New College Football Play Clock Rules

This was breaking news five months ago. That's why we used a 40 second clock all during Spring Practice,
 
I missed this when it came out.... Will the clock still stop when the chains are moved or is it now identical to the NFL system?
 
The last time they ****** with clock everyone agreed that was a good idea and the switched it back.

What's that saying about the definition of insanity - trying the same thing over and over and expecting different results?
 
Not a fan of these rules. Leads to less plays and I, like many others, have no problems with a 3 1/2 hour football game on a saturday.
 
3-2-4 (FR-67)
b. 40-Second Clock. 1. When an official signals that the ball is dead, the play clock shall begin a 40-second count.

2. If the 40-second count is interrupted for reasons beyond the control of the officials or the play-clock operator (e.g., clock malfunction), the referee shall stop the game clock and signal that the play clock should be re-set at 40 seconds and started immediately.

3. In the event that the 40-second clock is running and the ball is not ready to be snapped after 20 seconds into the count, the referee shall stop the game clock and signal that the play clock be set at 25 seconds. When play is to be resumed, the referee will give the ready-for play signal [S1] and the play clock shall begin the 25-second
count. The game clock will start on the snap (Rule 3-2-5-b).

c. 25-Second Clock. If the officials signal the game clock to be stopped for any of the following reasons, the referee shall signal (one open palm in an over-the-head pumping motion) that the clock should be set at 25 seconds:

1. Penalty administration.
2. Charged team timeout.
3. Media timeout.
4. Injury timeout.
5. Measurement.
6. Change of possession.
7. Team A possession following a kick down.
8. Score.
9. Start of each period.
10. Start of a team’s series in extra period.
11. Instant replay review.
12. Other administrative stoppage.
When play is to be resumed, the referee will give the ready-for-play signal
[S1] and the play clock will begin the 25-second count.
d. If a visual 40/25-second timing device becomes inoperative, both coaches shall be notified by the referee immediately and both clocks shall be turned off.

(Exception: Within the last two minutes of each half the clock starts on the snap unless incidents 8 or 11 above occur.)

I don't mind the rule, but I really do think the clock should stop after 1st downs, and then go to a 25 second clock when the ball is placed, at least in the last 2 minutes of each half. Having the clock stop after each play is a bit much.
 
If it were up to me they'd play sixty minutes of football.
That is, the clock ONLY runs from the time the ball is snapped until the whistle blows to end the play.
biggrin.gif
 
I was watching a game from 96 last night on one of the Fox channels (ASU and Washington). One of the teams was running the ball late in the game because they had the lead. It was the last 3 minutes of the game. Because they did not have the 40 second clock they were able to run an average of 10 more seconds per play off of the clock because of how slow the officials were between plays setting the ball and the 25 second clock. That is ridiculous. I am glad about the new rule.
 
I don't think this has any effect on the game clock stopping for first downs. If you are tackled in bounds after a first down, the game clock will stop until they spot the ball, but the play clock will be running the whole time. I don't think there is any effect on the game clock at all.

This rule will shorten the overall length of games by slightly decreasing the amount of dead ball time between plays, but it will actually increase the percentage of the game clock that is spent on game action. There will be more plays run because of this, not fewer.
 
The clock will start sooner, but the ball won't be ready for play any sooner, so I don't know if that consistency will do any good.

You won't be able to snap the ball with 30+ seconds on the play clock. The umpire will still be holding it.
 
the last time i remember an official actually spotting a ball less than 15 seconds after the previous play ended in a non-hurry up offense scenario was back in about '01. and i mean 1901. they never ever get it down in <15 seconds, and thus every play ends up taking at the very least 40 seconds. and then you have the frequent 45+ second plays. it's even more ridiculous at the ends of games when officials can arbitrarily decide for a quick 15 second set or fiddle around for a 20 second set, sometimes determining whether a team ends up getting the ball back or not, or at the very least signicantly changing how much time they have left. forcing it to be 40 seconds makes sure there is a uniform procedure for everyone. i don't see how that's a bad thing.

as far as the actual length of the game, this wouldn't seem to have much of an effect. if the clock is stopped, then using only 40 seconds between the play would shave a few seconds off the length of the game. even if it happens 60 times and knocks 5 seconds off each time, we're talking 5 minutes. on plays with the clock running, it would actually force the next play to start quicker and add more plays to the game. if we want more football and tv's want less time for each game (though it won't change either by much), this would seem to be a fairly good solution that also increases consistency and fairness.
 
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