Basic Formation, Coverage and Keys
8th Official
Center Judge (C)
Basic Duties, Responsibilities, and Mechanics
Position opposite R, outside shoulder Tackle, 12 yards deep.
Dead Ball – Move immediately to Dead Ball Spot or Inbounds Spot if ball
outside hash marks observing dead ball action. Secure the DBS (Dead Ball
Spot) with your foot so that you do not have to search for it after receiving
Receive ball and place, immediately turning to Referee as you move to a
position behind but to the side of the center. This position allows you to
clear the linemen’s feet as they get set and you do not have to step over or
through the gap between the center and the guard on your side. This also
positions you in front of a shotgun QB or immediately to the side of a T-QB
so that he also can clearly see that you are holding the snap.
If not holding because the R is giving no signal, move immediately off ball
past QB on side opposite Referee,; rotate in toward QB and R as you clear
QB and backs. By rotating in, this immediately allows your vision to pick
up the offside tackle, which will be your primary key immediately after the
snap and in pass blocking. Be prepared to communicate directly with
center and QB, especially if there is a late substitution and the R extends
his arms indicating that the snap should not occur.
Initial Key – Opposite Tackle
Pass Plays – Opposite Tackle; Help on deep blocks; Help on hits to QB,
especially from blindside opposite Referee; help on QB Pass/Fumble.
Run Plays – To your side, action on front side; To Referee side, action on
Kickoff – Position behind kicker; Responsible for action on kicker and
blocks between hash marks; football status coming off of tee. C will bring
in ball from press box side or from up the middle if there is no media
timeout following a score. Instruct kicker to wait on whistle AND signal
from Referee and point the R out to the kicker.
FG/Try – Position opposite R, 10 yards deep and 10 yards wide. Action on
Upback and Tight End opposite. Help on blocks that are deep in front of
Punts – Position opposite R, behind TE position, 1-2 yards behind kicker.
Initial Key – Opposite Tackle or Up Back. Help on deep blocks and leaping
over shield. Help with determining if contact with kicker is result of player
being blocked. After kick, move slowly up field at hash on your side.
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Notes from First Season with 8th Official
Some of you are doing well with this and others are struggling. Most of the
problems I have seen are because the C is not following the guidelines and
mechanics we discussed in Dallas. I suggest all of you and even the R's
download some of the wide angle games that are available on our CFO
West video library and spend time watching it in detail.
Here is a list of common mistakes we have seen mechanically:
Too wide and/or too deep - you should set up 12 yards deep and on the
outside shoulder of the tackle your side. No wider unless you have a really
Delay in moving to DBS - you need to anticipate the play end and begin
moving in that direction before the whistle. If you wait to move, you will be
late getting and finding the spot to place the ball. You can keep your head
on a swivel as you are moving to help out in the appropriate area of
coverage but if you are set and do not move until the whistle is blown, you
Watching tackle and OL blocks too long - if you don't have a foul by the
time the ball is thrown or has moved outside the box, or the play has
developed into a run, your primary responsibility with your tackle is over.
Begin moving to the next spot. You can still have your head on a swivel if
you sense DB action plus the R in not having to work the ball has to be
Happy Feet - too many are waiting to get the ball, then looking for the wing
officials and moving around to spot the ball. That wastes time and will put
you in the way. Learn to get the spot on the move looking at the official
who has the spot; plant your foot and it will hold the spot while you are
waiting on the ball; then you can just get the ball and place the ball at your
foot without searching again for the spot; most often you will face the
offense as you place the ball and therefore will not have to turn around as
you move through the “A” gap. Also, we need to use cross-field mechanics
much more, not just inside 2 minutes, so LOS officials have to be aware of
this. If you go outside to get the ball, turn and pick up the off official and
spot on his mark. Also, we expect the Auxiliary Down Box to be spot on!
On incomplete passes, you have to be able to look to either box and we
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don't ever want more than a couple inches difference in the two if between
tick marks; if the official marker is on a yard line, then we expect the
auxiliary marker to be exact. We expect to hear from the HL and LJ if a
member of the chain crew cannot meet this standard.
