Points of Emphasis 2012 3 Minute Warning: will be given after 3:00 minutes remain on the clock – not at 3:05 or 3:01 etc. This is not an option but a directive as to how all BCFC games will be handled. at the 3 minute warning, the entire crew will come together to remind each other that the timing rules are changing. The only exception will be if it is a punting situation and the deep officials are already deep with the receivers. In this situation, it is the responsibility of the LoS officials to ensure the deep officials are aware that the 3-minute waning has been given. Blocking Below the Waist: CJFL and CIS football leagues will NOT implement the rule restricting blocking below the waist as it is presented in the Canadian Rule Book for Tackle Football Rule 4, Section 5, Article 1(e). This rule applies to games at the Midget and below levels. Passing - Judgment to be applied: The Catch/No Catch is differentiating between: 1. a catch without contact by an opponent, and 2. a catch with contact by an opponent. Examples of the above: 1. On a bang/bang play, where a player catches the ball off the ground and immediately goes to the ground without contact, he must retain possession of the ball for a ruling of completed pass. In other words he must survive contact with the ground. 2. On a bang/bang play, where a player catches the ball and is immediately contacted by an opponent, in the air or not, and goes to the ground, he must retain possession of the ball for a ruling of completed pass. In other words, he must survive both contact by an opponent and contact with the ground. A critical part is that there is an element of time involved in both situations. We would expect that if the contact with the ground jarred the ball loose, then the necessary element of time was not achieved and it should be ruled as an incomplete pass. Remember that the ground can always cause an incomplete pass. If the receiver retains possession after contact with the ground and then subsequently loses possession after surviving contact with the ground, it should be ruled as a completed pass because he is down when he contacts the ground other than hands, feet or ball. Mercy Rule to be applied: The Mercy Rule will be applied in any regular season BCFC games when one team goes ahead by 30 or more points the clock will run during all plays except for time outs it will continue to run until the score goes under a 30 point lead, then regular timing resumes Countdown to Kick-Off: BCFC wants to make the game as professional as possible. See Countdown to Kick-Off. Half-time – 15 minutes. 1 Points of Emphasis 2012 Chains: home team is responsible for providing the stick crew. BCFC League Rep will provide the bibs. Headlinesman will be very active in communicating with the stick crew. This is to ensure that they know exactly what they are doing and not to move until they are told to do so. if both teams are on the same side, the chains will be on the opposite side for the entire game. if the teams are on opposite sides, the chains will start on the home team side and switch to the visitors side at half time. This is a directive from the league. Dress Code: Dress code will go back to BCFC and handled by the League Rep position. Visors: o Tinted visors are not permitted in the game – no exceptions. o If you see a player with a tinted visor, stop the game and have the player removed. Make sure you inform the coach why he was removed. Game Balls: Home team is responsible to provide footballs for every game. Ump will be responsible to return the game ball to the official’s dressing room. Side officials will bring the other balls after the game to the official dressing room. EXCEPTION: VI Raiders at Caledonia Park – give them to the home team. Holding: We call holding only when the foul had a bearing on the play or an “advantage gained” at the point of attack. Not Holding if hands are inside; within frame of opponent Not Holding if defender is not trying to get away Encircling with hands outside the frame - is Holding Takedowns or pull downs – is Holding Holding by “Offense” at LOS during pass rush: Rip moves by “D” linemen have been often seen incorrectly as holding by the offense. if offensive linemen continues to move his feet and retains position - NOT Holding it is NOT holding for pushing the defensive, not from back, and player goes down. retaining position means maintaining position between the rushing defender and the QB in a relatively straight line. losing position means that the defender has beat the offensive lineman and the defenders frame is beyond that relatively straight line. if the offensive lineman is beaten he cannot use an arm with a hand outside the elbow to pull, grab, restrict or impede a player that has an immediate impact on the play – that is Holding. if the hand or arm is pinned by the defender and the offensive lineman cannot get it free, he should not be penalized. Officials need to see the entire play action to rule on it - not just the end result if the defensive player is in a position where his two jersey numbers are facing the QB and he has a clear route to the QB and the only thing preventing him from getting there is the offensive lineman’s arm – that is Holding. 2 Points of Emphasis 2012 Holding by “Defense” at LOS on scrimmage plays: defensive lineman or linebacker engages offensive lineman and pulls him out of the lane, allowing another defensive player to fill hole or rush the QB – that is Holding if defensive player applies the same holding principles (hands inside within frame of opponent and maintains position filling a hole) then it is NOT Holding Holding by “Defense” at LOS, or just off LoS, on kicking plays: takedown or holding by a return team player that prevents a kicking team player from moving downfield to cover the return – is Holding a pancake situation where there is no grabbing of a player underneath is NOT Holding but the player must allow the other player to get up. Officials will always watch for retaliation fouls by the player on the bottom. if return team player maintains contact with hands within the frame - NOT Holding. if hands come outside or there is a takedown – this is Holding it is the obligation of the blocker to gain and retain position coaches wish us to call Holding wherever it occurs on the field but we will still need to apply any “advantage gained” judgment to these calls. Illegal Blocking Across the LoS on a shovel pass, if the first receiver is not open, a pass across the line of scrimmage may occur. o be aware that blocking down field - in this case it is illegal. if the ball is passed across the line of scrimmage, any block across the LoS is Illegal Interference. Illegal Contact on Receivers: penalty applies prior to ball being thrown defender may contact receiver within one-yard of LOS defenders may use hands and arms to ward off an offensive player who is threatening his position defenders may jam a receiver in the one-yard zone, but may not clutch or grab him as he is proceeding downfield Cut Blocks by defenders on receivers at LOS is a Foul once off the LOS, the receiver has the right to run his pattern if he threatens the position of a defender he may be contacted, but if he doesn’t, the defender cannot attack a receiver running a pattern. contact by a defender while defending his established position is legal, if ball is not in air a knockdown or takedown where a defender is NOT defending his position is a foul contact, knockdowns or takedowns where a defender attacks a receiver is a foul defenders may re-route receivers but not by stepping up, or stepping out, and attacking them. That is a foul. defenders may adjust his established position by moving his feet and then may defend that position, stationary or moving, with hands and arms. This is very hard to do. 3 Points of Emphasis 2012 Illegal Blocks or Blocking after a Change of Possession: The difficult area in terms of judgment will be blocks that and not clearly from the front, side or back. The area that is the toughest to judge is the one that is between the side and the back. Officials will have to judge the point of contact and may use other possible evidence below the angle of approach at the point of contact by the blocker may have a bearing the direction the blocked player falls, headfirst or sideways, may have a bearing it is still the obligation of the blocker to gain position and maintain position so as to make the block not on the back plane a steer block where the contact is not on the back plane is legal. Position of the blocker and the angle of approach at point of contact will be the key criteria. if the contact point is the back plane, it is an Illegal Block. players who have been knocked down and remain in the field of play may not be contacted as they attempt to get up.