7 on 7 Passing Football Rules
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FIELD DIMENSIONS
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Field Length -- 45 yards long
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Field Width -- 160 feet (60 feet to hash
mark, 40 feet between)
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End Zone -- 10 yards deep
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STARTING THE GAME
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Each home team field site will have a
designated central time keeper and score keeper. All games will begin and end on this
person's instructions. They will also announce the time remaining at the
10, 5, and 2 minute marks.
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Visitors will have first possession and
wear white. The home team will have first possession in the 2nd half and
wear a dark color (bottom team in bracket or 2nd team listed will be the
home team). NO TEAM WILL BE ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE WITHOUT SHIRTS! Team
sidelines must be on opposite sides of the field. Visitors (wearing
white) will line up on the right side of the field when facing the end
zone. Home (wearing dark) will line up on the left side of the field
when facing the end zone.
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No High School football jerseys shall be
worn. T-shirts, Under-Armour-type or basketball-type sleeveless shirts
are permitted. We will provide all teams with t-shirts with numbers on
the back. Teams must have the same colored shorts, preferably a
football team short. Shorts are available by PFL in same color of
your dark colored t-shirt.
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Players are permitted to wear standard
football cleats with plastic or rubber spikes. NO METAL SPIKES ARE
ALLOWED!
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Ball always placed on right hash mark
when at the 45-yard line.
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Each team will use its own ball during
offensive possessions. Middle School & High School divisions (9th and
up) MUST use the standard size high school sized football.
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Referee will announce score before each
offensive possession begins.
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MOVING THE BALL
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No kicking/punting.
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Field is marked at 15 yard intervals with
cones. (3 first downs without a penalty would result in a TD).
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Possession always begins at the 45 yard
line at the right hash. No penalty will be assessed in excess of the 45
yard line. If a penalty would move the offense beyond the 45 yard line,
the offensive team shall be charged with a loss of down.
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Offenses always move in the same
direction
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NO PASSER MAY RUN WITH THE BALL. ALL
PASSES MUST BE FORWARD. A pass caught behind the line must be
forward. The only laterals that will be allowed will be laterals that
occur AFTER the completion of a forward pass.
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The passer when approached by the
defensive lineman may choose to throw the ball away or accept the sack
when touched by the defensive lineman.
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SPECIAL RULES
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No blocking past 5 yards away from the
ball or line of scrimmage. No screening when a ball has
been intercepted. All defensive players must stop and allow the passing
team's players unrestricted access to the player that intercepted the
ball.
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Receiver/Ball carrier is legally down
when touched below the neck with one or both hands. (Excessive force by
shoving, pushing, or striking a blow will be penalized by automatic
first down and 5 yards. Player will be expelled if ruled unsportsmanlike
& flagrant).
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Fumbles are dead balls at the spot with
the last team retaining possession. A muffed snap is not a fumble/dead
ball. The 4.0 second count remains in effect on snaps. A muffed snap is
not a fumble. The 4.0 second count remains in effect on muffed snaps.
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Each team will have 25 seconds to snap
the ball once it has been marked ready for play; delay of game penalty
will be a 5-yard penalty.
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The QB is allowed 4.0 seconds to throw
the ball. The Official timekeeper starts a stopwatch on the snap of the
ball from center and stops the watch as soon as the QB releases the
ball.
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If release is under 4.0 seconds, the
play goes on.
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If the timekeeper sees that the clock
has exceeded 4.0 seconds, he waits until the play is over (the play is
not blown dead), then brings the ball back to the original line of
scrimmage with loss of down. (The timekeeper will be an official or
coach from a team that is not playing).
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Game manager - placed on the 50
yard-line to keep score for his field (both games) and to assist with
crowd/player control. (This may be a coach).
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Defensive Pass Interference will be a
spot foul (1st down at the spot).
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Responsibility to avoid contact is with
the defense. There will be NO chucking, or deliberate bumping or
grabbing. These actions will result in a "tack on" penalty at the end of
the play (5-yard penalty).
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Offensive pass interference is the same
as NCAA rules.
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Interceptions may be returned however,
defensive players may not block anyone subsequent to an interception. If
an interception is returned beyond the 45-yard line (the offensive
origination point) it is a touchdown and point after attempt should
ensue.
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Offensive team is responsible for
retrieving and returning the ball to the previous spot or the new
scrimmage spot. Clock does not stop and any delay by offense in
retrieving and returning the ball TO THE REFEREE will result in a delay
of game and will be a 5-yard penalty from the succeeding spot.
