NFHS Voice: Source of HS Playing Rules
November 12, 2019
By Karissa Niehoff
NFHS Executive Director
When it comes to writing playing rules for major sports in the United States, it’s all in the acronyms. In football, you have the NFL, NCAA and NFHS. In basketball, it’s the NBA, NCAA and NFHS. In baseball, the rules-makers are MLB, NCAA and NFHS.
While the NFL, NBA, MLB and NCAA can be used on first reference without explanation, many people are unfamiliar with the NFHS. And yet the NFHS has been around as long – or longer – than the other four major sports organizations.
In many cases, references to NFHS rules – not only in these three major sports but the other 14 sports for which the organization writes rules – are simply noted as “high school rules.” The reality, however, is that the NFHS – the National Federation of State High School Associations – has been the national organization most directly focused on sports playing rules in the past 90 years since it published its first Football Rules Book in 1932.
With almost eight million participants in high school sports, NFHS rules are written for more individuals than all other levels of sports combined. As a result, risk minimization and the fundamentals of good sportsmanship are paramount to the rules-writing process for the NFHS and often are the distinguishing factors from rules at the higher levels of the sport.
Perhaps football is the best example of the commitment to risk minimization. In the mid-1970s, the NFHS was at the forefront of change when it outlawed spearing in high school football. The 1976 rule revision changed the landscape of high school football from an injury standpoint – from a high of 36 direct fatalities in 1968 to an average of about two per year by 2018.
Some people have questioned why there are multiple rules codes for a sport. Very simply, NFHS rules for high school play must be different than at the college and professional levels.
As an example, while professional baseball is concerned with how fast a baseball exits the batter’s box (Velocity Exit Speed) and how far the ball travels on a home run, the NFHS has enacted bat standards during the past 20 years to reduce the speed of balls coming off aluminum bats. In wrestling, the NFHS has enacted strict weight-management plans to reduce the risk of health issues. In ice hockey, while fighting is an accepted part of the sport at the professional level, NFHS rules have strict rules prohibiting all forms of unsportsmanlike conduct. In football, NFHS rules do not permit the excessive celebration displays following touchdowns that occur during NFL games.
In addition to risk minimization and sportsmanship, the NFHS must also weigh financial implications for schools when considering equipment and uniform changes. With schools ranging in size from less than 100 to more than 5,000 students, decisions must be made for the masses and cannot put undue financial hardships on schools.
NFHS rules are also written with the understanding that appropriate behavior begins with the coach, who is responsible for ensuring that his or her team exhibits good sporting behavior. Many penalties for unsportsmanlike conduct on the team are first directed against the coach.
While the NFHS and its member state associations govern the high school place in various sports – not only with playing rules but other issues as well – we maintain relationships with the National Governing Bodies (NGBs) in these sports to assist in meeting the needs of all participants.
Last week, the NFHS hosted a summit of various leaders of NGBs in Indianapolis. Leaders from about 15 NGBs were set to meet with NFHS staff to discuss various initiatives and opportunities for collaborative programs. We hope this is the first of many such meetings as it is crucial that all levels of sport work together to ensure ongoing opportunities for all sports participants.
Dr. Karissa L. Niehoff is in her second year as executive director of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) in Indianapolis, Indiana. She is the first female to head the national leadership organization for high school athletics and performing arts activities and the sixth full-time executive director of the NFHS, which celebrated its 100th year of service during the 2018-19 school year. She previously was executive director of the Connecticut Association of Schools-Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference for seven years.
Timeout to Appreciate Officials
September 23, 2013
By Kevin Wolma
Hudsonville athletic director
Wolma is in his third school year as athletic director at Hudsonville and previously coached basketball and golf. Below is a recent “30-second timeout” he wrote for the Hudsonville district newsletter.
We were five seconds away from one of the greatest upsets in the history of Caledonia basketball.
During the regular season, South Christian had beaten us by more than 30 points on two different occasions. The District Finals became the site for the third contest between the two schools on a warm March day.
We were able to slow them down just enough to stay within striking distance until late in the fourth quarter, when we finally took the lead for the first time. South Christian had one last chance with seven seconds left on the clock. After a timeout, they in-bounded the ball from the sideline and their player forced up a shot. I could see it was going to be short from my viewpoint, and my heart began to race with adrenaline as I could sense the impossible was going to become possible.
What happened next has stuck with me for the rest of my life, as one of the South Christian players pushed one of our players in the back, grabbed the rebound, and put the ball in the basket with one second left.
Game over. South Christian wins the District championship.
For the next eight years as a varsity basketball coach, I held a grudge against officials for that one call. Twelve years later, after I was done coaching, I went back and watched the game over again for the first time. I almost turned the video off when they in-bounded the ball in those last seven seconds because I did not want to relive that moment and the ensuing emotions that took place.
While watching I discovered something.
The South Christian player did not shove my player as much as I thought, and our players did not box out like I had thought, which made it easier for them to get the rebound and score. Looking back, did I even tell my players to box out during that last timeout before the ball was in-bounded?
At that moment it became very clear to me that what we see during a game may be clouded because we want our team to gain every advantage and every call in order for them to be successful. Perception is not reality. Officials are human. They will make mistakes just like the coaches and players do during a game.
There still has never been a game that has been decided by an official. Some people will say that the Class B Semifinal boys basketball game (in 2010) was decided on an official’s call when they ruled one of Forest Hills Northern’s player's foot was on the line on his last-second shot when in reality his foot clearly was behind the line. That call cost them a chance to play in the (MHSAA) Finals.
Coach Steve Harvey was quoted in the paper as saying, "We had opportunities to take care of the game before it even came down to that shot.” In the moment it seemed like that one play cost Forest Hills Northern the game, but there were over 50 possessions on offense and defense that preceded the play and potential outcome.
Having the opportunity to spend time with officials inside the locker room has made it very evident they are serious about their jobs and calling the best game they can. I have had requests from officials to have a monitor available to break down film an hour and a half before their contest begins to see strengths and weaknesses in their placement and mechanics from prior contests. I have had officials upset at halftime or after a game because they realized they made a mistake. I have had officials contact me personally after a game to apologize for a call made during the contest.
In the business world and also in education we use the word collaboration a lot. Officials collaborate before, during, and after every contest to garner more knowledge so they can continue to improve.
This is not even their full time job. Officials do what they do because they love the game and want to give back to the sport that made an impact on them.
The next time we are at a game and we think the officials missed a call, let’s take a 30-second timeout to gather our emotions so we do not say anything we will regret later. Instead let’s spend our energy cheering on our teams to be the best they can be.