down by rule (e.g. he is tackled or takes a knee). He still has the opportunity to run it out and later get his butt chewed by the coach.

I'm sure that's what you meant but just wanted to be clear.

[sloth]

Thanks for the clarification...that was what I ment. In my mental scenario I have the reciever muffing the ball on the one or two yard line and it rolling around in the end zone. In FED it doesn't matter what happens, it gets kiklled as soon as it crosses the plane. I was having one of those cases where the FED rules stuck in my brain were making me doubt what the NCAA rules were. My supervisor would not be happy if I killed a muffed free kick prior to going OOB or recovery.

Thanks again for the clarification!

sloth