NCAA Flag Rule 10
Penalty Enforcement
SECTION 1. PENALTIES COMPLETED
ARTICLE 1.
a. A penalty is completed when it is accepted, declined, offset, or canceled according to rule, or when the choice is obvious to the referee.
b. Any penalty may be declined. If the yardage of a penalty is declined, the penalty is declined by rule.
c. An ejected player must leave the game whether the penalty is accepted, declined, offset, or canceled.
d. When a foul is committed, the penalty shall be completed before the ball is declared ready for play for any ensuing down.
ARTICLE 2.
a. Dead-ball: A foul that occurs prior to a legal snap or after the ball has become dead by rule. This includes live-ball fouls that are treated as dead-ball fouls.
b. Live-ball: A foul that occurs during a down.
c. Simultaneous With Snap: A foul that occurs as the ball is snapped. These are live-ball fouls considered as occurring during that down.
Live-Ball Fouls by the Same Team
ARTICLE 3. When two or more live-ball fouls are committed by the same team during the same down, the offended team may elect only one of these penalties. The other fouls are declined by rule.
ARTICLE 4. When live-ball fouls are committed by both teams during the same down, the fouls offset and the down is repeated. Live-ball fouls do not offset dead-ball fouls.
Exceptions:
1. When there is a change of possession during a down, and the team last gaining possession did not foul before last gaining possession, it may refuse offsetting fouls and thereby retain possession after completion of the penalty for its foul.
2. When all Team B fouls that occur before possession changes are governed by post punt rules, Team B may refuse offsetting fouls and accept post punt enforcement.
3. During a Try or extra period, Team B fouls committed after it obtained possession.
ARTICLE 5. Penalties for dead-ball fouls are administered separately and in order of occurrence. (Exception: When dead-ball unsportsmanlike or dead-ball personal fouls are committed by both teams during the same dead-ball period, and none of the penalties have been completed, the yardage penalties cancel and the number or type of down established before the fouls occurred is unaffected).
SECTION 2. ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES
Establishing the Line to Gain
ARTICLE 1.
a. Live-ball Fouls.
1. Enforce the penalty then establish the line to gain.
b. Dead-ball Fouls.
1. If the foul occurs prior to the ready for play signal, enforce the penalty then establish the line to gain. (Exception: If Team A commits a delay of game foul for snapping the ball prior to the ready for play whistle, the line to gain will be what it would have been had this foul not occurred).
2. If the foul occurs after the ready for play signal, the line to gain will remain the same as what it was when the ready for play signal was blown.
Determining the Spot of Enforcement and the Basic Spot
ARTICLE 2.
a. For many fouls, the enforcement spot is specified in the statement of the penalty. When the enforcement spot is not specified in the statement of the penalty, the enforcement spot is determined by the Three-and-One Principle.
b. Fouls by the offense or defense committed behind the previous spot are enforced from the previous spot. (Exception: fouls by the offense in their own endzone results in a Safety.)
c. The basic spot of enforcement for live-ball fouls are as follows:
1. Running plays prior to a change of team possession.
(a) Previous spot, when the related run ends behind the neutral zone.
(b) End of the related run, when the related run ends beyond the neutral zone.
(c) End of the related run, on running plays that have no neutral zone.
2. Running plays following a change of team possession.
(a) End of the related run, when the run does not end in the end zone.
(b) Succeeding spot, when a foul occurs after a change of team possession in the end zone and the result of the play is a touchback.
(c) Goal line, when a foul occurs after a change of team possession in the field of play and the related run ends in the end zone.
(d) Goal line, when a foul occurs after a change of team possession in the end zone, the related run ends in the end zone, and the result of the play is not a touchback.
3. Loose ball plays: Previous spot.
4. Punt plays.
(a) Previous spot, unless the foul is governed by post punt rules.
(b) Post punt spot, if the foul is governed by post punt rules.
(c) Fouls by Team A during a punt play (except for Kick Catch Interference) are enforced at either the previous spot, or at the spot where the subsequent dead-ball belongs to Team B, at the option of Team B.
5. Simultaneous with snap fouls: Previous spot.
ARTICLE 3.
a. For many fouls, the enforcement spot is specified in the statement of the penalty. When the enforcement spot is not specified in the statement of the penalty, the enforcement spot is determined by the Three-and-One Principle.
b. When the team in possession commits a foul behind the basic spot, the penalty is enforced at the spot of the foul.
c. When the team in possession commits a foul beyond the basic spot, the penalty is enforced at the basic spot.
d. When the team not in possession commits a foul either behind or beyond the basic spot, the penalty is enforced at the basic spot.
ARTICLE 4.
a. Under post punt enforcement rules, fouls by Team B that satisfy the following conditions are treated as if Team B had been in possession at the time the foul was committed, even though by rule team possession had not yet changed.
b. Post punt enforcement applies only to Team B fouls during a punt under the following conditions:
1. The ball crosses the neutral zone.
2. The foul occurs before the end of the kick.
3. Team B will next put the ball in play.
If these conditions are all met, the penalty is enforced according to the Three-And-One Principle. Team B is taken as the team in possession with the post punt spot as the basic spot. The post punt spot is the 14-yard line if the kick ends in Team B’s end zone.
Fouls During or After a Touchdown or Try
ARTICLE 5.
a. If there is a live-ball foul by the scoring team during a down that results in a touchdown, the acceptance of the penalty nullifies the score.
b. Fouls by the non-scoring team during a down that ends in a touchdown, and there was not a change of team possession during the down:
1. Ten yard penalties are enforced on the try, the succeeding spot after the try, or from the succeeding spot in extra periods at the option of the scoring team.
2. Five yard penalties are not enforced and are declined by rule.
c. Fouls by the non-scoring team during a down that ends in a touchdown, and there was a
change of team possession during the down:
1. Ten yard penalties committed following the change of team possession are enforced on the try, the succeeding spot after the try, or from the succeeding spot in extra periods at the option of the scoring team.
2. Five yard penalties are not enforced and are declined by rule.
d. When a foul occurs after a touchdown but before the ball is ready for play on the try, or there was a live-ball foul treated as a dead-ball foul on the touchdown play, enforcement is on the try, the succeeding spot after the try, or from the succeeding spot in extra periods at the option of the scoring team.
Half-Distance Enforcement Procedures
ARTICLE 6. No distance penalty, including on the try, shall exceed half the distance from the enforcement spot to the offending team’s goal line. (Exceptions: (1) Defensive pass interference during scrimmage downs, other than a try; and (2) on the try, defensive pass interference when the ball is snapped from outside the 3-yard line.)
