a. With the game clock running and less than one minute remaining in either half, before a change of team possession if either team commits a foul that causes the clock to stop immediately, the referee will subtract 10 seconds from the game clock at the option of the offended team. The fouls that fall in this category include but are not limited to:
1. Any foul that prevents the snap (e.g., false start, encroachment, defensive offsides by contact in the neutral zone, etc.). 2. Deliberately advancing the ball well after it is dead. 3. Intentional grounding to stop the clock. 4. Incomplete illegal forward pass. 5. Backward pass thrown out-of-bounds to stop the clock. 6. Any other foul committed with the intent of stopping the clock. The offended team may accept the yardage penalty and decline the 10-second runoff. If the yardage penalty is declined the 10-second runoff is declined by rule.
b. The 10-second rule does not apply if the game clock is not running when the foul occurs or if the foul does not cause the game clock to stop immediately (e.g., illegal formation). c. After the penalty is administered, if there is a 10-second runoff, the game clock starts on the referee’s signal. If there is no 10-second runoff, the game clock starts on the snap. Note: This rule supersedes Rule 3-6-4 d. If the fouling team has a timeout remaining, they may avoid the 10-second runoff by using a timeout. In this case the game clock starts on the snap after the timeout. e. The 10-second runoff does not apply when there are offsetting fouls.
