Be the Referee: Most Important Line
October 31, 2019
This week, MHSAA officials coordinator Sam Davis explains what the goal line means for offenses, defenses and special teams in high school football.
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 - Most Important Line - Listen
There’s an old saying in football officiating that the most important line on the field is the goal line.
This is certainly true when it comes to touchdowns, as the high school rule is just like that at the college and pro level, where all the ball has to do is break the plane for the score.
One unique part of the goal line under high school rules deals with kicks. Whenever a kickoff or a punt breaks the plane of the goal line, it becomes a dead ball with an automatic touchback. Now, whenever the defense gets possession of the ball in the end zone, it can return a fumble or interception out of the end zone for advancement, except if it’s on an extra point or any time in overtime.
Past editions
Oct. 24: Automatic 1st Downs - Listen
Oct. 17: Catch Momentum - Listen
Oct. 10: Golf Rules Changes - Listen
Oct. 3: No Tackle Box - Listen
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
Boys Soccer Tournament Kicks Off This Week with Openers on MHSAA.tv
By
Jon Ross
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties
October 12, 2021
The first round of District play for Lower Peninsula boys soccer teams kicks off Wednesday (Oct. 13) with more than 20 playoff games being broadcast this week on MHSAA.tv and the NFHS Network.
Among notable openers are a Division 1 matchup of Holt (9-6) at East Lansing (11-3-2), scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday. In Division 2, Coldwater (11-6-2) hosts Parma Western (7-5) in a 6 p.m. opener also Wednesday.
A pair of Tuesday (Oct. 12) matchups among ranked volleyball teams also highlights this week’s broadcast listings. Division 2 No. 2 Grand Rapids Christian hosts Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern at 6 p.m., and Division 1 No. 7 Novi travels to No. 8 Northville for a 6:30 p.m. match.
Week 8 of the football regular season will see more than 175 games broadcast on MHSAA.tv, plus a pair streamed by MHSAA media partners. This week’s Bally Sports Detroit live cable game features reigning Division 5 runner-up Frankenmuth (7-0) taking on Essexville Garber (5-2) in the Tri-Valley Conference, kicking off at 7 p.m. Friday (Oct. 15) on the Bally Sports Detroit PLUS channel as well as online and on the BSD app. State Champs! Sports Network will stream on its website Saturday’s 1 p.m. matchup between Detroit Loyola (3-3) and Detroit Country Day (4-2).
See below for links to a number of notable events on the Network this week:
FOOTBALL
Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Montague at Whitehall
Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Traverse City West at Marquette
Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Three Rivers at Plainwell
Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Mount Pleasant at Bay City Western
Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Mancelona at Charlevoix
Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice at Traverse City Central
Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Birmingham Groves at Clarkston
Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Royal Oak Shrine Catholic at Clarkston Everest Collegiate
VOLLEYBALL
Oct. 12, 6 p.m.: Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern at Grand Rapids Christian
Oct. 12, 6:30 p.m.: Negaunee at Calumet
Oct. 12, 6:30 p.m. Novi at Northville
Oct. 13, 5 p.m.: Cadillac at Traverse City Central
Oct. 14, 7 p.m.: Essexville Garber at Freeland
Oct. 14, 7:30 p.m. Brown City at Ubly
BOYS SOCCER
Oct. 13, 6 p.m.: Parma Western at Coldwater
Oct. 13, 7 p.m.: Holt at East Lansing
Oct. 14, 6 p.m.: Plymouth at Canton
Oct. 15, 7 p.m.: Haslett at Mason
Click the links below to see all three sports’ listings in full:
Football – Volleyball – Boys Soccer
NFHS Network subscriptions begin at $10.99 per month. Subscribers have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. School Broadcast Program participants benefit as a portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program.
More than 400 MHSAA member schools are participants in the School Broadcast Program, now in its 13th year, producing games using traditional hands-on student crews or via Pixellot cameras installed at stadiums and gymnasiums across the state. A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA Website.