TDCAA PLAYING REGULATIONS FLAG FOOTBALL

Transcription

1 TDCAA PLAYING REGULATIONS FLAG FOOTBALL RULES Competition shall be governed by the official rules of Flag Football with the following TDCAA / OFSAA exceptions: ELIGIBILITY / TRANSFERS All Eligibility is completed on line through Athletic Eligibility List System (AELS) which is coordinated through the OFSAA office. Must be eligible for competition under the TDCAA Constitution, By Laws, and Standing Rules. Eligibility must be completed before the first practice. All coaches and players must be listed on the eligibility Approved transfers are included on the eligibility form. Athletes who have not been approved must not be included until he/she has been approved. Listed below is the eligibility for the next five years SEASON MIDGET JUNIOR SENIOR OR LATER 1992 OR OR LATER OR LATER 1993 OR OR LATER OR LATER 1994 OR OR LATER OR LATER 1995 OR OR LATER OR LATER 1996 OR OR LATER Midget Division athlete must be born in 1993 and he/she must be in their first year of high school. Senior Division athlete is ineligible for five years from the time they enter high school. For season, an athlete who entered grade nine before September 2003 in ineligible to compete. There is no appeal to this rule. A senior athlete must also meet the age qualification as listed above. All students who transfer into your school ( excluding Grade 9 first year of high school) are ineligible for competition for a period of twelve months from the date of transfer. To become eligible, transfer students must complete the TRANSFER APPEAL FORM

2 fully and forward to the TDCAA Transfer Chairperson. He/she is ineligible to play in any games (league or exhibition or tournament) and may not practice with the team until the transfer has been approved and the athletic director has been notified. TEAM COMPOSITION Flag Football is played with seven on-field players per team. CHAMPIONSHIP RULES 1) the offense has four downs to obtain 15 yards, keep possession of the ball and attempt to score. If they fail to gain 15 yards and a first down, the ball is turned over to the other team. 2) All measurements can be in yards or meters. 3) The kicking team is determined by a coin toss. The team that wins the coin toss has the choice to be home team or visiting team. In the first half, the visiting team is given the option to receive the kick-off or to kick off, or defend a specific end of the field. The home team then selects the remaining option. The home team would have the first choice of the options in the second half. 4) To begin a game, a team will kick off from their own kick off line which is ten yards back from the centre of the field ( 45 yard line). To begin the series of four downs, the ball is placed on the ground at the point the ball carrier was flagged on the kick-off. This becomes the line of scrimmage. All offensive players must take a position on or behind the line of scrimmage. All defensive players must take a position at least one yard from the line of scrimmage on the opposite side. The centre must snap the ball between his/her legs to QB who must receive the ball at least five yards behind the line of scrimmage. A minimum of five players on the offense must be on the line of scrimmage prior to the snap. All players, except the center, are allowed to be in motion after the ball is set and prior to the snap. Movement at the snap can only be laterally,or toward their own goal line. Receivers are not permitted to cross the line of scrimmage until the snap of the ball. 5) Eligible Receivers - All offensive players are considered eligible receivers. Screen blocking is permitted. The play is terminated when a defender flags the ball carrier. 6) During scrimmage plays, the defense will have one or more players, called the RUSHER, Pursue the QB after the ball is snapped. The rusher has specific ruled, which govern the position. They include being at least five yards away from the line of scrimmage and within five yards to the left or right of the rushing bag at the time the ball is snapped. Teams may use more than one rusher on a given play. All rushers have the right to a clear and direct path to the QB provided they adhere to the rusher rules listed above. The first defensive player to cross the line of scrimmage must have started at least five yards from the line of scrimmage.

