SAN DIEGO COUNTY FOOTBALL OFFICIALS ASSOCIATION - THE WEEKLY BULL FOR FLAG FOOTBALL – August 31, 2026
Rules and Officiating Questions - I continue to receive a healthy number of emails, video and phone calls now that the season is well underway. I hope this leads to us getting better at this newer sport. When the officials and the head coaches are mostly on the same page, the games go smoothly. I hope this trend continues and that we are, indeed, settling into the proper officiating and playing of this sport. Again, if you do have a question or concern you can email me at cooversteve@gmail.com, or call me at (619) 921-3006.
Flags – Flags should be (mostly) a single color that clearly contrasts with the color of the shorts. The referee at the game site has the final say on legal or illegal flags. Remember, not all flags need to be the same color, just as long as they all contrast. Officials should consistently require the girls to wear their belts at their waist, not the hips. Belts tend to stay in place when they are tight around the waist. They tend to slip with they slide up from the hips.
Shorts – There are no waivers being given by CIF for shorts with stripes on shorts. Several teams have ordered new shorts without stripes to comply with this ruling. It has been a challenging adjustment, but it is much better for the game.
Long Hair – The length of a player’s hair is not covered by the rules. So, if a player has long hair near the flag area, any pulling of the hair (not intentional) is not a foul.
Contact with the QB – Any contact with the QB will be a roughing the passer penalty if the QB is passing the ball. Rushers must focus on the flags and attempt to pull a flag, prior to the pass, on one side of the QB. Of course the rusher can jump and block the pass, but may not contact the ball while in the QB’s hand, or contact any part of the QB passer, either before or after the pass.
Screen Blocking – Several call this week by officials who are observing movement by the blocker, who is setting what appears to be a “moving screen” type block from basketball. When asked if there was contact, they answered, “No.” Well, if there’s no contact, then there isn’t a foul. If there were to be contact, then the penalty would be a 10-yard Illegal blocking foul. It’s really great that the officials are beginning to watch the movements of the blocker and defender for possible fouls! Getting better!
