Penalty Enforcement Part 2:
Change of Possession Fouls
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Mike Pasenelli
Capital Area Chapter PIAA Officials
Revised 13 September 2009
10/18/09
Our Mission:



To discuss fouls which occur during
changes of possession.
To show our knowledge of those fouls by
answering the quiz completely.
To discuss situations from this past
weekend.
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Introduction

What we are not discussing: PSK fouls.
They have their own rules—we are not
talking about them tonight.
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The Golden Rule: 5-2-1

If the penalty is accepted, the ball
belongs to the team in possession
when the foul occurs
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Situation #1 (SG 11.23)


Team B illegal participates by having 12
players in the formation on a play in
which Team A’s forward pass is
intercepted.
RULING: Team A will want to accept the
penalty since this allows them to keep
the ball after enforcement of the
penalty.
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Situation #2 (11.24)


During a run by A1, his teammate, A2,
clips. A1 subsequently fumbles and
the ball is recovered and downed by
B3.
RULING: Team B will most likely want
to decline the penalty for Team A’s clip
and take the result of the down to keep
the ball.
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Double Fouls


If both teams commit fouls during the
down, the fouls sometimes offset and
the down is replayed, per 10-2-1.
Note that any number of fouls by one
team offsets any number of fouls by the
other team as long as they are all liveball fouls.
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Situation #3 (SG 11.25)


At the snap Team A has only 6 players
on the line of scrimmage and A1 is
illegally in motion, while B2 illegally
uses his hands during the down.
RULING: The fouls offset and the down
is replayed.
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Live Balls and Dead-Balls


When a live-ball foul by one team is
followed by a dead-ball foul by the
same team, it is not a multiple foul.
The penalties are enforced separately
and in their order of occurrence, per 101-3.
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99
Situation #4 (11.26)


A 1/10 @ A-40. A1 is illegally in motion at
the snap. A2 runs the ball for no gain. A3 is
then called for a dead ball personal foul.
RULING: If Team B accepts the penalty for
both illegal motion and the dead ball foul. It
would be A 1/30 @ A-20. If Team B declines
the penalty for the illegal motion and
accepts the dead ball foul, it would be A 2/25
@ A-25.
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1010
Non-Player and USC Fouls

Another exception involves nonplayer
and unsportsmanlike conduct (USC)
fouls Since for purposes of penalty
enforcement they are identical to dead
ball fouls, they are not offset by
opponent’s fouls.
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1111
Situation #5 (11.27 Modified)


A 3/20 @ A-20. A Team B player commits
defensive pass interference (DPI) and the Team A
coach is flagged for coming on to the field during
the down.
Ruling: These fouls do not offset. Team A’s foul
is treated as a dead ball foul, so both penalties are
enforced. Team B is first penalized 15 yards for
the DPI, and then Team A is penalized 15 yards for
the USC. Since DPI includes an automatic 1st
down, and the USC happened prior to the ready
for play, A 1/10 @ A-20.
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Clean Hands Principle
10-2-2

If there is a change in team possession
during the down, and the team that winds
up with the ball did not foul prior to
gaining possession, it is referred to as
“having clean hands.” A team with clean
hands gets to keep the ball if they decline
their opponent’s foul.
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2008 Change

A big change from previous year’s: the
team not last in possession then has the
opportunity to exercise their penalty
options.
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Situation #6 (11.28)


A1 is illegally in motion at the snap,
and during the down A1 throws an
interception. B2 clips on the run back.
RULING: Team B got the ball free of
foul, so they had “clean hands.” Team
B has the option to keep the football by
declining A’s foul. A then has the
option to accept or decline the penalty
for the clip.
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Situation #7 (11.29)


B1 recovers A2’s fumble and returns the ball
for 20 yards before being tackled by A3 who
grasps but does not twist A3’s face mask.
During B1’s run B4 clips.
RULING: Team B may decline Team A’s foul
to keep the football, and the penalty for B4’s
clip will probably be enforced.
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Situation #8 (11.30)


