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
Football Week in Michigan Airs on FOX
October 10, 2017
By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties
The MHSAA Football Playoff Finals – powered by the Michigan Army National Guard – dominate the schedule for FOX Sports Detroit’s first annual “Football Week In Michigan” this November.
Over eight days – November 18-25 – the best in high school, college and professional football involving Michigan teams will be featured on a variety of FOX video platforms – FOX Sports Detroit, FS1, FOX Sports GO!, Big Ten Network and FOX over-the-air television.
MHSAA championship football games provide 10 of the 13 games during FWIM. The prep schedule begins on Nov. 18 with the two divisions of the 8-Player Football Finals live from the Superior Dome in Marquette on FOX Sports GO! Those games will then be re-aired early in the week on FOX Sports Detroit.
Seven of the eight 11-Player Football Finals on Nov. 24-25 will be shown live on FOX Sports Detroit-PLUS, the exception being the Division 4 game on Nov. 24, which will be shown on a same-day delayed basis on FOX Sports Detroit that evening at 11:30 p.m. All of the 11-Player Finals will be available live on FOX Sports Go!
Over-the-air FOX television affiliates in Michigan also will have the option to carry 11-Player Final games in their markets if they have a local team participating in a game. Participating affiliates are: Alpena – WBKB-DT2 (11.2); Cadillac – WFQX-TV (32); Detroit – WJBK-TV (2); Flint – WSMH-TV (66); Grand Rapids – WXMI-TV (17); Lansing – WSYM-TV (47); Marquette – WLUC-DT2 (6.2); Sault Ste. Marie – WWUP-DT2 (10.2); Vanderbilt – WFUP-TV (45). Check local listings Thanksgiving week for games to be shown locally.
Football Week In Michigan officially was recognized last week in a Proclamation by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder.
FOX Sports Detroit’s MHSAA Football Playoff coverage begins Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. with the announcement of the pairings for the 2017 Playoffs on the Selection Sunday Show on FOX Sports Detroit-PLUS. Throughout the Playoffs leading up to the 11-Player Finals, the FOX Sports Detroit Prep Zone returns to feature four games each week which can be viewed live on FoxSportsDetroit.com and FOX Sports GO!
A share of the Mid-Eastern Football Conference title is on the line Friday (Oct. 13) at 7 p.m. when Norway hosts Lake Linden-Hubbell in a game that can be watched live on MHSAA.tv.
The winner of the game will tie Newberry for the league title. The Indians completed league play last week with a 28-14 win over Norway. Norway is 6-1 overall, and Lake Linden-Hubbell is 3-3.
Norway is one of more than 60 MHSAA member schools across the state participating in the School Broadcast Program, one of nearly a dozen schools to be streaming live video of its home athletic events using the NFHS Network’s Pixellot technology and one of three schools currently using Pixellot in their gymnasiums and football/multi-purpose fields.
Pixellot is a unit equipped with four High Definition cameras which cover the length of the playing surface and then focus on the ball and player movement to deliver the action. The unit communicates with the scoreboard to insert a time and score graphic on the screen. Ambient audio is picked up by the device, but the play-by-play of an in-person announce team also can be patched in.
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:
Tuesday, October 10
- Girls Volleyball - Au Gres-Sims at Rogers City, 6 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball - Negaunee at Calumet, 6:30 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball – Grand Rapids Catholic Central at Comstock Park, 7 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball - Grand Rapids Catholic Central at Comstock Park, 7 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball - Merrill at Vestaburg, 7 p.m.
Thursday, October 12
- Varsity/JV/Freshman Girls Volleyball - Paw Paw at Plainwell, 5 p.m.
- Boys Soccer - Spring Lake at Comstock Park, 6 p.m.
- Boys Soccer - Otsego at Plainwell, 6:45 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball – Wyoming Godwin Heights at Wyoming Lee, 7 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball - Troy at Lake Orion, 7 p.m.
Friday, October 13
- JV Football – Lake Linden-Hubbell at Norway, 3 p.m.
- Boys Soccer – Grand Rapids West Michigan Aviation Academy at Wyoming Lee, 6 p.m.
- Football - East Kentwood at Rockford, 7 p.m.
- Football - Sparta at Comstock Park, 7 p.m.
- Football - Owosso at Flint Kearsley, 7 p.m.
- Football – Birmingham Brother Rice at Traverse City West, 7 p.m.
- Football - Paw Paw at Plainwell, 7 p.m.
- Football - Carrollton at Freeland, 7 p.m.
- Football – Lake Linden-Hubbell at Norway, 7 p.m.
- Football - Bessemer at Calumet, 7 p.m.
- Football - Roscommon at Clare, 7 p.m.
Monday, October 16
- JV Girls Volleyball - Plainwell Quad, 5 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball - Bay City Central at Freeland, 5 p.m.
- JV Girls Volleyball - West Iron County at Norway, 6 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball - West Iron County at Norway, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, October 17
- Freshman Girls Volleyball - Allendale at Comstock Park, 5 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball - Oscoda at Rogers City, 6 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball - Allendale at Comstock Park, 6 p.m.
- JV Girls Volleyball – Mt. Morris at Otisville Lakeville, 6 p.m.
- Freshman Girls Volleyball – Mt. Morris at Otisville Lakeville, 6 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball – Mt. Morris at Otisville Lakeville, 6:30 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball – Carson City-Crystal at Vestaburg, 7 p.m.
- Girls Volleyball - Lansing Everett at East Lansing, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, October 18
- Girls Volleyball - Essexville Garber at Otisville Lakeville, 6:30 p.m.
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 complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA website.
Highlights of games produced in the past week by MHSAA School Broadcast Program members are back for another week. Featured events are in girls volleyball with Saginaw Swan Valley at Freeland, football with Newberry at Norway and boys soccer with Lansing Everett at Fowlerville. Highlights can be found each week on the MHSAA.tv website, the home page of the MHSAA Website and the MHSAASports Channel on YouTube.
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:
- Wyandotte Roosevelt at Gibraltar Carlson
- Algonac at Richmond
- Berkley at Farmington Hills Harrison
- Detroit Catholic Central at Warren DeLaSalle
- Grand Blanc at Livonia Franklin
- Muskegon at Muskegon Mona Shores
- Pontiac Notre Dame Prep at Portland
- 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.