Hurry Up Situation!

[Derock1986]

Again, I say IMPOSSIBLE! There is no action you can do after the snap that will not take at least 1 second to perform. Spiking, requiring a back and forward motion of the arm and ball will take at least 1 full second to perform. Not even the swiftest of the swiftest can receive a snap, step back from underneath center, and spike the ball in less than 1 second.

[ABoselli]

Why spike it? Run a play. As long as the snap got off, the play can go on ad infinitum. Take a shot into the end zone, run an option pass, do something so you only make the snap have to beat the clock.

[AndrewMcCarthy]

To the original post- good play. But if the clock was at 0.9 and started with the ready, there's no way they'd have enough time after the spike to run another play. Game over. If it still shows 0.1 left I'd explain that the clock operator didn't start it on the ready and get the heck out of Dodge.

Why spike it? Because we've taken the original post and turned it into a discussion on internal clock processors and split-second timing at the end of a game.

I've seen clocks that switch to tenths under a minute left. Someone probably saw this in basketball and for some reason deemed it necessary for a football scoreboard.

[Ed Hickland]

Originally posted by Jim Beltz


I didn't include this in my original reply, but can you imagine a home team who needs an operator that is just a bit slow to start the clock and a bit fast to stop it at a critical point in the game. I would hope never to find out that an operator actually intentionally did such a thing, but do you suppose it ever happens.

I had him in one of my games this season.