At the snap, A1 is illegally in motion and B2
illegally uses his hands during his initial
rush. A3’s illegal forward pass is
intercepted by B4. During the return, B5
blocks below the waist.
RULING: The fouls offset, and the down is
replayed. Team B committed a foul (illegal
used of the hands) before gaining
possession, so he had dirty hands. The
clean hands exception does not apply.
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Clean Hands

Remember, when the clean hands
principle applies, we still allow the
teams a choice.
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Situation #9


A 1/10 @ B-30. Team A is in an illegal formation
and A1’s pass is intercepted in the end zone by
B2. As B2 begins to run, B3 clips A4 in the end
zone. B2 returns the ball all the way for a
touchdown.
RULING: Team B, as the team last in possession,
has the option of accepting or declining Team A’s
foul. Declining A’s illegal formation foul would
result in a safety. Thus, Team B will accept the
penalty for Team A’s foul and the fouls will offset,
resulting in a replay of the down.
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Change in 2008:

Once the team last in possession
(usually Team B) declines the penalty
for a double foul, the team not last in
possession (usually Team A) may now
either accept or decline the penalty for
their opponent’s foul, per 10-2-2.
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2020
Situation #10 (SG 11.33)


With Team A leading by 3 points and the clock
running with 3 seconds left in the game, A1 muffs
the snap. Team A had only 6 players on the line at
the snap. B2 recovers the ball and returns it 10
yards before being tackled. During B2’s run, B3
shoved an opponent in the back, above the waist,
as time expires.
RULING: Team B will decline the penalty for Team
A’s illegal formation foul to keep the ball. Team A
will then decline the penalty for B’s block in the
back so the period will not extend.
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Situation #11 (SG 11.34)


On 4th down, Team A commits an
illegal shift. Ball carrier A1 is stopped
short of the line to gain and B2 piles on
after the ball is dead.
RULING: If B declines the penalty for
A’s illegal shift, they will be awarded a
new series and will have 1st down and
10 following enforcement of the penalty
for
their dead ball foul.
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Situations from the
Weekend


A 1/10 @ B-40. B leads game, 6-0, less than 5
seconds left. A1 throws a pass which is intercepted by
B2 @ B-20. After the interception, B3 blocks in the
back @ B-30. B2 is downed @ 50 as time expires.
RULING: B got the ball with clean hands, A has 2
options:


Decline the penalty, game over.
Accept the penalty, so we have an accepted penalty on the
last timed down, B 1/10 @ B-20.
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Situations from the
Weekend

10.5 seconds left in the game. A is trailing with no
timeouts left. A1 has just completed a long pass,
inbounds, to A2 for a 1st down. A is lined up and set,
waiting for the chains to get set. R blows the RFP,
and the snapper immediately double hitches the snap,
causing L, U and H to throw their flags, blow their
whistles and kill the clock. Meanwhile, the snapper,
on the 3rd try, gets the ball to the QB, who is so
surprised at the flags and whistles that he fumbles the
snap. The QB then picks up the ball from the ground
and spikes it. The clock operator has 8 seconds left
on
the clock.
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Situations from the
Weekend

RULING: All actions by the snapper and QB
after the illegal snap are moot, since the illegal
snap causes the ball to become dead. The
question is, how much time should be put on
the clock? Since the illegal snap occurred
almost simultaneously with the RFP, putting the
full 10.5 seconds back on the clock seems a
reasonable alternative, although it could be
argued that it had to take at least a tenth to
make the illegal snap.
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Situations from the
Weekend


K 4/goal @ R-4. Kicker K1’s field goal attempt
is good, but R2 roughs holder K3.
RULING: K has 2 options:


First, keep the FG and assess the penalty on the
succeeding spot, which is the kickoff during
regulation time.
Second, take the penalty, which has an automatic
1st down attached to it, from the previous spot,
which results in K 1/goal @ R-2. Depending on the
score, time, etc., K may want to do that or not.
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Our Mission:



To discuss fouls which occur during
changes of possession.
To show our knowledge of those fouls by
answering the quiz completely.
To discuss situations from this past
weekend.
10/18/09
2727