Double Wing TE cut blocking
 

Sorry for the length of this but want to get all the details in upfront.


I am a new Umpire working with a very shaky crew when it comes to rule knowledge. My white hat was supposed to get clarification on this situation and CC me in on the E-mail but I do not believe he ever sent it.

We had a High School scrimmage (NFHS) last week where the Center always cut to the backside and the backside TE would cut back inside when the team ran their pitch.

I flagged them a couple times for Chop Blocks on the DT as the TE stayed high on those blocks.

Most of the time the TE was able to get his head and body in front on the Cut blocks but a few time he clipped the DT or just plain hit him in the back when he did not cut.

I threw a flag for a Clip on the Cut Block but my White hat waved it off. The Head coach insists that they used this scheme last year and never where flagged for it.

My questions

1) should a TE whose OL uses 6 inch splits be allowed to cut block to the inside or straight ahead?

2) Should the Clip have been waved off.

Again sorry for the long winded post

A couple questions:

1) Was the defender on the line of scrimmage and within 4 yards of the center?
2) Did the TE (presumably also on LOS and within 4 yds) immediately begin the block or begin the block before the ball left the area near the LOS and 4 yds of the center?

If BOTH of the questions are yes, then the blocks - cut, clip, whatever - are all legal. If there's any sort of delay and the ball is gone from that box, then it's a foul. Chop blocks are always fouls - but that takes two blockers on one defender, one high and one low.

I would make sure my crew reviews 2-17-1 through 5 very careully in pre-game.

As mentioned previously, chop blocks are always illegal, no matter where they occur.

You have to determine if the TE is in the free blocking zone. Don't get hung up on splits. If he's got part of his body in the zone, he's in it.

In NC our ruling is there can be no delay. If he's in a 3 or 4 point stance and is the initial charge, the block is considered legal. If he drops down from a 2 point stance, that is considered not an initial charge and thus would be a delay and illegal contact.

To simplify, get the phrase "initial charge" into your mind. Although there can be some exceptions, if there's any delay involved the ball has likely left the FBZ.

The most common foul we see around here is a tackle in a 2-pt stance who steps back and then "cut" blocks.

I read 2-17-1/5

Art 2 (Cut Block) It only requires you to be on the line of scrimmage.

Both 3 (Clipping) & 4 (Block in the Back) require you to be an Offensive Linemen.

I guess what I am curious about is the TE an Offensive Linemen for Article 3 & 4

Then I think you're seeing so many offense systems where the ball is snapped out of the free blocking zone, you're assuming it!

In the usual type of double wing system where this sort of play is done, the snap is handed, not passed. It is possible in some cases that it would then be tossed to another back outside of the FBZ, but usually he's inside it, and in other cases the ball would be handed to another back who's definitely inside the FBZ. So I don't think the "no delay" consider'n applies to most of these cases.

Yes. I hope no rules writer ever adopts a definition where "lineman" means one thing and "player...on his line" means something different! It's confusing enough with "linesman" in there.

Yes, the TE is considered a lineman... check 2-32-9.

However, just because he's a lineman doesn't mean he's in the free-blocking zone, he still needs to have at least some part of his body within 4 yards of the ball at the snap. Possible with tight splits, I suppose.

One quick way to check... assuming that the field is marked correctly and the goalposts are correctly sized and aligned, there should be 15 feet (ie: 5-yards, outside of the free-blocking zone) horizontally between the inside of the hash mark and the nearest goal post upright. So, when the team lines up in their tight split formation when snapping from the hash, this can give you a quick reference point to help determine if the TE is in the free-blocking zone or not.

Also, since the goal posts are 23'4" wide... (just under 8 yards)... if you snap from the middle of the field the low-blocking zone is slightly wider than the goalposts.

Even with the tight splits it was questionable whether the TE was in the zone.

Thanks for the visual guides that will help.

Not true. Blocking below the waist requires that BOTH the blocker and the player being blocked be on the LOS and in the FBZ at the snap.

Also, the block must be in the FBZ.

Finally, offensive linemen are allowed to clip and block in the back in the FBZ. If the TE's little toe is in the FBZ, then the TE is in the FBZ.

So yes, it sounds like the clipping flag should have been waved off.

We had a coach bring his linemen to our pre-game meeting to demonstrate their tights splits and allow us to verify the TE was in the zone. He was easily in so I know it's possible. But they were tight!

We're not assuming anything. We're officiating the play the way we've been told to officiate it by the state association. Nothing else matters.

That is why I love the Ignore list, BBR;)