Colorado Football Officials Association

1
Colorado Football Officials Association

• Facemask Fouls

2
Related Rule(9-4-3h)

• No player or non-player shall
• Grasp an opponents face mask or any edge of a
  helmet opening.

3
Flagrant Foul(2-16-2c)

• A foul so severe or extreme that it places an
  opponent in danger of serious injury and/or
  involves persistently vulgar or abusive conduct.
• Immediate disqualification.

4
Face Mask Infractions

• Almost always a live-ball foul
• A five or 15-yard penalty
• All-but-one enforcement
• No automatic first down.

5
Judgment

• Simply touching the facemask is not a foul.
• Grasping an opponent's face mask, or any edge of
  the helmet is "incidental grasping, 5 yds
• No head movement No grasp

6
Judgment

• Twisting, turning, or pulling 15 yds
• When in doubt 15 yds
• Dont guess.
• Erring on behalf of safety is not an excuse
  for guessing.

7
What to Look For

• Inadvertent slapping of the facemask.
• Was there any head movement?
• Was the facemask used as a handle to pull the
  opponent down?
• Was the foul flagrant?

8
What to Look For

• Jersey or collar tackle
• Not a foul
• Official must see how tackle was made to call a
  foul.

9
What to Look For

• Helmet removal
• Not necessarily a foul
• Loosely worn helmets can come off on contact
• Official must see how the helmet came off to
  call a foul.

10

• Thanks for your attention.