Be the Referee: No Tackle Box
October 3, 2019
This week, MHSAA officials coordinator Sam Davis explains the difference between high school and college/pro rules in regards to the football tackle box and intentional grounding.
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 - No Tackle Box - Listen
Today we are going to talk about the rules that govern the quarterback, specifically when the quarterback is being rushed and is looking to throw the ball away and avoid the sack.
Under both pro and college rules, they have what’s called the tackle box. When the quarterback gets outside of the original position of the offensive tackles and throws the ball and it reaches the line of scrimmage, there is never a foul for intentional grounding.
However, under high school rules there is no such thing as a tackle box. If the quarterback is either in pocket or scrambles outside of the pocket and now is trying to throw that ball away to avoid the sack, there always must be a receiver in the vicinity of the pass to avoid an intentional grounding foul.
Past editions
Sept. 26: You Make the Overtime Call - Listen
Sept. 19: Swimming Finishing Touch - Listen
Sept. 12: Curbing Gamesmanship By Substitution - Listen
Sept. 5: Football Safety Rules Changes - Listen
Aug. 29: 40-Second Play Clock - Listen
Be the Referee: Trickery & Communication
October 24, 2018
This week, MHSAA officials coordinator Sam Davis explains a key piece of communication that takes place between football referees and coaches during pregame.
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 – Trickery & Communication - Listen
One of the long-time strategies in the game of football is deception. It has lots of other names, and most often goes these days by the name of trickery. Catching an opponent off-guard can break a game wide open. But catching the officiating crew off-guard is something you don’t want to have happen or else your big play may be blown dead inadvertently.
That’s why during the pre-game meeting the officiating crew has with each head coach, one of the questions that will be asked is – “Coach, do you have any trick plays we should be watching for?” And coaches, who are usually tight lipped about a lot of their strategies, will be very open and describe in detail anything fancy that’s in the playbook for that game.
This type of communication gets coaches and officials on the same page and ensures that when trickery comes visiting, only the opponents are surprised.
Past editions
October 18: Punts & Missed Field Goals - Listen
October 11: What Officials Don't Do - Listen
October 4: Always 1st-and-Goal - Listen
September 27: Unique Kickoff Option - Listen
September 20: Uncatchable Pass - Listen
September 13: Soccer Rules Change - Listen
September 6: You Make the Call: Face Guarding - Listen
August 30: 40-Second Play Clock - Listen
August 23: Football Rules Changes - Listen