Everyone Has a Role in Penalty Enforcement

Here is a Ray Lutz “Forward Progress” post from August 19, 2008 (edited for clarity).

Too many times the crew leaves penalty enforcement entirely to the referee, which is not correct. The entire crew should think like referees. Penalty enforcement is a crew responsibility. No one gets to take a break and relax during enforcement.

The calling official should first ensure his flag is at the spot of the foul before reporting to the referee. He should then briefly report the foul and the subsequent penalty enforcement to the referee, with the umpire listening in. In his explanation to the referee, he should speak slowly and clearly and include all components of the referee’s announcement.

“Holding, offense #50. He grabbed and restricted the defender at the point of attack. We’ll enforce the penalty 10 yards from the previous spot and replay second down.”

Don’t make the referee play “20 questions.” Provide all relevant information during the explanation. If there is an unusual element of the foul (like a block in the back by the kicking team during a scrimmage kick), make sure you emphasize that to the referee.

Every official must know the foul and the penalty enforcement before the ball moves. It doesn’t make sense to say penalty enforcement is a crew responsibility if one of the members is left in the dark.

Before walking off the penalty, the umpire should face the line judge and communicate the yardage. Our crew uses one finger for 5 yards, two fingers for 10 yards, three fingers for 15 yards, and the “hang loose” signal for half-the-distance to the goal. The line judge will remain at the enforcement spot until the umpire has walked the proper distance and spotted the ball. He won’t move until enforcement has concluded.

The umpire should then turn to the head linesman and indicate the yardage. Before the umpire starts walking, both wings must know the proper enforcement yardage.

The head linesman will move to the yard line where enforcement will end. If he’s on the field during enforcement, he doesn’t have to run to the sideline before moving to the end of enforcement; he can walk the yardage while on the field. And he doesn’t have to walk in step with the umpire. The box (and chains if it’s a first down) should not move until the umpire arrives at the proper yard line and all officials agree the spot is correct.

The back judge will record the foul (each state may have different reporting criteria, so back judges, make sure you know which fouls you need to record). He will also pay attention to the yardage and the referee’s announcement to ensure everything is correct.

Nothing makes a crew look more inept than screwing up a penalty enforcement. Having the umpire begin his walk-off in the wrong direction is embarrassing. Walking the wrong distance and then having to correct the enforcement makes the crew look like rookies. Following the above procedure should ensure more accurate enforcement.


Quiz

Read the quiz stem and then choose the best answer(s). (Choose all that apply.)

2/6 from the A-40. A80 is on the line of scrimmage and a few feet from the sideline. B22 is in press coverage, face-to-face with A80 on the line. At the snap, A80 steps out of bounds at the A-43 to avoid B22’s tight coverage. B22 turns to follow and also steps out of bounds. A80 returns inbounds at the A-45, catches a legal forward pass at midfield, and is downed by B22 at the B-45.

  1. A80 is guilty of illegal participation
  2. B22 is guilty of illegal participation
  3. A80 is guilty of illegal touching
  4. Enforce A80’s foul from the A-43 (where he stepped out of bounds)
  5. Enforce A80’s foul from the A-45 (where he returned inbounds)
  6. Enforce A80’s foul from the B-45 (end of the run)
  7. Enforce A80’s foul from the previous spot
  8. A80 and B22’s fouls will offset

Review Rules 9-6-1, 9-6-2, 10-3-1b, and 10-4-2

Click below to reveal the Quiz answer and accompanying explanations.