3 plays from this weekend
 

I was a spectator. Texas HS playoff game using NCAA rules. (Katy vs Cy-Fair for those interested).

Play 1: High, short kickoff. R 2nd line guy signals fair catch. Ball hits him and bounds forward. At the same time, L blows his whistle. What should the crew have done?

Play 2: High punt. R23 signals fair catch, and is almost in position to catch the ball. R34, right behind him, catches the ball instead, and immediately starts running with the ball. What should the crew have done?

Play 3: After a very long delay including backboard and an ambulance, teams are ready to play. I'm watching the ambulance. As the ambulance just gets off the field, R blows the ready - I look back, the play clock is at 8 and ticking. 8 seconds later, offense gets flagged for delay. What should the crew have done?

Play 1: easy, don't blow that IW!

Play 2: sounds like KCI.

Play 3: wave it off and reset.

I don't use NCAA, so I'm just guessing. For Play 1, you probably have to rekick. That's my real answer. ;)

Play 1: Re-kick?
Play 2: Nothing?
Play 3: Reset the PC?

I have no clue on these, I'm not a football official, but I like trivia!!

1> Not having an IW would be the first choice:). However, with that blown the only thing to be done is rekick it.

2> Dead-ball at the spot of the catch. This is not a fair catch since R34 did not signal. If R34 goes more than 2 steps, the rules call for a 5 yd penalty. I would think the officials should do their best to avoid such a call by a very loud, repeated whistle. However, if the player insists.......

3> The R had no business blowing the whistle as the ambulance "just gets off the field" (you've already had a very long delay, what's a couple more seconds?) and also should've checked the clock (play & game) to make sure everything is ready before resuming play. After only 8 seconds, the crew should've figured out something was amiss without penalizing the offense for an officiating screwup.

Whoops, I read that K caught the kick. I'm not stupid, just inattentive! :o

This was my thinking on all three. The game was a blowout (for a playoff game), and these had no real bearing on the result... but I was embarrassed that these guys are working now, and so many good officials (self included) aren't.

I actually forgot one other - RTP on a 60 yard TD. Where do you kickoff from?

Here's what they DID do...
1) They pretended nothing was amiss, echoed the whistle while the ball was being scrambled for, set the ball at the spot of the failed FC. If I'm receiving coach, I'm asking for an "awarded fair catch" so I can attempt a free kick... this landed about the 50 with 3 seconds left in the half.
2) The crew leaned on their whistles, probably barely averting this kid getting clocked about 15 yards away. No penalty.
3) They marched off the 5 yards - no one seemed to notice that it was only 8 seconds (worse, which may illustrate why this was a semi-blowout ... penalized team's coach was oblivious).

4> RTP is a personal foul, so on a TD A should get their choice of on the try (1.5 yds? why would they?) or on the succeeding KO. Doesn't Texas HS modifications move the KO spot to the 40? So I would think the KO should have happened at the B45.
I suppose A could've declined it if the game was a blow-out, but I'd bet most coaches would go for putting the KO thru the end zone and avoid the return.

The roughing the passer is penalized on the try or succeeding kickoff. A normal kickoff in Texas is the A-40. If they choose that as the enforcement then 15 yards will put the ball on the B-45.

1. An IW during the kick results in repeating the down.

2. There is no such thing as an "awarded fair catch" for a free kick in NCAA rules. That must be a Fed rule. When any player of team B signals for a fair catch it is a team commitment and the ball will be dead when any team B player gains posession. By rule that player is allowed 2 steps in any direction, but I'm not flagging that unless it is HUGE, because I am shutting it down and the clock is already stopped so he's not really delaying the game. I suppose if he insists on running and then he gets hit by Team A then I would probably have a foul on both teams. (delay and late hit)

3. I would not be so quick to start the game after an ambulance leaves the field. I'd probably even give them a few mins. near their sidelines to make sure both teams are ready to resume. Perhaps they may need to stretch and get warmed back up. Once both teams are on the field and ready I will resume the game.

Sitch 4 - team A kicked off from their 40. Got in an argument with the guy in front of me, in fact, who insisted that they had to decline the penalty to keep the TD. Sigh.

I just hope this crew doesn't get any further playoff games. This one's fate was known before it started... but if they get one that matters....

So crowder, I got to ask. Were these TASO officials or UIL?

Since Texas doesn't apparently assign officials like a lot of schools in the South or Southeast, does that fall on the coaches? IF the game outcome was "predetermined" based on the teams (our first round can be that way) would that explain why that crew got that game?

TASO. UIL isn't running things just yet.

Team A has been state champs twice in the last 3 years. Team B was 9-2, but obviously outclassed on both sides of the ball.

And that might be possible, although you'd think that once playoff started the weaker crews wouldn't be needed.

1. Replay the down.
2. Kill the play, flag for delay, enforce, and move on.
3. Stop, reset, give the ready, and play.

All officials working UIL games are TASO officials. The question is, what chapter did they come from?

I answered before I read what happened. It seems they missed all three calls, which aren't that difficult. And my crew wasn't working last week!

Yup... typical, really... and very disappointing. There is a reason I'm starting to be 75% softball, 25% football, rather than the 50-50 I used to be. The GOB network in football is insane, as is the method of assignment of officials.

Get involved in some way and work your way into a leadership position or a board members spot. Then make it your mission to either remove the GOB or the perception that one exists. We do a good job in my chapter to spread any wealth we get. We do even a better job of proving we don't have a GOB system. Being a small chapter we have to be fair or we wouldn't have any members.