Colleges speed up football

[Dirty]

By CHIP TOWERS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 08/03/08 Athens — Georgia coach Mark Richt says the new 40-second play-clock rule being implemented in college football this season came about seven years too late.
"I'm kind of jealous at the timing of it, to tell you the truth," Richt said last week. "It didn't really hit when I needed it."

AP (ENLARGE)

Georgia coach Mark Richt does not intend to use the advent of the new, faster play clock return the kind of hurry-up offenses he brought from Florida State to the SEC seven years ago.

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The new rules

When Richt brought his fat playbook from Florida State in 2001, he wanted his offense to move quickly from one play to the next. But two years later he abandoned that strategy out of frustration with SEC game officials, who were slow to whistle the ball ready to play until the defensive players had moved into position.
"In my opinion the officials here were even more deliberate than anywhere else I'd been," Richt said. "The SEC was grinding it to a halt."
That won't be the case under the new rule, which was adopted by the NCAA from the NFL this season in an effort to speed up games. The old rule featured a 25-second clock that couldn't start until the referee signalled. The new rule has a 40-second clock that will start as soon as the umpire places the ball on the ground and steps away.
The NCAA expects games that averaged three hours, 22 minutes last season to be completed in closer to three hours without reducing the number of plays run.
Even more significant, according to coaches across the conference, is the game clock will now start after a play goes out of bounds as soon as the ball has been reset. Under the old rules, the game clock would not start until the snap of the ball. That will still be the case in the last two minutes of each half but not during the rest of the game.
"Now all of a sudden you can play as fast as you want to play," Richt said.
The new rule has teams that run spread or option offenses such as Georgia Tech, Florida, Auburn and Tennessee licking their chops to run as many plays as they can.
"I like it... I think," Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer said. "We scrimmaged it all spring and we actually managed it really well. Now that's not at Auburn or Georgia with the crowd noise and all the intensity that there will be. But our system allowed us to maximize the potential you can get from the clock, whether it's fast-huddle or if you wanted to milk the clock."
But don't expect the Bulldogs to go back to hurry-up mode.
As it has turned out, playing a slower, more deliberate pace has suited Georgia, which has returned to its roots as a tailback-oriented team in recent years. If anything, expect the Bulldogs to play a little slower this season.
"We're just so huddle-oriented now," Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford said. "When I first got here we were calling out stuff at the line and going. I mean, we'll have the capability of doing it if we want, but we run the ball so well out of the I-set I don't see what good speeding it up will do."
Said offensive coordinator Mike Bobo: "We'll no-huddle some, but nothing like these spread teams that will stand at the line every play. They're probably going to be able to run a few more plays. But we're more ball control. And while [the rule] is going to make the game faster, the rule in the SEC is still to allow the defense to substitute. So they can go as fast as they want but it won't be an advantage. And for a ball-control team like us, you're going to be able to burn more clock."
Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson sees no problems for the Yellow Jackets.
"It's not going to affect us," Johnson said of the new play clock. "We've never had a problem getting plays off. What I think it will do is make the game more consistent. I think they'll be more consistent because you have different officials who [previously] wind the clock differently. Now, as soon as the ball is down, it starts."
Bobo said most fans probably won't be able to tell the difference. He estimates the new clock will give the offense an average of two seconds longer to get the ball snapped. Teams can choose to utilize all of that time or none of it.
"With the old clock it usually took officials about 13 or 14 seconds to spot the ball, which was about 38 seconds to call a play," Bobo said. "So in reality it's about two more seconds for me. The difference is they're going to get the ball ready for play quicker. They're not going to stand over the ball, they're just going to put it down. ... For a ball-control team, you're going to be able to burn more clock that way."
Said Richt: "I think teams that want to go fast are going to be able to go fast and teams that want to stand at the line of the scrimmage a lot longer can do that. It might drive people nuts. I don't know."
The biggest complaint has been that thisis the third play clock change in as many seasons initiated by the NCAA.
"Whether the rule works or not, I'm not really concerned about that. It's that they keep moving the hat around," Florida coach Urban Meyer said. "Now coaches have to relearn a rule that's going to have a significant impact on the game. How significant? I have no idea. It just keeps changing. It bothers me."




Colleges speed up football | ajc.com

[Cooper]

I'm actually pretty excited about the rule. It will take some time getting used to from the fans perspective, as far as incomplete passes go and that kind of thing, but it's better than some of other things they have tried. Personally, I don't mind the length of games as they were, but I understand why they're trying to cut them down.

