fumble behind LOS

[refjb]

Q: Loose ball behind line of scrimmage.  Team “A” line of scrimmage 25 yard line, loose ball at the 15 Yard line Team “B” pulls “A” facemask (15 yard type of facemask) at the 20 yard line, team “B” recovers ball at the 15 Yard line.

Where is penalty marked off from?

[7rav1s]

From the 25 so team A ball at the a40 yard line (no automatic 1st down). Checked Reddings to confirm and fumble behind NZ is a loose ball play so the basic spot is the previous spot.

[Wont_Do_To_Tell]

loose ball play.....enf. spot is prev. spot.............A keeps the ball

[Bob M.]

REPLY: Correct...and consider this. Team A does better by fumbling the ball. If he had held onto it, the foul would have occurred during a running play and the penalty would be enforced from the end of the run.

[Edited to clarify: One thing that's important in the original play WHERE the did the ball actually become loose. If it became loose behind the NZ then everything said thus far is true. If it became loose beyond the NZ (say, A's 30) and then rolled back behind the NZ, enforcement would be from the end of the rune--A's 30.]

[refjb]

Good twist to the play Bob.