I think someone on here seemed very rule savvy, so I have a question on leaping in HS. I have seen our players flagged for hurdling defenders and I have seen some hurdling on film not called (supposed to be 15 yd penalty). What is the rule? Is it a judgment call? I also wondered why the PH QB was not called for trying to leap over the pile at the goal line (twice). Even though he was unsuccessful, is that not the same idea? Someone had mentioned it in another thread, but man that was a heck of a goal line stand. A few penalties by both teams and it was like 9 plays long (included a few from the 5ish).
Leaping rule question
- Thread starter EVcyc
- Start date
Interesting. Seen DeAngelo Ramsey hurdle players four times this year. Twice it was called and twice it wasn't. I think it is a stupid rule. Does not happen often.
The rulebook for the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) defines hurdling as "an attempt by a player to jump (hurdle) with one or both feet or knees foremost over an opponent who is contacting the ground with no part of his body except one or both feet." I've seen lots of times when a defender is falling or slipping when the runner hurdles and is not called.
cb, I believe you are exactly right.
Everyone follow this question on the "Ask the Officials" thread to read some very insightful information.
(I copied and pasted EVcyc's post to that thread).
Everyone follow this question on the "Ask the Officials" thread to read some very insightful information.
(I copied and pasted EVcyc's post to that thread).
That goal line stand of 5+ plays inside the five to end the half was tremendous. It set the tone for the rest of the game and it literally ripped PAs heart right out. PA players didn’t appear to even wanna show up after halftime the way the team came out the locker room.
It basically boils down to whether or not the defender is diving to make a tackle. If they're upright and you try to hurdle them that's no good, if they're going for a diving tackle that's fine to hurdle.
This, like most everything in football, is a judgment call. The only thing that is not a judgment call is the application of a rule or penalty enforcement. The governing rule on hurdling is in its very definition, NFHS 2-22. "Hurdling is an attempt by a player to jump (hurdle) with one or both feet or knees foremost over an opponent who is contacting the ground with no part of his body except one or both feet."
What does this mean in basic terms? If a player dives headfirst over an opponent (picture a player diving for the goal line with arms outstretched), that is legal. If ANY part of the opponent other than one or both feet is touching the ground, the "hurdle" is legal (picture a defender on his knee or flat on the ground, he can be hurdled). If the opponent has gone airborne (doesn't have a foot touching the ground), he can be hurdled legally. The only way this is a foul is if the opponent has only 1 or both feet touching the ground and the player "hurdles" the opponent, meaning he jumps over the opponent with one or both legs (foot/knee is specified in the rule) out in front of his own body. Picture how a track athlete jumps over hurdles with one leg outstretched, and replace the hurdle with another player. That's what they are getting at. Also remember, the runner can hurdle legally in NCAA. In high school (NFHS) NO ONE can hurdle! As you said, it is a 15 yard personal foul.
Also remember, hurdling can occur anytime anywhere, not just by the runner. A player hurdling the line (with their best Troy Polamalu impression) to block a kick can be, and usually is, hurdling. On this type of play, you have to see whether the lineman he hurdles has his hand off the ground yet. If the lineman's hand is on the ground, that's something other than one or both feet on the ground, so there's no hurdling foul.
Here are some examples:
This is a foul for hurdling in high school. Leg (knee/foot) is out in front of the body, and the opponent has a foot on the ground.
This is a foul for hurdling. Knee is out in front of the body.
Even though he failed and is embarrassed, this is still a foul for hurdling in high school. His knee was out in front of his body and over the opponent's head when he took off (this still image doesn't show that, but I saw the video clip)
This is the "jumping over the line" play I was referring to. In this scenario, the player is hurdling the snapper. If he jumps over the snapper, it's a safe bet the only thing touching the ground is the snapper's feet because his hands are off the ground releasing the ball. The hurdler's knee is out in front of his body, so this is a hurdling foul in high school. If he had jumped over the guard #63, there's at least a chance of his hurdle being legal because the guard's hand is on the ground in this picture. More than likely though, that guard will rise up quickly to block the hurdler, and we'll have a foul for hurdling. Honestly, the only way you will get away with jumping over the line legally is by diving headfirst like you're attempting to block the kick. On scrimmage kick plays (field goals, punts, etc), they also cannot contact the snapper as he is protected. Probably safer just not to hurdle the linemen than risk a 15 yard penalty and a probable 1st down for the offense.
This is NOT a foul for hurdling because the opponent's knee is on the ground.
Last example. This is the traditional hurdle you see in high school football with the opponent ducking down to tackle the runner. This is a hurdling foul for the same reasons listed above.
Hope this was helpful!
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Wow great info. So the attempt to hurdle the goal line group of lineman? The Player generally leaps hands and head first, so would that be legal? I assume difficult to see who's got what on the ground in that pile.
