The Dreaded Inadvertant Whistle

[parepat]

Originally Posted by kdf5

We will have several plays a game with no whistle. Tell the coaches the play ends when the ball becomes dead, not when we blow the whistle. When we blow the whistle the ball is ALREADY dead. I friggin' hate hearing coaches yelling about playing to the whistle. Play til the down ends, not the whistle.

I always like to have a whistle even if late. The players expect it and I find that it makes officiating easier. For example, if a lineman is blocking downfield he has no clue whether the runner is down or not. While I can always hit him w a flag if he is blocking after the play, but it sure makes it easier when a whistle has been blown.