Illegal Touching
ARTICLE 11. No originally ineligible player while inbounds may intentionally touch a legal forward pass until it has touched an opponent or an official.
PENALTY—Five yards from the previous spot, loss of down [S16 and S9].
Approved Ruling 7-3-11 I. Late in the half, quarterback A10, who has not been outside the tackle box, throws a desperation pass to intentionally save yardage that falls incomplete after ineligible A58 touches the ball in an attempt to catch it. RULING: Foul for intentional grounding. No foul for illegal touching since the pass is illegal. Penalty—Loss of down at the spot of the pass. The clock starts on the snap (Rules 3-3-2d-4 and 7-3-2h). Rule 3-4-4 applies if less than one minute remains on the game clock. If time expires in the quarter the quarter is not extended.
Approved Ruling 7-3-11 II Team A snaps on its 10-yard line. A10 retreats and then passes forward to ineligible A70 who, while in his end zone, (a) touches the ball as he attempts to catch the pass, and the pass is incomplete; (b) catches the pass and is downed in the end zone; or (c) catches the pass and is downed after having advanced to his three-yard line. RULING: (a) Team B may accept the five-yard penalty from the previous spot that includes loss of down, so the down will count. (b) The ball is dead in the end zone with impetus by Team A, and Team B may elect the safety or the penalty at the previous spot with loss of down. (c) Five-yard penalty from the previous spot and loss of down. The down counts if the penalty is declined; the dead-ball spot might be deemed more advantageous to Team B than the penalty [Note: (a), (b) and (c) could be intentional grounding depending on the location of an eligible Team A player or the location of A10 when the ball is thrown] (Rule 10-1-1b). If intentional grounding is warranted, there is no illegal touching.]
