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Be the Referee: Automatic 1st Downs
October 29, 2020
This week, MHSAA assistant director Brent Rice explains how high school football rules differ from those at the collegiate and professional levels when it comes to awarding automatic first downs.
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 - Automatic 1st Downs - Listen
Today we are going to talk about one of the biggest rule difference areas in high school football from those rules used in college and pro games, and that deals with automatic first downs.
When watching that college game on Saturday or the pro game on Sunday, all of us know there are several defensive fouls that give the offense an automatic first down. However, under high school rules, the opposite is true most of the time.
The only high school fouls that result in an automatic first down for the offense are the roughing fouls – roughing the passer, the kicker, the holder and the long snapper. Fouls such as defensive pass interference or any other personal foul do not bring an automatic first down under high school rules.
Past editions
10/22: You Make the Call: Illegal Kick - Listen
10/15: Toe the Line on Penalty Kicks - Listen
10/8: Disconcerting Acts - Listen
10/1: Ball Hits Soccer Referee - Listen
9/24: Clocking the Ball from the Shotgun - Listen
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Be the Referee: Safety in End Zone
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
October 11, 2022
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 – Safety in End Zone - Listen
Team A has the ball on its own 3-yard line – facing a 4th-and-10. The quarterback drops back into the end zone, and just before he’s about to be sacked, he throws the ball away.
Out comes the flag for intentional grounding – which would give the defense two points and force Team A to kick off. But the coach of the team on defense would rather decline the penalty and take over at the 3-yard line. Can he do that?
Not exactly.
While he can decline the penalty, the result of the play is the same. A safety for the defense. If the penalty is accepted, the enforcement is from the end zone resulting in a safety. Incomplete illegal passes end the play where the pass is made, so even if the penalty is declined, it’s a safety because the play ended behind the goal line.
Previous Editions:
Oct. 4: Football Overtime Penalty - Listen
Sept. 27: Kickoff Goal - Listen
Sept. 20: Soccer Timing - Listen
Sept. 13: Volleyball Replays - Listen
Sept. 6: Switching Sides - Listen
Aug. 30: Play Clock - Listen
Aug. 23: Intentional Grounding Change - Listen