Zebra
Somewhere in, NJ
Male, 62
I've officiated football for over 30 years, now in my 26th on the college level. I've worked NCAA playoffs at the Division II and III level. In addition, I've coached at the scholastic level and have been an educator for over 35 years. I have no interest whatsoever in being an NFL official! Ever!
Any rule - in the appropriate spot - can and should be called. The situations that have been described, while possibly helping the runner, just aren't so clear cut as to be fouls (e.g. pushing the pile). Now, that being said, there may be situations (which I cannot nor do I choose to think of at this time) when a player might be "helped" and that should be called. To your point about coaching it, I'm not sure what you're going to tell your players to do. And if you coach them to do something and it gets called, that's on you. I'm not sure what is going on that it is being called and is generating such angst. But it really isn't worth continuing; you're right - the horse is dead; it's time to dismount.
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I'm assuming the ball is in player possession when it crosses the goal. If a runner puts the ball in his possession over the line, it is a touchdown; play is over and the "recovery" is irrelevant. You use the concept of a "pane of glass"; if you break the glass, it's a TD. If a receiver catches the ball in the air over the endzone, he must come down to the ground with possession. So if a reception is made in the air, and the ball is knocked out of the receiver's hands before he establishes contact with the ground, it's incomplete.
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First, you don't indicate the yards to go, so I can't know if there was a first down made. The penalty in this play would be marked off from the spot of the foul since it was beyond the line of scrimmage and behind the end of the run (with me so far?). It is likely at least 2nd down because if the penalty is accepted, you replay the down.
Your third point: you could make a first down, have a penalty by the offense at the end of the run, and be pushed back with the penalty enforcement but still have first down.
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You're correct. That penalty should have been tacked on at the end of the play. Pass play plus penalty: that should have been a 35-yard total for the offense.
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Yes...more or less. If there is illegal touching by A, it's going to be B's ball at the end of the play. Unless B fouls. But basically your point is correct. If B should fumble, the ball would be returned to the point of the illegal touch.
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There's a saying among officials: Don't make it the call of the game. Your calls should be solid, clear, obvious. If it's there, call it. Pushing the runner in a pile of bodies? Not obvious, not clear. Why is it never called? It just isn't a solid call. And I don't want to make the next week's training film as the guy who called helping the runner.
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The ref is correct. Most youth programs that I'm familiar with use high school rules, with appropriate modifications for the age of the younger and smaller players. The National Federation (that's high school) rules book has two points on this. Rule 9, Section 3, Article 2b: A player shall not block an opponent below the waist except to tackle a runner or player pretending to be a runner. And specifically on tripping, there's Rule 9, Section 3, Article 7: A player shall not trip an opponent who is not a runner. These are safety issues. The theory, I would guess, is that a runner is expecting to be hit at any time and from, literaly, any angle. Blocking below the waist can be very dangerous. You're hearing a lot about it now with the NFL restricting hits above the shoulder; analysts - many of them former players - are now saying tacklers are going to go low to avoid the head shots, and that can be a very dangerous hit. Tripping is also legal against the runner only in college.
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