Welcome to Art of Officiating’s “Weekly Dozen”, comprising plays through September Oct 4, 2025. These videos are from Colorado games, so I’ll reference the Colorado 5-person mechanics manual and Colorado rules interpretations and modifications. Please consult your state’s mechanics manual and rules interpretations if I say something that doesn’t match what you do in your state.
1 – Before I roll this clip, I want to highlight something important. The line judge here is our association’s president, and he specifically asked me to include this play in the Weekly Dozen because he felt it was a valuable teaching moment. That kind of transparency is a great example of psychological safety—creating an environment where it’s not only okay to admit a mistake, but even to make it public for the sake of learning. We all benefit when mistakes are shared, not hidden, so thank you to Randy.
When the ball goes toward a sideline, only one official should be looking at the runner. The runner is the referee’s responsibility until the ball crosses the line of scrimmage. Three of the remaining officials, the umpire, linesman, and back judge, are looking at the blocks ahead of the runner. The wing that has the ball going away, in this case the line judge, is responsible for observing the players behind the ball.
This play was “ordinary,” except for one event behind the play.
This action is so bizarre—there’s no reason for A54 to deliver that block at all. Maybe that’s why the line judge missed it. A54 didn’t appear to be a threat as the play concluded on the opposite side of the field, so the line judge moved to mirror the linesman’s spot.
We need to remind ourselves we’re officiating teenagers. Occasionally, they’ll do something strange that makes no football sense.
2 – Here’s the second teaching point from the first clip. There were several illegal blocks in the game I just showed. In a previous Weekly Dozen video, we highlighted blindside blocks on free kicks by this same team in that game. The line judge from that earlier game didn’t keep that information to himself—he reached out to the referee who worked the next week’s game and passed along what he had seen.
He wanted the next crew to be aware of the “bad actors,” and as a result, the next crew discussed those players during their pregame.
Here’s our “bad actor” from the previous game…A54
Look for colors moving faster than expected, especially when the runner is downed near the sideline. Pay particular attention to colors behind the play, because that’s where late hits, blindside blocks, or unnecessary roughness most often show up.
Right at the end of the clip, we see the back judge enter the picture. When the runner is downed near the sideline, and especially in a team box, we need to have multiple officials at or near the players to help them move away from the sideline and back to their huddles.
3 – Here’s another unnecessary block behind the play. Once again, the line judge misses the block. That’s right in his sightline, so he must get that foul.
The umpire threw the flag here, and while it technically saved the crew, he shouldn’t have been looking behind the play. It appears he sees something in his peripheral vision. The umpire’s eyes should be on the blocks ahead of the runner, not on action trailing behind. Also, I’m not sure he saw the beginning, middle, and end of the contact. Sometimes players go flying, and it looks dramatic, but it wasn’t the result of a foul.
Once again, the crew should officiate to the end of the play, dead ball officiate, which includes the umpire reaching the pile with proximity and voice. After the players separate, he can then turn to report the foul to the referee.
4 – We need to be on high alert when we see colors going against the flow. The formation is strong to the linesman’s side, so the back judge’s passing play initial responsibility is A2.
If the coaches would just teach their players to lead with their hands, we wouldn’t have this illegal blindside block. It was not flagged.
I’d like to see better hustle from the umpire. Remember proximity and voice? Hustle to the ball. Right now, there is only one official among multiple players from each team. I personally don’t like it when umpires walk…
Here’s what I like. Let’s watch the linesman.
The linesman remains at the line of scrimmage. There is no reason to move downfield. Allow the runner to pass and then trail the play.
Second, the linesman gives the “wind the clock signal” when the runner is downed inbounds near the sideline.
Finally, the linesman doesn’t race to stomp on the forward progress spot. He keeps a great cushion until the players separate and leave the sideline. I’d like him to keep his eyes on the players for a few seconds before looking to the sideline to collect the ball.
5 – We’re now going to watch three clips to illustrate the need for an official to be on the goal line when the ball arrives. The goal line and the line to gain are important “money lines,” and we need to work hard to have eyes on those lines. Our credibility drops and it’s harder to sell the confidence in our ruling when we don’t beat the runner to the goal line.
The ball is snapped on the B-9, so the back judge is on the end line. The wings are responsible for the goal line. Since the ball is not snapped inside the B-5, the wings won’t immediately advance to the goal line at the snap, but they need to work hard to stay ahead of the runner. There is no reason to loiter at or near the line of scrimmage, especially when the wings read run, or when the wings’ passing play initial responsibilities go downfield.
The strength of the formation is to the linesman’s side, so the line judge’s passing play initial responsibility is the player closest to his sideline. As A12 runs toward the sideline, the line judge must move toward the goal line and not stay on the line of scrimmage. The quarterback is now scrambling, and the line judge shifts his focus to the quarterback. This is incorrect. The referee has the quarterback until he advances beyond the line of scrimmage.
The back judge is correctly looking at his passing play initial responsibilities that began the play on the linesman’s side. Who is watching this matchup? No one. The defender could be mauling the receiver and no one would notice.
By the way, the umpire is not working to move to the line of scrimmage, so if the quarterback moves beyond the neutral zone and then releases the ball, how do we know if it’s a foul?
The quarterback now passes the line of scrimmage and the line judge retreats away from the goal line. He should already be at the goal line and backing away from the pylon. Thank goodness the quarterback was downed at the B-3.
The ball is snapped from the B-8. This is a pitch to the line judge’s side. The line judge has plenty of time to get to the goal line, but he inexplicably again moves away from the goal line.
