Free Kick Play

[mbyron]

Originally Posted by mbcrowder

No, mere reentry is not IP. PARTICIPATING (at all) is required for illegal participation.

Imagine the play nearing it's end on the other sideline, our OOB WR walks back onto the field, or even jogs back on while heading to his own sideline --- if he is not involved in the play and no one from the other team reacts to him, he has not participated.

I would like to see NFHS clarify 9-6-1 and 9-6-2. The letter of the rule, especially 9-6-2, states that it's a foul to return to the field. "No player shall intentionally go out of bounds during the down and: (a) Return to the field."

However, the concept and philosophy of illegal participation is that merely stepping on the field, with nobody else around, is not participation and does not warrant a flag. Provided that one understands 'participation' broadly enough — not just catching a pass, but also occupying a blocker, for instance — it's reasonable to require the player who went OOB to participate before penalizing his team 15 yards for illegal PARTICIPATION.

Between that and the slippage about what constitutes "intentionally" going OOB, this rule needs some editorial revision. I'd be happy to consult, if you're reading this post, NFHS rules committee members.