re: the onside kick

You were quicker Xbengal.

I don't understand how they can not comprehend this.

Bottom line: Ball has to go 10 yards before kicking team can recover it (even if it "hits the ground" before 10 yards or otherwise the kicker would kick the ball next to the tee) or if a member of the receiving team touches it prior to 10 yards (prior to being hit by member of the kicking team). The contact on that kick was directly in front of me and the UNC player definitely hit the LSU receiver prior to him touching the ball. Should have been a penalty.

quote:

---

Rule 6 covers "Kicks".

Rule 6-1-2-g states: No Team A player may block an opponent until Team A is eligible to touch a free-kicked ball.

But if you read further down to Rule 6-1-3, you'll find the following:

No Team A player may touch a free-kicked ball until after:
1. It touches a Team B player;
2. It breaks the plane of and remains beyond Team B’s restraining line; or
3. It touches any player, the ground, an official or anything beyond Team B’s
restraining line.
Thereafter, all players of Team A become eligible to touch, recover or catch the
kick.

Still, if you read Rule 6 further, you find Section 4 which deals with Opportunity to catch a kick.

Rule 6-4-1 states:

A player of the receiving team within the boundary lines attempting
to catch a kick, and so located that he could have caught a free kick or a scrimmage
kick that is beyond the neutral zone, must be given an unimpeded opportunity to
catch the kick.

Then in Rule 6-4-1-a, you read:

This protection terminates when the kick touches the ground, when any player
of Team B muffs a scrimmage kick beyond the neutral zone, or when any
player of Team B muffs a free kick in the field of play or in the end zone.

---

I don't think you are interpreting the language correctly.

You are citing to Rule 6-4-1-a, which is a clearly a limitation on Rule 6-4-1, not Rule 6-1-2-g. In other words, the phrase "this protection" in Rule 6-4-1-a refers to the protection afforded by rule 6-4-1. Now, look at the language of Rule 6-4-1 itself, which defines the scope of the protection:

"A player of the receiving team within the boundary lines attempting
to catch a kick, and so located that he could have caught a free kick or a scrimmage
kick that is beyond the neutral zone, must be given an unimpeded opportunity to
catch the kick."

BY its own terms, 6-4-1 refers to players who are attempting to catch a kick "beyond the neutral zone." All 6-4-1-a is stating is that if a player is waiting to catch a kick BEYOND THE NUETRAL ZONE and the kick has already hit the ground, then the defense can hit the awaiting receiver.

(I assume that nuetral zone here refers to the ten yard buffer between the teams.)

However, the rule is entirely silent as to players who are in the nuetral zone. In such a case, where a player is IN the neutral zone, you have to apply Rule 6-1-2-g, which says that you can't block anyone until the ball reaches ten yards or hits someone, etc.

Read this way, Rules 6-4-1-a and 6-1-2-g are entirely consonant. Any other reading renders them internally inconsistent and contradictory.

The rulebook clearly states that I'm right. It's not that difficult to understand.

-YTC

quote:

---

The rulebook clearly states that I'm right. It's not that difficult to understand.

---

Yep. Gotta be Ron Burgundy.

I am kind of a big deal.

People know me.

-YTC

quote:

---

The rulebook clearly states that I'm right. It's not that difficult to understand.

-YTC

---

LINK

Vic Winnek
NCAA Football Official

disagrees

Just because the ball hits the ground does not = the ball is free for the kicking team to recover. Think about it for a moment - if that would be true, the kicker would simply kick the ball 2 yards off the tee & the player next to the kicker would fall on it. Most onside kicks involve the ball hitting the ground prior to 10 yards.

That ref deserves his "F".