QB going to sideline to get play

[shooter1]

Between plays, the quarterback would go to his sideline to get the play.  In fact he stepped off the field a couple of times--although he was not pretending to be substituted for.

Here's my question--does he have to stay on the field between downs?  Again, there was no pretense of a substitution.  He would get back in time to call the play most of the time. A couple of times he had to call time out as the 25-second clock was winding down.


Larry R.

[bkdow]

On the rules test, foul.  Practically, If he is barely on the white, have your wing encourage the player to stay on the field.  Usually the talk to will remedy the problem.

[Atlanta Blue]

As bkdow said, there's the technical answer and the practical one.

But what a dumb practice!  Your QB has to run anywhere from 36 yards per play if they are on the near hash to 72 yards per play if they are on the far hash.  So let's take the average and round it off to 50.  Average offensive plays in a high school game per team ~55.  50x55 = 2750 yards, or over a mile and half per game!

Is that really the best use of his energy?  Run the plays in via a WR, or better yet, develop a signal process, either directly or by wristband.  But there is no way I'm going to make my QB run an extra 1.5 miles in the middle of the game.

[FLAHL]

Is this really a foul?  If no substitute comes onto the field to replace him, isn't he just a player who stepped out of bounds while the ball was dead?  As long as he gets back inside the 9 yard marks after the RFP and before the snap, isn't he good to go?

ART. 1 . . . A player is one of the 22 team members who is designated to start either half of the game or who subsequently replaces another player. A player continues to be a player until a substitute enters the field and indicates to the player that he is replaced, or when the substitute otherwise becomes a player.”

[theunofficialofficial]

But what a dumb practice!  Your QB has to run anywhere from 36 yards per play if they are on the near hash to 72 yards per play if they are on the far hash.  So let's take the average and round it off to 50.  Average offensive plays in a high school game per team ~55.  50x55 = 2750 yards, or over a mile and half per game!

Is that really the best use of his energy?  Run the plays in via a WR, or better yet, develop a signal process, either directly or by wristband.  But there is no way I'm going to make my QB run an extra 1.5 miles in the middle of the game.

AMEN! 

It's also amazingly SLOW... QB gets sacked  , now he has to get up, run to the sideline, wait for the coach to figure out how he is gonna get out of 2nd and 14  , tell the QB the play, QB runs to huddle, tells teammates play, team gets into position trying to get set for 1 second, then do all manor of shifts, motions and everything all within 25 seconds (or more like 35-40 by the time the U finishes his  , sets the ball and the R hacks). But that's a lot of extra work when you can just as easily sub a WR in and our each play.

The better teams around here use this tactic and it shows. Don't know why more coaches haven't figured it out...

What ever happened to the good old days of hand signals and yelling the play?

[gmgiesey]

Coaches make their QB's do this, because then they know the QB heard the play they wanted called.  If they tell the play to a substitute to tell the QB, it's not nearly as certain. 

[Ralph Damren]

In here in Maine the problem is keeping the coach off the field, not the QB on it. Must be that there gravitational pull - after all we're at/around 45 degrees north.

[Atlanta Blue]

Coaches make their QB's do this, because then they know the QB heard the play they wanted called.  If they tell the play to a substitute to tell the QB, it's not nearly as certain.

Coaches do a lot of things for paranoid reasons.  Yes, he can "make sure" the QB heard the call (and I put that in quotes because these are still teen aged boys, and you would be surprised what they mis-hear (or forget) in a very short amount of time).

But if the QB is too tired to run the play in the 4th quarter because of all the extra running, doesn't really matter if he heard it right!

[FLAHL]

In here in Maine the problem is keeping the coach off the field, not the QB on it. Must be that there gravitational pull - after all we're at/around 45 degrees north.

I suspect Maine isn't the only state with that problem.   

[NorCalMike]

I have always wondered about this. Tires the  QB.  I have no real statistics but I think these teams get more delay of game fouls.

My favorite play calling scheme was one of local teams who O line would call their blocking scheme by using fast food items. The center would be call something like Big Mac or McNuggets. Cracked me up.

[Tom.OH]

Coaches make their QB's do this, because then they know the QB heard the play they wanted called.  If they tell the play to a substitute to tell the QB, it's not nearly as certain.

Way back in my playing days in the early 70s I was a messenger guard, I never messed up a play call but once the other messenger guard went blank on the play when he got to the huddle. Coach was anoyed. He called time out and went to the huddle to tell the QB the play and rip the guard a new one. We never forgot the play again.

[ECILLJ]

but I think these teams get more delay of game fouls.

...and waste more time outs to avoid DOG. 

[GAHSUMPIRE]

Way back in my playing days in the early 70s I was a messenger guard, I never messed up a play call but once the other messenger guard went blank on the play when he got to the huddle. Coach was anoyed. He called time out and went to the huddle to tell the QB the play and rip the guard a new one. We never forgot the play again.

I also ran plays in, though as a flanker, not a guard. (I was not always built like an Umpire).

I did, however, always have Umpire speed, so it took me a while to get from the sideline to the huddle, and during that trip there were occasions that I would begin to think about the play the coach had called, and my responsibility on that play, and man I hate that guy I have to block, and gosh it's a long way, and ...what was that play again?

I had forgotten the one the coach had sent in, so I told the qb the first one that came to my mind.

We were not what you would consider a talented team in any meaningful way, and the outcome of the plays I called were not materially different from the outcome of any of the plays that the coach called, so my early experience as an offensive coordinator was not discovered- until now.

[yarnnelg]

Why be stupid? from the 15 to the 15 you might have the QB come to you ....

As a wing, I lean toward keeping the QB about five yards on the field and let the Coach have a little flex regarding coming out from the sideline a few yards...then remind him when the center puts his hands on the ball the lane better be clear.