coaches box

[OSU65]

I read that there is a new emphasis on coaches staying in the white box on the sidelines. I have seen penalties called this year when coaches violated that rule. Why is it that as long as I have watched college football a coach has to run out onto the field 10 yards or more to get a last second timeout? It seems to me that the rules need to be changed. If a coach follows the rule and stays in the box he won't get the timeout. If he runs way out onto the field he probably gets the timeout even though he is penalized at other times for doing the same thing. Is there some "dispensation" for leaving the box when trying to call a timeout? In this modern era where they take 5 minutes of hi-def slo-mo to review a call why can't the committee come up with a better way to handle this situation?
How about a designated time-out ref that only has to worry about last second calls for timeout? How about an electronic means to call a timeout?

This is probably unrelated, but I think the big money involved in big time football will lead someday to a lawyer being involved during or after a replay. Something like, my coach run out onto the field to get a timeout and didn't get it, but their coach did the same thing an got a timeout. The introduction of legal experts into the decision cycle has already happened in the military where a realtime engagement has to be approved by a team, including legal folks, before the engagement can proceed.

Since the introduction of replays the quest for "perfection" in officiating has increased dramatically. Why are we stuck with a 50's mentality when it comes to calling a timeout? Why should a coach be rewarded with a timeout when he runs out on the field at the last second to get the attention of an official?

[ElvisLives]

I challenge you to find an incident when a coach was penalized for entering the field of play solely to request a time out.  Any coach that has been penalized with an usporstmanlike conduct penalty was either on the field protesting an officiating decision, interfered with an official in the restricted area or outside the team area, or he caused the FOURTH (yes, FOURTH) sideline interference infraction.

If a coach thinks he has to to run onto the field to request a time out, he's just plain ignorant.

BY RULE, a head coach may leave the coaching box, and the team area, if necessary, to request a time out.  Conventional practice has the HC approach a sideline official on his side of the field to get that official's attention and request the TO.  Since the sideline official spends much of his time outside the sideline or within just a few yards of the sideline, he needn't enter the field at all, except in some unusual situation that has the nearest sideline official closing in to the play on the field.  But that would rarely, if ever, prevent both sideline officials on that side from being in a position for the HC to find one of them on/near the sideline to approach and request a T/O.

OK, the ball and officials may be near a goal line.  Again, typically, the HC will leave the team area and run down outside the sideline to get the attention of the nearest official (usually the H or L), and get his TO.  Perfectly OK. By rule.  Absolutely no reason for him to enter the field, in this case.

Robert

[OSU65]

My question did not mean to imply that I had seen a coach penalized for running the field to request a timeout. My question was why that was not a penalty. Your "By Rule" explains that. However I still wonder why the Tennessee coach ran about 10 yards out onto the field to get a timeout. He was not looking to an official near the sideline, but to one out further on the field. He got the timeout. Perhaps it was granted by an official closer to the sideline, but he was gesturing out to the center of the field. I definitely saw some situations today where the coach was in the box and was pleading for a timeout for several seconds before the start of the play, but no official acknowledged that request and play continued. It just seems to me that replays look for millisecond precision while timeout requests are much more left to chance. How long does it take an old coach to run 30 yards to get the attention of an official, certainly it is in the seconds.

[OSU65]

I will grant you that I do not have the complete timeline for this play, but I don't think the coach would run out in front of the official after the play was over to request a timeout. He certainly must have been requesting one at least a few seconds before the play started as he ran down the sidelines. Milliseconds for replays and seconds for a timeout call.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1870953-wisconsin-coach-runs-onto-field-to-try-to-call-a-timeout-to-prevent-easy-td

[OSU65]

http://twitpic.com/dn5tpq

[ElvisLives]

The video proves what I suspected happened.  The ball (and thus, the officials) were about as far from the team area as is possible to be.  The coach was simply too late in getting his request made.  As late in the pre-snap portion of the play as he wanted to make his request, the crew is focused on their pre-snap duties.  (Looking 25 yards back down the sideline for a coach possibly wanting to request a T/O is not part of those duties.).
Players are still allowed to request a T/O.  (I still think they should be the only ones allowed to request a T/O, but that's another story.). If the defensive mis-match was so bad, why didn't his players recognize it, and make the T/O request themselves, or at least look to their sideline for direction?  If the request is made, even a millisecond before the snap is made, the request will be granted.  If the ball gets 'apparently' snapped, and a play 'apparently' run, it simply will be discounted, the time will be restored, and the T/O given.
If requesting a T/O was restricted to coaches, allowing replay to get involved in such situations in the "red" zone might be a legitimate consideration.  But that is not the case, and the rules and procedures are equal, and enforced equally, for all teams, despite any biased perceptions to the contrary.
In the case presented, that was just tough luck.  He simply needed to act more quickly.  I worked games with this coach.  He is one of the most level-headed coaches that I ever came across.  I do not believe for a second that he would want a rule change for these situations.