Yes, since runner is not leading with knees or feet.
From above post:
If a player dives head first over an opponent (picture a player diving for the goal line with arms outstretched), that is legal.
And risky!!!
Bleeding Navy scored all of his touchdowns during the leather helmet era by diving head first. Kind of explains things, huh?
The pic above of the player hurdling the line to block a kick reminded me of a "leaping" call in the FSU-Clemson game. The NCAA implemented a rule this year that a player "leaping" in an attempt to block a kick or punt had to start from within 1 yard of the line of scrimmage, IF I'm understanding it correctly. No more safeties getting a running start. Anyone know if there's a similar rule for HS?
This is referencing the NCAA rule, so if you don't care about that skip to the bottom of this post for NFHS.
NCAA 9-1
Leverage, Leaping and Landing
ARTICLE 11. a. No defensive player, in an attempt to gain an advantage,
may step, jump or stand on an opponent.
b. No defensive player who runs forward from beyond the neutral zone
and leaps from beyond the neutral zone in an obvious attempt to block
a field goal or try may land on any player(s).
1. It is not a foul if the player was aligned in a stationary position
within one yard of the line of scrimmage when the ball was
snapped.
2. It is not a foul if the player leaps from in or behind the neutral
zone.
3. It is not a foul if an offensive player initiates contact against the
player who leaps.
c. No defensive player who is inside the tackle box may try to block a punt
by leaving his feet in an attempt to leap directly over an opponent.
1. It is not a foul if the player tries to block the punt by jumping
straight up without attempting to leap over the opponent.
2. It is not a foul if a player attempts to leap through or over the gap
between players.
If the player runs up, he may leap at his own risk of landing on someone (which would be a foul) if he takes off from beyond the neutral zone. If he leaps from in or behind the neutral zone, he is legal. If he was stationary at the snap within one yard of the line of scrimmage, he is also legal.
The only rule in NFHS (high school) is the hurdling rule, and no player is allowed to hurdle when the given conditions are met that I noted in my previous post. In high school, if you hurdle the line like this, there is a 0.01% chance you can do this legally. The only way possible is if the linemen for some reason immediately goes to the ground or if he's extremely slow and still has his hand on the ground. Not likely. Being that, I would strongly advise no player to attempt it. The benefit is not worth the risk. As noted above, it is legal to jump "headfirst" over the line with arms outstretched attempting to block the kick, assuming you don't rough the snapper.
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I remember last year in the NFL, I think it was the Patriots, they started doing this on FG's/Extra points. The guy would try to time his leap with the snap, jump over the line, and block the kick. The refs said as long as he didn't tough anyone on the line in mid-leap, it was legal. If he touched someone, it was a penalty. I haven't seen them try to do it this year though.
Also note in the above NCAA rule, it clearly distinguishes between FGs and punts. On a punt, you cannot leap. It's part (c) above.
As a side note, "leaping" is a term only used in NCAA. NCAA also uses the term hurdling. High school (NFHS) uses only hurdling. Leaping isn't a term in HS. That makes it easy to remember because anytime there's a play involving someone jumping over an opponent, you only need to apply the "hurdling" conditions to determine if it is legal or not.
I agree. Both leaping and hurdling are extremely dangerous plays. That's why the NFHS is so intolerant of it, understandably so. It is a safety foul, that's why it's 15 yards.
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I watched highlights of the 2017 Dinwiddie-Salem game a few days ago. On one of Ramsey's TD's that went to the far-side pylon away from the home stands, I believe there was a hurdling missed as he was going into the end zone. The angle was tough, I couldn't see the defender fully, but if I had to bet it looked like a clear hurdle. Would've taken them back 15 from the spot. Sometimes it gets missed. It's an amazing play when no one gets hurt and catches even the men in stripes by surprise. The risk of a penalty (and more importantly, injury) just makes it not worth it IMHO, at least at the high school level. In college, runners are allowed to hurdle til they can't jump no more.
That was not one of the incidents I was referring to. On that play he hurled himself into the end zone sideways. Stupid rule. Wrong interpretation of it will cost someone a game. The player is avoiding a hit that could cause injury just as likely as when he leaps over a player.
He ended up sideways at the end, but his launch involved leading with his knee/foot, so that meets the hurdling criteria and if the defender met the conditions (only feet on the ground) it should've been a foul. You're right about interpretation, but that goes for any foul. Interpretation is 90% of the battle when it comes to rules. That's why officials are trained and do rules study.
I'll have to disagree on the second part though. If a player gets his legs hit while hes hurdling and falls straight down on his head/neck, that's a serious injury. The risk of serious injury is higher in that situation than your everyday shoulder to shoulder contact, not to mention if the opponent gets a cleat to the neck from the hurdler.
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