[AR182]

Pace of play addressed again by rules committee

By TONY BARNHART
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 02/13/08

Two years ago the NCAA Football Rules committee, concerned that games were running too long, put in a series of changes in hopes of speeding things up.

They worked. In 2006 the average game time dropped from 3:21 to 3:07 but fans and coaches howled because there were about 13 fewer plays and five fewer points per game than in 2005.

So last season college football went back to the old rules and the bad news is that games averaged 3:22, a minute longer than in 2005. The good news is that plays and scoring also went back to the desired 2005 levels.

In an attempt to produce more plays and points in a shorter game, the rules committee went back to the drawing board and on Wednesday recommended a few changes for the upcoming season.

"Hopefully this time we got it right," said Michael Clark, the chairman of the rules committee and head coach at Bridgewater (Va.) College.

The first is the implementation of a 40/25-second play clock, similar to that of the NFL. At the end of every play, the 40-second clock will start, which is the rule in the NFL. The old college rules featured a 25-second clock that did not start until the officials marked the ball ready for play. On a change of possession, the first play will be run on a 25-second clock.

A number of college coaches have said they wanted the 40-second play clock because officials from league to league used different amounts of time to mark the ball ready for play.

"We think this will give us some consistency when it comes to pace of play," said Connecticut coach Randy Edsall, who is a member of the rules committee.

"If the NFL boys are doing it we seem to want to do it, too," South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier said. "I think it favors the teams that run the no-huddle. That gives the quarterback a bunch more time to stand up there and read the defense."

The rules committee made another recommendation that will certainly shorten the game.

After a player runs out of bounds and the ball is made ready to play, the official will start the game clock. Under the old rules the game clock would not start until the ball was snapped. This new rule will not apply in the final two minutes of the first half and the final two minutes of the game.

In other recommended rules changes announced Tuesday:

• A coach will get an extra instant replay challenge if his first one is upheld. Under the old rule the coach had only one challenge whether he was right or wrong. Under the new rule the coach, if he's right, will get one extra challenge, but no more.

• If a kickoff goes out of bounds, the receiving team will have the option of taking the ball on its own 40-yard line. The previous rule gave the receiving team the ball on the 35-yard line.

• The incidental five-yard facemask penalty will be eliminated. Only the 15-yard facemask penalties will be called.

• A "horse collar" tackle, where the defender grabs inside the back collar of the shoulder pads to pull the runner down, will now be a personal foul.

• There will no longer be sideline warnings for players and coaches who crowd onto the field during the game. The official may assess a five-yard penalty without a warning for the infraction.

The recommendations must still be reviewed and given final approval by the NCAA's Playing Rules Oversight Panel, which meets in April.

[The General]

• The incidental five-yard facemask penalty will be eliminated. Only the 15-yard facemask penalties will be called.

I like that, but accidentals can really turn a game around.

[Cooper]

• A coach will get an extra instant replay challenge if his first one is upheld. Under the old rule the coach had only one challenge whether he was right or wrong. Under the new rule the coach, if he's right, will get one extra challenge, but no more.

This is a very good rule change

• If a kickoff goes out of bounds, the receiving team will have the option of taking the ball on its own 40-yard line. The previous rule gave the receiving team the ball on the 35-yard line.

Again, a good rule change.

• The incidental five-yard facemask penalty will be eliminated. Only the 15-yard facemask penalties will be called.

I like this one because it takes the gray area out of things.

• A "horse collar" tackle, where the defender grabs inside the back collar of the shoulder pads to pull the runner down, will now be a personal foul.

Good rule.

• There will no longer be sideline warnings for players and coaches who crowd onto the field during the game. The official may assess a five-yard penalty without a warning for the infraction.

I like this one too. It's not that difficult to follow the rules and stay back.

Something must be really wrong at the NCAA for them to be using common sense and good judgement.

[pvcpipe]

Cooper,

Couldn't have said it better myself. The NCAA has actually gotten everything right this year, it seems. The only one I'm a little wary of is the elimination of the incidental face masks.

[Cooper]

my only real question on the facemasks really has little to do with this rule and more to do with the lack of one where you have a big wide receiver for instance, and he just puts his hand right on the facemask of a smaller defender and basically just stiff arms him.

I saw that happening a lot last year. You're not going to see them call a face mask penalty for that, and they don't call illegal hands to the face, so how do you address it?

As far as the new facemask rule, my only concern would be when a guy just puts his hands to the ball carriers face when tackling. If they don't "grasp" the facemask, you can't call a penalty.

The reason I like the rule is because now that is the ONLY judgment they'll have to make, rather than yeah he grabbed it, but did he REALLY pull it or did he just barely pull it?