3 7) The officials will use beanbags to mark the line of scrimmage; the rushers starting point ; and the first down line. Officials will place these bags at the appropriate spot prior to the start of each play. A different colored bean bag Must be used to designate the first down mark. 8) Teams are permitted only one forward pass on each scrimmage play. There are no forward passes permitted on Kick-Off or Punt Return. Teams may lateral the ball among team mates as many times as they wish during a play. A lateral is a pass which travels parallel to, or in the direction of the passers dead ball line. An attempted lateral that results in the ball going forward to a team mate is illegal and is ruled an offside pass when caught by a team mate or when it strikes the ground. 9) There are no fumbles in flag football. All fumbles are blown dead as soon as the ball strikes the ground. When a ball is fumbled or muffed, including an incomplete attempted lateral or hand off, the play is blown dead and the ball is placed at the point where it first touched the ground,if in an onside direction,or at the point it was last touched,if in an offensive direction, i.e. in the least advantageous position for the team that causes the fumble/muff. 10) If the ball carrier touches the ground with any part of his/her body,other than his/her feet, the play is whistled dead at that point. The only exceptions are in the case when the QB is receiving a snap,or when a kick off returner is receiving the kick - off. In each case, they may have a hand or knee down ( third point down) and still be allowed to get to their feet and continue the play. PUNTING : There is no punting in Flag Football LINE OF SCRIMMAGE The offensive team must have a minimum of four players set on the line of scrimmage at the snap. Players in motion do not count as players on the line of scrimmage. Once the center has placed his hands on the ball, no offensive player may enter the neutral zone. Following the ready for play whistle and until a legal snap, no defensive player may encroach, touch the ball, stand-in, or in any way interfere with the offensive team - Penalty - is a dead ball foul,encroachment, 5 yards from succeeding spot. BACKWARD PASSES AND FUMBLES Any ball that is fumbled during a down will be dead by rule once it has touched the ground. A backward pass or fumble may be caught or intercepted by any player inbounds and advanced. A player may not intentionally throw a backward pass out of bounds to conserve time or avoid being downed. This will be penalized as an illegal pass: loss of 5 yards, loss of down and the clock will start on the whistle. Once the ball has touched the ground, the ball is considered dead. FORWARD PASS AND INTERCEPTIONS

4 If a player is in the air attempting to catch a ball, the player must contact the ground with at least one foot in-bounds with the ball in their possession prior to going out of bounds,unless contact by an opponent causes the player to first touch out-of-bounds. If possession of the ball is lost simultaneously when they hit the ground, it is not a catch. If a forward pass is caught simultaneously by members of opposing teams, the ball is dead at that spot and belongs to the team that snapped the ball. PASS INTERFERENCE Any contact that, in the view of the official, interferes with the attempt to catch a pass( offensive or defensive player) is pass interference unless, in the view of the official, it occurs when two or more eligible receivers make a simultaneous and bona fide attempt to reach, catch, or bat a pass. It is also pass interference if an eligible receiver is deflagged or touched prior to touching the ball on a pass thrown beyond the offensive line of scrimmage. Clarification: Hindering an opponent s vision without making an attempt to catch, intercept or bat the ball is pass interference, even though no contact was made. If the pass interference by the defense is intentional and/or unsportsmanlike, the defense may be penalized an additional 10 yards. PERSONAL FOULS Any act listed below or any other act of unnecessary roughness is a personal foul. Players shall not: 1) Punch,strike, strip, steal, or attempt to steal the ball from a player in possession. 2) Trip an opponent 3) Contact an opponent who is on the ground 4) Hurdle another player 5) Throw the runner to the ground 6) Contact an opponent either before the ball is put into play or after the ball is declared dead 7) Make any contact with an opponent who is deemed unnecessary 8) Deliberately drive or run into a defensive player 9) Clip an opponent 10) Position themselves on the shoulders of a teammate or opponent to gain an advantage 11) Tackle the runner ( may warrant an ejection) SCREEN BLOCKING Legally obstructing an opponent without using any part of the body to initiate contact. Screen blocking shall take place without contact. The blocker shall have their hands and arms at their sides or behind their back. A screen blocker cannot use their hands, arms, elbows, legs, or body to initiate contact. If they do use contact it will be called a personal foul. Screen blockers may not: 1) Take a position closer than a normal step when behind a stationary opponent.

5 2) Make contact when assuming a position at the side or in front of a stationary opponent 3) Take a position so close to an opponent that they cannot avoid contact by stopping or changing direction STIFF ARMING Stiff arming is not allowed: a personal foul will be called, and if warranted an unsportsmanlike conduct or ejection will result. OBSTRUCTING THE OPPONENT A defensive player shall not hold, grasp, or obstruct the forward progress of the runner when attempting to remove the flag belt. FLAG BELT All shirts must be tucked in, and are not permitted to hang over the flag belt. Should a player lose their flag belt legally or illegally during a down an d should that player gain possession of a live ball, that player will be considered down when a legal tag( one hand touched by defensive player between the shoulders and knees, including the hand or arm) is made. Players must have possession of the ball before they can be legally de flagged. It is illegal for a defensive player to intentionally pull a flag from an offensive player who is not in possession of the ball. In cases where a flag belt is removed illegally, play should continue with the option of the penalty of the play ( Penalty: Personal foul, 10 yards) GUARDING THE BELT Runners shall not flag guard by using any part of the body or ball to deny the opportunity for an opponent to pull or remove the flag belt. Flag guarding includes but is not limited to: 1) Swinging an arm or hand over the flag belt to prevent an opponent from de flagging 2) Placing the ball in possession over the flag belt to prevent an opponent from deflagging 3) Lowering the shoulders in such a manner that flag gusrds SCORING Touchdown - 6 points Point After Touchdown 5 Yards - 1 point 10 Yards - 2 points

