Bobref

So many people missing the point: speculating about what effect this or that seeding will have on the tournament. The chief benefit of seeding is that it gives more meaning to regular season games. The teams are actually playing for a tangible benefit, which makes the regular season better. That’s why you should not only seed the tournament, but seed all the teams in the sectional, not just the top two.

Swarbrick has been widely quoted as saying 3 things could influence ND’s decision on staying independent: 1. loss of a valued broadcast partner 2. Lack of a clear path to the post-season 3. An economic situation so significant that it compels a reconsideration. In the immortal words of (the late) Meat Loaf, “two out of three ain’t bad.”

I guess we now know the price tag associated with independence: $75 million. https://saturdayroad.com/notre-dame-fighting-irish/report-notre-dame-targeting-massive-tv-deal-from-nbc-to-remain-independent/

I am making my way to Gibson Southern for the first time ever on Aug. 1 for a rules clinic. Probably grab a bite to eat in Ft. Branch beforehand. What’s good?

I think this is a great idea. I wouldn’t have a clue how to accomplish it technologically. But if you do it, remember to have an extra card for your observer. 😉

So, if I referred to you as”the southern end of a northbound horse,” could I later say I did not call you a horse’s a$$ because I didn’t use those exact words?

Oh, please. I’d rather argue about your I’ll-chosen use of the passive voice.

I beg to differ. Why would you say that when in 10 sec. I could retrieve your earlier post and show what you actually said. 😉The exact language was “Go back to FB.” If that doesn’t say you’re not welcome on the GID, I don’t know what does.

Call out his posts all you want. But telling him he’s not welcome is another thing entirely.

It’s counter-productive to try and chase people off the GID because you believe their opinions are unjustified. We need all the voices we can get. Difference of opinion is what makes the forum interesting. You should be thanking him, not trying to chase him away.

Thanks for that, @DT. It’s a great day to be an Eagle!

Actually, according to Sagarin last year there were 5 teams in 6A with easier schedules: Carroll, Homestead, Lafayette Jeff, Warsaw, and Indpls. Tech.

Where did that come from?

F Troop, a really underrated comedy. https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/08/entertainment/larry-storch-obit/index.html.

Great interview with a great coach. One of the very best I ever worked for. Coach Smith taught me a lesson very early in my career, one which I carried with me and have tried to pass on to many younger officials. I was a very young Referee and we were working at Crown Point. I managed to mis-enforce the same penalty twice. CP won the game comfortably, and nobody said a thing, but something was nagging at me after the game. I went back over it in my head and realized my mistake. It just so happened we had Crown Point at Munster the very next week. When we came onto the field before the game I made a beeline for coach Smith. I admitted last week’s mistake, apologized, and told him it wouldn’t happen again. Without saying a word, he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a rule book. It was folded open to the rule describing the proper enforcement for the mistake I had made the week before, and that section had been highlighted. We enjoyed a great relationship from then to this day. I learned that by stepping up and admitting a mistake, you can gain more credibility than if you hadn’t made the mistake in the first place. A valuable lesson that stood me in good stead for the rest of my career.

New in 2022, the NF has changed the chop block rule in the interests of further risk minimization. Previously, a chop block was defined as a combination block where one of the blocks was at or below the knees. This was a further restriction on legal low blocking in the free blocking zone. New for 2022, the rule now defines a chop block as “a combination block by 2 or more teammates against an opponent other than the runner, with or without delay, where one of the blocks is below the waist and one of the blocks is above the waist.” So now, what was otherwise a legal block below the waist in the free blocking zone (against a lineman, by a lineman, immediately at the snap) is now illegal if done in combination with a teammate. The practical effect is that all double team blocks must now be above the waist.

Received another official interpretation relating to this rule. Here’s the example: Team A runs a “flea flicker,” where the ball is handed to a wingback who lined up outside the FBZ, received a handoff which resulted in him carrying the ball outside the lateral extent of the FBZ, and then he tosses a backward pass to the QB, who has remained inside the lateral extent of the FBZ. The QB then throws a forward pass into Row 6 of the stands, which is beyond the neutral zone extended through the sideline. The official IHSAA interpretation is that since the ball left the FBZ, the exception now applies regardless of the position of the passer when the forward pass is eventually thrown.

What changed in the course of a week or two?

I know her. She works at IHOP.

??????

On the IHSAA Football Officials’ Facebook page, someone asked a question that came up in our observers’ video conference last evening with Asst. Commissioner Faulkens. If the passer legally grounds the ball under the new exception, can you still have a foul for ineligible downfield? The official IHSAA interpretation is that the enforcement of the rule relating to ineligibles downfield on a pass play applies even if the pass is legally grounded. The new exception has no affect on the rule prohibiting ineligible players from going downfield on a forward pass that reaches the neutral zone.

Great interview. There’s an awful lot to like about Coach Skinner. Seems to have his priorities in the proper order.

One of the 2022 Points of Emphasis is contact against a “defenseless player.” Because of differences in the rules at various levels the NFHS rules relating to defenseless players (DP) are often poorly understood by fans, coaches, players, and yes, even some officials. First, it’s important to know what qualifies a player as “defenseless.” A DP is one who, because of his physical position and focus of concentration is especially vulnerable to injury. The rulebook gives 8 examples of DPs, and that list is not exhaustive. A passer. A receiver attempting to catch a pass who has not had time to clearly become a runner. The intended receiver of a pass in the action during and immediately following an interception or potential interception. A runner already in the grasp of a tackler whose forward progress has been stopped. A kickoff or punt returner attempting to catch or recover a kick, or one who has completed a catch or recovery and has not had time to protect himself or has not clearly become a runner. A player on the ground including a runner who has obviously given himself up and is sliding feet first. A player obviously out of the play or not in the immediate vicinity of the runner; and A player who receives a blindside block with forceful contact not initiated with open hands. A player contacting a DP is responsible for insuring that the contact is legal and not excessive. Whether contact is excessive is, of course, a judgment call. Whenever there is doubt as to whether the contact was excessive, it should be considered excessive and the flag should be thrown. Here is the guidance officials use to help determine whether contact against a DP is to be considered a foul: Any forcible contact against a runner in the grasp whose forward progress is stopped, or who is on the ground, or a player who receives a blindside block other than with open hands first, or who is obviously out of the play and not in the vicinity of the runner is deemed excessive. Forcible contact against the passer or a receiver attempting to catch a pass or field a kick is legal if it is unavoidable, not late, and otherwise in compliance with the rules, e.g., not targeting, spearing, or excessive under the circumstances. Targeting a DP, i.e., taking aim and initiating contact above the shoulders using the helmet, forearm, hand, fist, elbow or shoulder is not only a foul, but may be deemed flagrant, resulting in an ejection. Officials have been instructed to err on the side of ruling contact against a DP a foul. In order to avoid fouling a DP, players should avoid contact wherever possible, and insure that any unavoidable contact is not unnecessarily rough.

Really bizarre.

The rule says the pass must reach the neutral zone, not the LOS. The latter is marked by the foremost point of the football. The firmer is the space between the foremost point of the ball (the LOS) and the rearmost point of the ball. The ball can be up to 11-7/16” on its long axis. Thus the pass is legal if it reaches the rearmost point of the ball, which can be almost a foot short of the LOS. As they say, it’s a “game of inches.”