A rule change is not needed, and we damned sure don't need to get lawyers involved.

Robert

[OSU65]

Thanks for the thoughtful and informative response.

Suppose the ball is on the goal line. Would it be permissible for me, as a coach, to go all the way down the sideline and stand close to the official, but a few yards off the field? That way I would be pretty confident that I could get a quick timeout if I saw something I didn't like. I note that the white rectangle along the sideline stops at the 25 yard line.

As an official what would you do in that situation?

BTW I am not in the camp of the refs choose favorites. I think that officials do an excellent job, and to me the replay system has validated that.

[ElvisLives]

Suppose the ball is on the goal line. Would it be permissible for me, as a coach, to go all the way down the sideline and stand close to the official, but a few yards off the field?
The HC (only) is permitted the leave the team area to request a timeout.  If you are not in the act of requesting a timeout, no, you wouldn't be permitted to just come down and hang out, just in case you wanted to make a request.  In a late half situation, between plays, notify your sideline official (you could leave the team area - nobody's gonna nail you for that, if you make your intent obvious) that, you'll want a timeout after the next play, or when the clock gets to some number.  If it is just recognition of a mismatch, you'll just have to react quickly.

I note that the white rectangle along the sideline stops at the 25 yard line.
The solid white area immediately outside the sideline, required by rule, is the restricted area, 6 feet wide, between the 25 yard lines.  Once the snap is imminent, until the play is completely over, no substitutes or coaches are to be in that area.  However, the HC may enter that area before the snap for the purpose of requesting a timeout. The team area is between the restricted area and the grandstands, between the 25 yard lines.  The first 6 feet of the team area is the coaches' area.  Only coaches are supposed to be in that area.  The players' area is behind the coaches' area.  Officials do not police he coaches' area or the players' area.  The better, more organized teams work diligently to keep the players out of the coaches' area, so the coaches can move freely in that area, which, in turn, should eliminate their need to be, or come into the restricted area.  Thus, they avoid being at risk of any form of sideline interference.


As an official what would you do in that situation?
If I notice him in time, I'd ask him if he wants a timeout.  If he says yes, he gets the timeout.  If he says no, or not yet, I'd 'suggest' that he return to the team area, until he is ready to request the timeout.
IMHO, he would be best served to teach his players to pay attention, and have them make the timeout request.

I think that officials do an excellent job, and to me the replay system has validated that.
Absolutely concur.  It is a good tool.

Robert

[mccormicw]

I would offer that in 7 man, there is no reason (other than 12 men on defense or game clock almost at zero) that would keep them from looking down the sideline towards the coach.  Once the ball is snapped, they can quickly find their keys since they are the outside pair.  This is especially important once the play clock gets close to zero.

[ElvisLives]

I would offer that in 7 man, there is no reason (other than 12 men on defense or game clock almost at zero) that would keep them from looking down the sideline towards the coach.  Once the ball is snapped, they can quickly find their keys since they are the outside pair.  This is especially important once the play clock gets close to zero.

Yes, the S and F could do that, but not the H or L.  They MUST keep their attention focused on the neutral zone.  They would be really 'dinged' if they miss a false start, illegal motion, illegal formation, illegal substitution, etc., because they are looking down the sideline for a coach that may want to request a T/O.
The coach simply must understand the rules and mechanics in this situation, and must be ready to act in a timely manner.  And, as previously mentioned, he really should coach his players to be ready to act in a timely manner, in case he doesn't have the time to get the attention of an official in a proper and timely manner.

Robert

[OSU65]

Well.........a perfect example of the problem arose Saturday in the UK-FL game.

I'm not making excuses for the coaches, or the players, but UK failed to cover a wide open receiver prior to the snap. The players didn't see it ( should have I'm sure ), but the coaches did. The receiver was out there waving his arms to make sure the QB saw that he was uncovered prior to the snap. The coaches saw the screw-up and the head coach ran onto the field trying to get a timeout called. He could not get their attention and FL scored an easy TD. If that same play happens around mid-field the officials will (should) see the head coach request the timeout and grant the request. Should a game changing attempt to call a time out really depend on the geography of the line of scrimmage?

Prior to instant replay I would have no problem with a situation like this, but in the era of instant replay minutes are spent reviewing a millisecond decision while there is no mechanism to cover the several seconds that passed prior to the snap during the UK-FL situation.

Why should the outcome of a game swing on a 5 minute review of a millisecond event, but a seconds long event depend so much on the distance the line of scrimmage is from midfield?