6 20 yards - 3 points During a play after a touchdown, the ball remains alive, allowing the intercepting team to return the convert for 2 points to the other end of the field. Safety - 2 points UNIFORMS / DRESS CODE : See below AWARDS - according to the TDCAA Constitution Individual Team EQUIPMENT A team must have six eligible players in team sweaters, with their flag belt and flags on the field, at the designated starting time or a default will be imposed. Each player is responsible for each item listed below unless otherwise noted: A) SHOES Shoes must be soft pliable upper material( i.e. canvas/synthetic) that completely covers the foot and is attached to a one-piece molded composite bottom( i.e. soccer cleats) No medal cleats or baseball cleats are permitted B) SHORTS/PANTS Shorts may not have pockets C) SHIRTS/ JERSEY S Shirts must cover the players shoulders, chest, and back Shirts must be long enough to be tucked into pants or shorts Shirts should have both a light colored and a dark colored shirt D) FLAGS

7 A one-piece flag belt ( triple thread or flag tag) without any knots The flags must be permanently attached ILLEGAL EQUIPMENT 1) Headwear containing any hard, unyielding, stiff material, including billed hats.or items containing exposed knots. 2) Jewelry 3) Pads or braces worn above the waist. 4) Shoes with metal, ceramic, screw-in, or detachable cleats. 5) Shirts or jerseys that do not remain tucked in. 6) Jerseys that have an arm opening more than 4 below the armpit. 7) Pants or shorts with any belts, belt loops, pockets, or exposed drawstrings. 8) Leg and knee braces made of hard, unyielding material,unless covered on both sides and all edges overlapped. 9) Any slippery or foreign substance on any equipment or exposed part of the body. 10) Exposed medal on clothes or person. 11) Towels attached at the player s waist LENGTH OF GAMES Game is divided into four quarters of Ten Minutes each. The clock run continuously during the quarters except for time outs and special timing procedures in the last two minutes of the second and fourth quarters. At the end of the first and third quarters, the teams change ends and downs and yardage continue. At the end of the second quarter, there is a rest period of and agreed upon length. The third quarter will begin with a kick off. Officials may call time outs to deal with measurements,rule explanations, or injuries. Each team will be permitted two time outs per half and can carry over 1 from the first half to the second half SCHEDULE / MEET STRUCTURE The schedule for the flag football tournament will be set up by the convenor. All defaulted games will be recorded as 1-0 There is a grace period of 15 minutes from the scheduled time of the game before the game is defaulted unless there are extenuating circumstances.

8 A team must have a minimum of six players on the field for the duration of the game. If the number falls below six ( injury / ejection/ etc), the score will be recorded as 1-0. However, if the non offending team is winning at that time, their score will stand REPORTING SCORES The convenor will report the final results ( on behalf of the tournament) 1) TDCAA Web Site - Joe Sileika - scores@tdcaa.org EJECTIONS All ejections ( players and/or coaches ) must be reported to TDCAA Discipline Chairperson (Dave Di Mauro ) within 48 hours of the game. Dave is a teacher at Brebeuf. All ejections must be reported by the coach to their athletic director within 24 hours of the ejection. Any athlete/coach who is ejected from a game will be required to appear before the disciplinary review board with the following exceptions: PROTEST Any protest must come to the President ( Eva Roser - Cardinal Newman), in writing, within 24 hours of the game. A copy of the letter should also be sent to the convenor and the TDCAA Executive Secretary. A meeting will be called to hear the protest as soon as possible at the discretion of the President of the TDCAA. The meeting will include representatives from both teams. There is no appeal to a decision on a protest. AWARDS In sports where there are less than six teams, only gold medals and a championship pennant will be presented. Plaques may be presented to divisional champions only if there are at least four division and each division has at least four teams Medals - Yes

9 Pennants Plaques Championship Trophy Other OFSAA SELECTION CRITERIA SUPERVISION For all TDCAA activities, there must be sufficient supervision of players at all times. Teams should not arrive at visiting school before coach arrives. If coach is unable to arrive with or ahead of players, home school should be informed. Coach must remain with players at all times after the conclusion of a game. If players are traveling on TTC/cabs/cars, coach must remain with the players until all players have safely left the school or boarded the bus. If TTC bus stop is some distance from the school or site of the game, the coach must travel with the players and remain with the players until they have safely boarded the bus. A game cannot begin unless there is a teacher coach on the bench. A community coach must be accompanied by a teacher from the school before a game can commence. MEDICAL CODE OF CONDUCT The football player who intentionally violates a rule is guilty of unfair play conduct and, whether or not they escape being penalized; they bring discredit to tjhe good name of the game, which is their duty as a player to uphold.