We have zero sets of eyeballs on the money line, and this time it matters. Now it is a guessing game. The line judge must guess if the ball crossed the goal line before the runner was downed. I guess you flip a coin here?
I continue to pick on the line judge, but when we face down the goal line to signal touchdown, we are officiating air. As you signal touchdown, turn and face the runner.
Here’s the final play to illustrate the point. The ball is snapped from the B-6. Same deal, the back judge is on the end line. The wings have the goal line. The line to gain is at the B-3.
The line judge MUST beat the runner to the goal line, it’s only 6 yards away.
The referee has the runner until he crosses the line of scrimmage, so the line judge should be looking at this block, not back at the runner.
We shouldn’t have a wing official signaling touchdown from the B-5.
6 – In previous videos, we’ve looked at clips with possible holding fouls. Here are officiating standards to consider. These are from the Colorado Mechanics Manual: Holding should only be called when a material restriction occurs. If a player who appears to have been held makes the tackle (at that spot), holding is not to be called – no material restriction. The point of attack is almost always a consideration. If there is a potential offensive holding but the action occurs clearly away from the point of attack and has no (or could have no) effect on the play, offensive holding should not be called. Takedowns, regardless of location, must always be called.
There are two blocks to consider on this play, one by the right tackle, and one by the center.
Is the right tackle’s block a takedown?
Is the center’s block a takedown?
One could argue about whether either block was at the point of attack or had an effect on the play. I think with both blocks, the defenders could have reached the runner.
But we have the more relevant argument that these blocks, especially the center’s block, were takedowns and must be flagged. Overlooking such an obvious takedown in the open undermines the crew’s credibility.
7 – Rule 7-1-7b says it is a false start if any act is clearly intended to cause B to encroach.
There are two abrupt actions by the linemen that in my judgment are designed to cause B to encroach. The first is an abrupt arm movement, the second is an abrupt shift to a three point stance.
Notice how, after B1 encroaches, the Team A players immediately move as a unit toward the sideline to bring on different players to snap the ball from the B-1 and a half. Mission accomplished. It’s clear they’ve practiced that exact movement, designed specifically to cause Team B to encroach.
Here’s a second clip showing the same choreographed movement. This should be flagged as a false start.
8 – It’s fourth and 17 from the B-38. The formation is balanced, so the line judge’s passing play initial responsibility is A6. Team B is in a scrimmage kick formation, but this will be a fake, and the would-be punter will roll to the line judge’s side of the field looking to pass the ball.
The line judge’s key, A6, runs 15 yards downfield. The line judge is looking back at the quarterback. The quarterback belongs to the referee, so the line judge needs to keep his eyes on his passing play initial responsibility, and he needs to be prepared to transition to zone coverage as receivers enter his coverage area.
The referee throws a flag for holding.
The ball slips out of A11’s hand. The line judge signals incomplete pass. This was not an incomplete pass, it was a fumble. The line judge does not get to make this call, this is 100% the referee’s call. The line judge should be looking downfield at potential receivers.
Here’s the punch line: Each official has an assigned responsibility. The referee’s responsibility is to watch the passer. The line judge’s responsibility is to look at receivers and defenders downfield.
Team A’s coach wanted a flag at the end of the play for an unnecessary hit. Did the defender know the ball was loose and did he deliver an unnecessary blow, or did he simply intend to knock the runner out of bounds? I guess I could support either decision. It’s close.
One final point. Watch the umpire. I’d like to see him hustle toward the ball as the players move toward Team B’s sideline. He’s just walking. I love mobile umpires. We need to have more than one official in proximity to the players, especially near team boxes.
9 – The line judge must move off the line of scrimmage at the snap, and he needs to quickly move downfield to position himself halfway between the line of scrimmage and the end of the kick. He needs to be looking at this matchup, and not at the punter as he kicks the ball.
Now let’s focus on the opposite side of the field. R27 immediately locks up the gunner. At this moment, we should have a flag on the play for holding. R27 continues to bulldog the gunner out of bounds and almost to the track. The foul is now upgraded to a personal foul, unnecessary roughness.
This will be post scrimmage kick enforcement from the end of the kick. The linesman is responsible for marking the spot where a grounded kick goes out of bounds, but he was occupied with the players out of bounds, so the back judge needed to help with the out-of-bounds spot. The ball was next snapped from the R-8, so the crew picked the R-16 for penalty enforcement.
10 – There are 10 players on the field.
It’s almost simultaneous with the snap…A10 comes onto the field and catches a touchdown pass.
There are many ways to skin this cat. Let’s talk through them all.
If the linesman rules A10 was not on the field when the ball was snapped, Rule 9-6-4a applies. It says, it is illegal participation when any player enters and participates during a down.
If the linesman rules A10 was on the field when the ball was snapped, Rule 7-2-6 applies as A10 did not come to an absolute stop and remain stationary for at least one second before the snap. Also, A10 violates Rule 7-2-1, which says it is an illegal formation when A10 is not momentarily between the 9-yard marks before the snap.
I would not say Rule 9-6-4d applies. This rule says it is illegal participation to use a player in a substitution to deceive opponents at or immediately before the snap. I think this was simply confusion on Team A’s part.
It appears A7 was attempting to complete a pass to A14. He overthrew his intended receiver and A10 was in the right place at the right time.
The next snap was from the A-29, so the crew chose to enforce a penalty for a 5-yard foul instead of a 15-yard illegal participation foul. I agree with that decision.
That’s your weekly dozen for games through October 4, 2025. Thanks for watching!
If you encounter any interesting plays during your season, I’d love to see them. You can send them to me at contact@artofofficiating.com.