Be the Referee: Field Goal Falls Short
By
Sam Davis
MHSAA Director of Officials
September 30, 2021
Be The Referee is a series of short messages designed to help educate people on the rules of different sports, to help them better understand the art of officiating, and to recruit officials.
Below is this week's segment – Field Goal Falls Short - Listen
Three things can happen if a field goal attempt crosses the line of scrimmage but comes up short of the goal line. Do you know all three?
First, the ball can go out of bounds. If that happens, the ball is dead and on the change of possession, the team newly on offense takes over where the ball went out of bounds.
Second, the kicking team can be the first to touch the ball. When that happens, this is the first touching and again the team newly on offense takes over where the ball was downed.
And third, the receiving team can return the kick. And they would take over on offense after the returner has been tackled or goes out of bounds.
Think of a field goal attempt as a punt, and you’ll always know what’s possible if the kick comes up short of the goal line.
Previous editions
Sept. 23: Volleyball Obstruction - Listen
Sept. 16: Catch or No Catch - Listen
Sept. 9: Intentional Grounding – Listen
Sept. 2: Pass Interference – Listen
Aug. 26: Protocols and Mechanics – Listen
#TBT: Reeths-Puffer Legends Born
November 30, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The “Legends of the Game” program returned to the MHSAA Football Finals this past weekend, as members of the 1992 Muskegon Reeths-Puffer football team and cheerleaders from that fall were honored at Ford Field.
The Rockets won the Class A championship game that season 21-18 over Walled Lake Western at the Pontiac Silverdome as Stacy Starr plucked a last-ditch downfield throw out of the air and raced into the end zone to finish one of the most well-known highlights in MHSAA Football Finals history.
The play included a pitch, then a handoff, then another pitch back to quarterback Geoff Zietlow, who threw toward the end zone. His pass was deflected and snagged by Starr, who raced the final yards for the 37-yard touchdown with 23 seconds to play.
Below is the video that introduced returning players and cheerleaders.
PHOTOS: (Top) Stacy Starr makes his way around defenders to score the game-winning touchdown at the 1992 Class A Final. (Middle) Members of the 1992 Reeths-Puffer football team and cheerleaders watch the Rockets' famous highlight as they are honored at Ford Field.