Replay and an IW (for DD and other RO types)

[El Macman]

1/10, A-40. A11 throws a legal forward pass to A33 at the A-35. The pass is very low and A33 grabs the ball very near the ground and begins advancing. However, the Line judge rules incomplete (accordingly, sounding his whistle and signaling). The RO initiates an extended review, and determines that the ball was caught.

Replay rules would seem to indicate that the result of the play is Team A's ball at the A-35, 2nd down. Is Team A then able to treat this as a true inadvertent whistle and have the down replayed? If not, I can see a Team A coach wanting to know if he can at least "decline" the ROs ruling, and have 2nd down at the previous spot. I know he can't have that, but it doesn't seem fair to penalize Team A for an unfortunate officiating judgment.

Any help out there? Give me a citation, one way or the other. I can't find anything.

[DD]

The answer is NO. As you stated "the Line judge rules incomplete". The receiver is allowed the catch but not the advance if there is one.  Now let say the ball was half way to the receiver and the LJ then sounds his whistle then you can have an IW. The coach cannot decline the RO's ruling as if this was a foul. Who said everything in football is fair?

[NVFOA_Ump]

The answer is NO. As you stated "the Line judge rules incomplete". The receiver is allowed the catch but not the advance if there is one.  Now let say the ball was half way to the receiver and the LJ then sounds his whistle then you can have an IW. The coach cannot decline the RO's ruling as if this was a foul. Who said everything in football is fair?

As we've said many times in the past - not everyone, and sometimes no one, is going to be pleased when we have an IW.

Based on the rules we have an IW here, since we had a whistle while the ball was actually still live by rule (based on the replay official's ruling), so team A has the option of replaying the down, or taking the result of the play that ended with the IW.

Rules 4-1-2-b-1 and 4-1-2-b-2 should cover this.  Rule 4-1-2-b-1 would apply to the case play here where the official sounded the whistle while the A player was in possession of a live ball "  4-1-2-b. If an official sounds his whistle inadvertently or otherwise signals the ball dead during a down; 1. When the ball is in player possession, then the team in possession may elect to put the ball in play where declared dead or replay the down."

The fact that the "final" result was not determined until after the replay doesn't change the fact that we had an IW while a team A player was in possession of a live ball.

[DD]

When was the last time you saw a IW rule apply in a NFL or a D1 game that uses replay?  Replay rules as applied since the use of replay are mainly used in games that do not use replay.