Escape route - too many are going down the line too much. You should
always exit between the Center and Guard your side, the “A” gap. But the
trick is to get off the LOS before Team A approaches and set yourself just
behind and to the side of the center. As you raise up to move through that
gap, look to Referee. If you have missed his sub signal, just stop and hold
up the snap until he clears. Again, if you will work to be more efficient in
getting to the DBS, establishing the spot with your foot, then placing the
ball and immediately moving between the C/G ("A" gap), you will have
Rotate In - you should always rotate in toward the QB as you clear the "A"
gap or move once the R clears you, as this positions you to see both the R
and also you will be looking at your tackle sooner. Don't wait until you get
to 12 yards deep to turn. In fact, you should be turning as you are going
past the QB and approaching the deepest back. Often the ball is snapped
as you are moving backward after having turned. If you are not threatened,
then stop there. You don't have to make it all the way back to 12 yards.
Over the course of a game, it will save lots of steps. Also, and get
feedback from your R, you don't have to back up much from 12 yards deep
unless the QB is physically threatened by a defensive player. Even when
he rolls out in front of you, he will never roll 12 yards deep unless someone
FORCES him that deep, so just let him roll in front of you and be prepared
to step forward as you move to the DBS. He will either run or throw but
most of the time the next spot is going to be forward from where you are so
after he clears you, begin moving up.
1st Down Mechanics inside of 2 minutes. We don’t have to be in such a
hurry to wind the clock as the game clock is stopped in this situation by
rule. If ball was inbounds, we will stop and then wind on R’s signal. If out
of bounds, game clock will not start until snap so teams will not normally be
in as much of a rush. However, if we are going to wind, realize that teams
are trying to preserve every second. R in not having to spot the ball should
now have plenty of time to scan the field to be sure we are ready.
1. The C should move up to be at the ball and take over moving off the
ball even if initially set by another official. Example: long or medium
range passes or runs up the middle and BJ or U who is right there
spots the ball. The C should still move up quickly and take over the
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spot from the BJ or U if we have a first down and the clock is
stopped, or if there is a Team A substitute and/or the R is initiating
the substitution mechanics to allow for Team B to match up. If the
clock is running and R is not holding up play with a signal and
another official has spotted the ball, there is no need for the C to go
up to the ball as it is now ready for snap in this situation.
2. Turn and look to R as offensive team is approaching ball. We don’t
want you to set up right on top of the ball but allow the center to move
to his normal position. The best position for the C is in the offside “A”
gap from the R and positioned about a yard from the LOS. This will
put you in position to already be clear of the feet of the C and G
quickly but keep you in position to verbally AND physically
communicate by holding one or both hands in front of the center
and/or QB, which indicates to them they cannot snap the ball. As you
are looking to the R, he will be scanning the field to be sure players
(both offense and defense) have had a REASONABLE time to move
into position, as well as being sure officials have had a
REASONABLE time to move into position.
3. Hustle is the key for officials and we must be prepared to move
quickly; that does not mean we are racing just to spot the ball while
disregarding other officiating duties. We want the C to talk to both
centers and QB’s before the game so they will know who will be the
official in that position. Tell them that in addition to hearing the
whistle by the R, which will indicate to you to move quickly from your
position of holding the snap, they will see you will drop your arms and
move quickly from the A gap to your position to the side of the
formation opposite the QB.
4. When the QB wants to spike the ball, he will obviously be under
center and right there beside you. As you are holding momentarily to
wait on the R signal, have your left arm out (assuming R is on right
side) in front of the QB, but DO NOT prevent him from getting into a
position to take an immediate snap. Remember that in this situation,
most teams just want to stop the clock as quickly as possible once we
clear them for the snap. Clock awareness is critical in these
situations; all officials should be prepared to administer hurry up
situations, including making on-field clock corrections if warranted.
5. Once the R blows his whistle, he will immediately wind the clock
(always in that order); the C will drop his hand and call out “GO” AS
he is moving quickly off his position and into the backfield. As you
are clearing the QB or other back, rotate in toward the R side of the
formation. Obviously in a spike situation, the R will be blowing his
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whistle again soon and you will then move to get the ball set for the
6. Referees, it is important that you coordinate the administration of the
2-minute drill efficiently and correctly. Every second counts but most
problems result when we rush the process more than is necessary. A
common mistake is when the R winds the clock even before the
offense has approached the ball after we have stopped the clock for a
first down. Slow down and give both teams and officials reasonable
time to get into position. Remember that the game clock is stopped
in this situation so there is no need to wind the moment the ball is
placed. If teams are still moving up to the ball, all this does is remove
time off the clock needlessly. Keep in mind that if the Rules
Committee does not want the game clock to be stopped to allow for
teams and officials to get into position following a first down, they will
change that rule; until then, respect the intent of this rule as it
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