12/23/2023 0 Comments State or local highc school rule book![]() “I believe this rule change will help make the interpretation of blocking below the waist consistent across the country starting next football season,” said Richard McWhirter, chair of the NFHS Football Rules Committee and assistant executive director of the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association. The committee noted there has been no criticism of the current rules governing blocks in the back as they are delayed blocks by nature, above the waist and considered to be a safe and necessary legal block. “This change lets game officials observe the block and make a call without having to determine where the ball is and what formation the offense lined up in.”īlocking in the back continues to be legal in the free-blocking zone by offensive linemen who are on the line of scrimmage and in the zone at the snap, against defensive players who are in the zone at the snap and the contact is in the zone. “This change makes it easier for game officials to judge the legality of blocks below the waist and minimizes risk of injury for participants,” said Bob Colgate, NFHS director of sports and sports medicine and liaison to the Football Rules Committee. In the committee’s ongoing quest to minimize risk in high school football, the change was approved to require the block to be immediate. Under the current rule, an offensive lineman can delay and then block below the waist if the ball is still in the zone. The new requirement (2-17-2c) is that the block must be an immediate, initial action following the snap. ![]() This change to the 2021 NFHS Football Rules Book was subsequently approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.Īs a result of numerous interpretations of current language regarding blocking below the waist in the free-blocking zone, the committee approved another condition in Rule 2-17-2 that must be met for a legal block below the waist in the free-blocking zone, which is a rectangular area extending laterally 4 yards either side of the spot of the snap and 3 yards behind each line of scrimmage. This rule change was recommended by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Football Rules Committee at its January 10-12 meeting, which was held virtually this year. The rule regarding blocking below the waist in the free-blocking zone in high school football has been revised for the upcoming 2021 season.
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