Who thinks these two are IG??

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by maven

'Ability' is not in the rule, it's a "factor to consider" mentioned in a case play.

It is apart of the rule because the interpretations says it is to be considered. Maybe that is semantics, but that is how it is officiated before making this call.

Originally Posted by maven

There are 2 mistakes here:
(1) we should not use "ability" as the primary criterion of IG. The main question, as stated in the COMMENT, is the absence of eligibles and whether the QB is dumping the ball. By those measures, the play in question is IG.
(2) The "ability" question concerns the QB's capacity to play through contact or make a throw while scrambling. In the play in question, ability doesn't enter the matter: there is no contact, and he's clearly dumping the ball. I say "clearly" because the ball goes right where he throws it.

Sure, some of this is judgment. But there's good judgment and bad judgment, and the concepts in play in the rule do not warrant just any call in these cases. IMO, these plays are not borderline.

I have a problem with what you are saying philosophically. For one you say that something is not apart of the rule, but you quote the exact thing I am referencing and how the rule will be adjudicated. If a coach asks me about why I did not make an IG call, I would reference what you just said which the casebook are the rules too. They are just interpretations of those rules and give detailed examples of how the rule will be applied.

I am sorry the ability does matter in this second play because making a throw on the run is not easy and high school players often cannot do that very well. There are D1 big time QBs that cannot make those throws very well. I am not going to penalize a QB or thrower because they cannot throw and accurate pass down the field on the run. I see those kinds of passes like in this video all the time and often they are nearly intercepted.

Peace