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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

'Selection Sunday Show' Returns

October 18, 2017

By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties 

A rite of the conclusion of football’s regular season is the announcement of the qualifiers and pairings for the MHSAA Football Playoffs – powered by the Michigan Army National Guard – on the “Selection Sunday Show,” which takes place this Sunday (Oct. 22) at 7 p.m. on FOX Sports Detroit-PLUS.

Watch parties around the state will have teams and communities celebrating the past nine weeks of the regular season and looking forward to the playoffs, which culminate on Nov. 18 for 8-player football and Nov. 24-25 for 11-player football – with all of the games shown on FOX Sports Detroit as part of Football Week In Michigan.

This year’s show will again originate from the FOX Sports Detroit studios in Southfield. Matt Shepard, Mickey York and Rob Rubick will handle the on-camera duties. In addition to the cable television broadcast, the show will be available via a live video stream on the FoxSportsDetroit.com website and for mobile users on FOX Sports GO! Authentication may be required for mobile users of FS GO!

There are three football games with playoff implications Friday (Oct. 20) night with live streaming video on MHSAA.tv being produced by members of the School Broadcast Program. Menominee is at Marquette in a game where the Maroons must win to qualify and Marquette must win to still have a chance as an additional qualifier for the playoffs, and Hudsonville at Rockford is a game where the host Rams need a win to get in and Hudsonville must win to possibly qualify. Calumet (5-3) is hosting Gladstone (7-1), needing a win to qualify.

In its ninth year, the School Broadcast Program gives members an opportunity to showcase excellence in their schools by creating video programming of athletic and non-athletic events, with students gaining skills in announcing, camera operation, directing/producing and graphics. Pixellot is used by schools wishing to stream games but which lack the ability to staff the events. The SBP program also gives schools the opportunity to raise money through advertising and viewing subscriptions.

Here’s this week’s MHSAA.tv schedule of video streams being produced by SBP members: 

Wednesday, October 18

Thursday, October 19

Friday, October 20

Tuesday, October 24

Wednesday, October 25

NFHS Network subscriptions begin at $9.95 per month. Subscribers will have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. All content becomes available for free, on-demand viewing 72 hours after being shown live. School Broadcast Program participants will also be selling Season and Annual Passes at a discounted rate. A portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program.

A Month Pass purchased on or after Friday this week would enable a viewer to access all of the live MHSAA Tournament action this fall. That schedule includes:

  • Saturday Specials - Weekly Football Playoff Coverage on Oct. 28, Nov. 4 and Nov. 11
  • MHSAA Boys Soccer Finals on Nov. 4
  • MHSAA Girls Volleyball Semifinals & Finals – Nov. 16-18
  • MHSAA Lower Peninsula Girls Swimming & Diving Finals – Nov. 18
  • Super Streaming Saturday – All 16 Football Semifinal Games – Nov. 18

A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA website.

A weekly staple on the MHSAA.tv website and the MHSAASports Channel on YouTube is back for another year with highlights of selected games last week produced by members of the Association’s School Broadcast Program. This week’s highlights package consists of clips from football games between Birmingham Brother Rice at Traverse City West and East Kentwood at Rockford, and a girls volleyball match with Negaunee at Calumet. Schools interested in becoming a part of the School Broadcast Program should contact John Johnson at the MHSAA Office.

More than 15 football games are featured each week on the State Champs! Sports Network Extra Point – powered by the Michigan High School Athletic Association – Saturday at 10 a.m. on FOX Sports Detroit.

The half-hour program features highlights from more than a dozen games each week, including clips from games produced by MHSAA School Broadcast Program members. The program airs multiple times each weekend on FOX Sports Detroit and on Comcast Channel 900, and will be archived on the State Champs YouTube Channel. Consult your local listings for additional playback times.

Here are some of the games to be featured this week on State Champs! Extra Point:

  • Quincy at Grass Lake
  • Detroit Southeastern at Birmingham Brother Rice
  • Coldwater at Traverse City West
  • Detroit East English vs. Detroit Martin Luther King - PSL Division 1 Championship
  • Fenton at Waterford Mott
  • Birmingham Groves at West Bloomfield 
  • Grand Rapids South Christian at East Grand Rapids
  • PLUS - Additional coverage from Grand Rapids, Lansing, Flint, Upper Peninsula and School Broadcast Program games.

The MHSAA also has a presence on other State Champs! Network programs throughout each weekend. The MHSAA Minute is a weekly part of the State Champs! High School Sports Show on FOX Sports Detroit at 9 a.m. every Sunday – with multiple replays on FOX Sports Detroit and Comcast Channel 900 throughout the week. That program also is archived on the State Champs YouTube Channel. Consult your local listings for additional playback times.

This week’s MHSAA Minute on State Champs talks about Selection Sunday.

The MHSAA also has content on the State Champs Scoreboard! High School Football Radio Show on Friday nights during the football and basketball seasons, originating on WXYT-FM (97.1) in Detroit and carried on more than 10 radio stations across the state. This Week In High School Sports and Be the Referee are weekly features on the program.