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NCAA Discussion / Re: Helmet off by foul
« Last post by Etref on September 18, 2026, 10:46:15 AM »Seems similar to a loose ball with an IW.
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National Federation Discussion / Re: What down is it?
« Last post by Ralph Damren on September 18, 2026, 06:27:47 AM »Back in 2015 we added 5-1-1b, this promoted a laundry lists of "what ifs" . I always felt that this officiating screw-up could be easier handled by the white hat applying 1-1-6 (the God rule). The following year, a proposal was made to have simular guidelines if the chains weren't correctly placed. The members recalled the confusion caused by the 'wrong down rule and agreed the ref should iron out the problem.
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NCAA Discussion / Re: Helmet off by foul
« Last post by Kalle on September 18, 2026, 03:18:47 AM »Ball becoming dead when the ball carrier loses his helmet is definitely a safety rule so do err on the side of ruling it dead when the ball carrier fumbles at the same time as the helmet comes off.
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NCAA Discussion / Re: Helmet off by foul
« Last post by sj on September 17, 2026, 11:57:49 AM »As bulldog said, the timing is important. But assuming for the sake of argument that it's judged that the ball is still live, I'd say based on the description, that the immediate action in which A11 was engaged was that he was attempting to recover the fumble. So he can continue to do that without a foul.
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NCAA Discussion / Re: Helmet off by foul
« Last post by Bulldog75 on September 17, 2026, 09:29:47 AM »In the first scenario A11, the ball carrier, loses his helmet and the ball. If the ball carrier loses his helmet the ball becomes dead. So I guess it depends on the sequence, whether he fumbles before or after he loses his helmet. I think unless it was clearly before, I would have a dead ball. I wouldn't want to reward the defense for ripping off the ball carrier's helmet by the facemask.
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National Federation Discussion / Re: What down is it?
« Last post by bama_stripes on September 17, 2026, 07:10:50 AM »1-3-5a and 1-3-5b would disagree with you on that.
I don’t think so. The use of the word “official” in b is to differentiate it from an auxiliary down marker on the opposite side of the field.
I’ve worked games where there was no down box at all. We just had a volunteer stand at the LOS and hold up fingers to indicate the down number. In no way was that “official”.
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National Federation Discussion / Re: What down is it?
« Last post by NVFOA_Ump on September 17, 2026, 07:00:05 AM »1-3-5a and 1-3-5b would disagree with you on that.
We have always been instructed that unless the box is being handled by an assigned member of the officiating crew that it can always be corrected up until a series has ended and the R has awarded a 1st down. Because of problems in the past more and more schools here are asking the official assigner to assign a paid chain crew of qualified officials to be in uniform for their games. That does not eliminate the requirement that the on-field crew should be confirming the down number prior to every play without exception.
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National Federation Discussion / Re: What down is it?
« Last post by SCline on September 16, 2026, 11:02:48 PM »1-3-5a and 1-3-5b would disagree with you on that.
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NCAA Discussion / Re: video 1 play 8
« Last post by bossman72 on September 16, 2026, 10:25:34 PM »I'd agree this is previous spot.
The point of PSK is to make fouls that happen as part of the punt coverage as PSK and fouls as part of the punt rush as previous spot. Spirit of the rule, make this a previous spot foul.
The point of PSK is to make fouls that happen as part of the punt coverage as PSK and fouls as part of the punt rush as previous spot. Spirit of the rule, make this a previous spot foul.
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National Federation Discussion / Re: What down is it?
« Last post by NVFOA_Ump on September 16, 2026, 05:12:38 PM »This case book ruling in simple terms is both wrong and in conflict with the fact that the down marker is not in any game I have ever worked "official". We're fixing the problem prior to the next snap and moving on.