Stacking penalties

[crimsonace1]

Had an unusual situation come up in our game last Friday night. 

Team A ball at the +48. QB drops back to pass, OL holds, flag thrown. 

Then, the QB scrambles and gets the rare "hurdling" personal foul as he jumped over a player who was not prone. 

Both were live-ball penalties, both were enforced, the 10 for the hold and the 15 for the PF (although the officials only marked off 24 yards, even though the hold was not beyond the neutral zone). The team ended up converting after facing 1st-and-34. 

Is that an NFHS rule that live-ball personal fouls are enforced in addition to any other penalties on the play? It's one I hadn't seen before and just wanted to clarify in case it happened again in a game I were broadcasting. 

[SoIndRef]

If I am not mistaken ,they should have only enforced one since they were both live ball fouls.  If one was live and one was dead, then they would have enforced both, but I think they got that wrong.  

[Bobref]

Rule 10-2-4

ART. 4 . . . When two or more live-ball fouls (other than nonplayer or unsportsmanlike) are committed during the same down by the same team (multiple fouls), only one penalty may be enforced. The designated representative of the offended team may choose which one shall be administered, or all penalties may be declined. When a team commits a nonplayer or unsportsmanlike foul during that same down, it is administered from the succeeding spot as established by the acceptance or declination of the penalty for the other foul. (Emphasis added)

[Coach Nowlin]

 

How this STACKED PENALTY OUTCOME:   3 dead ball personal fouls led to this KICKOFF\

[Coach Nowlin]

Shoot video must be too big:  

Kickoff from the 15 after all those penalites, Kick team attempts onside,  Return team touches ball after 10 yards, then ball gets to EZ.   Jumped on by K team

What is the call? 

[JustRules]

1 hour ago, Coach Nowlin said:

Shoot video must be too big:  

Kickoff from the 15 after all those penalites, Kick team attempts onside,  Return team touches ball after 10 yards, then ball gets to EZ.   Jumped on by K team

What is the call? 

Touchback. Since the ball was never possessed it's still a kick. A kick that crosses R's goal line plane is always a touchback.

[5GetsYou1]

7 hours ago, JustRules said:

Touchback. Since the ball was never possessed it's still a kick. A kick that crosses R's goal line plane is always a touchback.

And a very angry coach for the kicking team.

[Bobref]

44 minutes ago, 5GetsYou1 said:

And a very angry coach for the kicking team.

If the crew is on the ball … and they should be with a free kick from the 15 yd. line … they’ll get on the whistle as soon as the ball breaks the plane. That will reinforce that K has simply “recovered” a ball that was already dead.

[5GetsYou1]

21 minutes ago, Bobref said:

If the crew is on the ball … and they should be with a free kick from the 15 yd. line … they’ll get on the whistle as soon as the ball breaks the plane. That will reinforce that K has simply “recovered” a ball that was already dead.

Absolutely, but I would be willing to bet my game check the coach for K will still have his hands up signaling touchdown 😆

[Bobref]

18 minutes ago, 5GetsYou1 said:

Absolutely, but I would be willing to bet my game check the coach for K will still have his hands up signaling touchdown 😆

This is one of those times when you get to have a really satisfying conversation with the coach. He’ll say “They touched it before it went in the end zone and we recovered it!” And then you get to say, with a really sincere look on your face, ”Coach, you’re exactly right.” They always get this look on their face when they hear that, and you know they’re thinking “uh-oh, I think I just let everyone know that I’m ignorant of the rule.” I remember a conversation with a coach like that, and after I’d explained the rule to him, he looked at me and said “You just made that up!” 🤣😂😅

[Coach Nowlin]

Well, you already know that those outcomes did not happen and the KICKING TEAM was awarded a TOUCHDOWN and the WIN 

I have clip, just to large of file to post here:   If anyone wants to see, you know how to get a hold of me, and can email it off

Tough Break 

[Coach Nowlin]

5 hours ago, Bobref said:

This is one of those times when you get to have a really satisfying conversation with the coach. He’ll say “They touched it before it went in the end zone and we recovered it!” And then you get to say, with a really sincere look on your face, ”Coach, you’re exactly right.” They always get this look on their face when they hear that, and you know they’re thinking “uh-oh, I think I just let everyone know that I’m ignorant of the rule.” I remember a conversation with a coach like that, and after I’d explained the rule to him, he looked at me and said “You just made that up!” 🤣😂😅

And then go, Coach, lets say this was kicked from the 40, kicked deep, the RETURN Team Player touched the ball and rolled in the EZ, what would you expect the call to be then??     Exactly 

Incredible it was called incorrectly,  teachable moment I am sure 

[Irishman]

17 hours ago, Coach Nowlin said:

Shoot video must be too big:  

Kickoff from the 15 after all those penalites, Kick team attempts onside,  Return team touches ball after 10 yards, then ball gets to EZ.   Jumped on by K team

What is the call? 

So, it seems I am the only one who viewed this as K kicking from their own 15 when i first read this. Sounded like R touched it but it went back toward K and into that EZ. 😄

[Bobref]

2 hours ago, Coach Nowlin said:

have clip, just to large of file to post here:   If anyone wants to see, you know how to get a hold of me, and can email it off

Is it a Hudl video? I’d love to see that play.

[crimsonace1]

On 10/15/2025 at 7:19 PM, Bobref said:

Rule 10-2-4

ART. 4 . . . When two or more live-ball fouls (other than nonplayer or unsportsmanlike) are committed during the same down by the same team (multiple fouls), only one penalty may be enforced. The designated representative of the offended team may choose which one shall be administered, or all penalties may be declined. When a team commits a nonplayer or unsportsmanlike foul during that same down, it is administered from the succeeding spot as established by the acceptance or declination of the penalty for the other foul. (Emphasis added)

Sounds like it was incorrectly adjudicated, given the personal foul (hurdling penalty) could not have been a dead-ball foul. 

 

[Coach Nowlin]

how bout not 1 but 2 inadvertant whistles......  on BACK TO BACK plays.   stack em baby !!!

[Bobref]

8 hours ago, Coach Nowlin said:

how bout not 1 but 2 inadvertant whistles......  on BACK TO BACK plays.   stack em baby !!!

I promise, I’ll get around to looking at that video.

Were the IWs both by the same official? If not, I’m not sure whether that’s better … or worse.

[Coach Nowlin]

WING on our sidline was first one

WING on opposite side was the 2nd one 

Same Formation, Same Play, Same Runner, 1st one, he was untoched going for TD with No defender withinn 10 yards when TOOT TOOT

2nd one, he was being tackled for 1st down......12 yards when opposite WING was running in to spot the interior runner getting tackled by 5 players and safety corner tackling the ball carrier as our wing was follwing the ball 

 

[SoIndRef]

On 10/20/2025 at 7:18 PM, Bobref said:

I promise, I’ll get around to looking at that video.

Were the IWs both by the same official? If not, I’m not sure whether that’s better … or worse.

If it was the same official, I’d hate to be them…

 

They’re buying beer two weeks in a row on my old crew.

[Bobref]

18 hours ago, SoIndRef said:

If it was the same official, I’d hate to be them…

 

They’re buying beer two weeks in a row on my old crew.

Turns out they weren’t by the same official. Each wing official had an IW.

[SoIndRef]

11 minutes ago, Bobref said:

Turns out they weren’t by the same official. Each wing official had an IW.

Still… free beer for two weeks!