Horse-Collar

[mrerrl]

Question came up working with a veteran official last night.

Horse-Collar is inside jersey on back or side and pull down.

Does it matter if there is more than one person on the tackle.

[Sturno]

Negative. If there was somehow two B players that both make a horse-collar tackle on the same runner, only one foul is accepted.

ART. 4 . . . When two or more live-ball fouls (other than non-player or unsportsmanlike) are committed during the same down by the same team (multiple fouls), only one penalty may be enforced.

The fact that there was more than 1 player with the same infraction does not change status of the HC, and the fact that there's an HC along with a legal tackle does not change the status of the HC tackle.

[mrerrl]

Is there still a penalty for B if B1 has his inside the collar and B2 and is hitting the runner backwards

[Sturno]

Originally Posted by mrerrl

Is there still a penalty for B if B1 has his inside the collar and B2 and is hitting the runner backwards

If both defenders are engaged front and back, I say you have nothing - maybe a couple of words to the tackler from behind. I believe that was brought up and part of one of the NFHS transparencies brought to light when that rule came in right before all of our stuff went completely online. The action of the HC tackle has to be what takes runner to ground or the HC is off, is how I've always interpreted it.

That said....be ready for some barking about an HC, because as you've seen even on Sundays, anything near an HC now is getting attention from the offended sideline, just like anything anywhere near a facemask always draws. I had a kid pulled down by the name placard 6-8 inches from being inside the opening and we had a QB grabbed in the front of the neck and pulled straight down last Friday night and there was howling from everyone within 400 yards...as if they could see it better or knew the definition of the HC to begin with.

[BktBallRef]

Originally Posted by mrerrl

Is there still a penalty for B if B1 has his inside the collar and B2 and is hitting the runner backwards

No, it's not. For a HCT to occur, the tackler must bring the runner to the ground. With a second defender in on the play, it can't be said that either one player or the other brought the runner down. There have been interpretations from the NFHS on this play.