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The offensive center is not an eligible
receiver (teams must have a center). The ball must be snapped between
the center's legs. The defensive lineman can cross the line of scrimmage
after 3 seconds by repeating out loud "one Mississippi - two Mississippi
- three Mississippi "
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The center will be responsible for
setting or re-positioning the Referee's bean bag at the line of
scrimmage.
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No taunting or "trash talking." (5-yard
penalty & expulsion if flagrant or repeated).
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The offense must gain at least 15 yards
in the first 3 or less plays or the defense takes over. (There is no
kicking). Four down territory occurs only after offense proceeds to or
inside the 15-yard line cone (third quadrant).
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Fighting: the players involved will be
ejected from the game and tournament. If a team fight occurs, the teams
involved will be ejected from the tournament and denied participation in
any/all state qualifying tournaments and the state tournament.
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Any dead ball foul on a play that results
in the defense getting the ball and it is unable to be penalized back to
the 50 yard-line will result in a loss of down penalty. The defense -
not the offense - would be starting play with 2nd down.
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For 8th grade divisions and below, one
coach is allowed on the field for the team's offensive possession. The
coach must remain behind all offensive players at all times.
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SCORING
6 points for TD, 1 point for PAT from 3 yard line, 2 point PAT from 10
yard line (interception on PAT is dead ball). Official score is kept by
field referee and game manager.
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OVERTIME RULES
After coin flip to determine first possession, teams will alternate 4
down series from the 15-yard line. A winner is determined when one team
scores during its possession and the other does not. If a second overtime
period is necessary, each team must then go for two points on the
conversion attempts.
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TIME
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Two 20-minute halves (continuous clock for
each half--see: "starting the game").
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No time outs. (EXCEPTION: Injuries. Both
games on the Field will halt until player(s) can be be removed as soon
as safety dictates).
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10-minute halftime/10 minutes between
games.
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7-on-7 tournaments require that all
games start/end at the same time. If a team(s) is(are) late and cannot
start when the tournament officially starts, they will begin play with
whatever time is left on the tournament clock. (Not to exceed 10
minutes of 1st half. Forfeit will occur after 10 minutes of the 1st
half) IT IS IMPERATIVE TO KEEP TO THE TOURNAMENT TIME SCHEDULE. Teams
must be on site and ready to play when scheduled). Injury time outs
may reduce the amount of time between halves and/or between games to
maintain the game schedules.
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SQUAD MEMBERS/LEAGUE FEES
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Players: Maximum of 20 players per team.
We recommend a minimum of 10 players per team.
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League Fees: Each team must pay $1,000.00
per team to play in the PSTC 7 on 7 Football league. Teams seeking
sponsorships must contact the League coordinator for a sponsorship
package and information on getting the team league fee paid in advance
through corporate donors.
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Squad members must be represented by
their current grade. There are 3 divisions for this league:
Middle School Division
7th - 8th Grade
Junior Varsity - High School
9th - 10th Grade
Varsity - High School
11th - 12th Grade
D. Squad Members are permitted to be moved up to the next level
only in the high school division. NO squad member or student-athlete
may participate at a lower division regardless of age, size, or ability.
E. Maximum of 20 Teams per division. During the regular
season, all teams will play every week.
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OFFICIALS
(2) - Referee/Field Judge and Back Judge for All Games
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COACHES-FATHERS
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No high school or middle school coach may
serve as a coach or stand with the team on the sideline. All team
coaches will wear an identification tag for clarification purposes. A
team may not have more than 4 coaches on the sidelines.
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Each team must have a coach accompany it
to any/all events to serve as an Administrator on duty for their
particular team(s). No high school or middle school coaches are allowed
on the sidelines during a game. High school and middle school coaches
must watch games from the end zones. This individual is responsible for
the ACTION OF THOSE REPRESENTING HIS SCHOOL!
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POOL PLAY TIEBREAKER RULES
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If two teams are tied at the end of pool
play, the first tiebreaker shall be head-to-head play.
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If three or more teams are tied at the
end of pool play, the following tiebreakers shall be applied until there
are two or less teams tied. If two teams are tied at the conclusion of
any of the following tiebreakers, then the tiebreaker shall be
head-to-head play:
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The first tiebreaker shall be
cumulative head to head record against the other tied teams.
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If three or more teams remain tied
after this tiebreaker, the next tiebreaker shall be point
differential.
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If three or more teams remain tied at
the end of these two tiebreakers, the next tiebreaker shall be points
scored.
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If three or more teams remain tied at
the end of this tiebreaker, then the teams shall participate in a coin
flip.
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INCLEMENT WEATHER POLICY
If there is inclement weather on the day of the tournament, PSTC will
evaluate the conditions to determine if the game will be held as
scheduled. PSTC will reserve the right to reschedule or cancel the game if
the inclement weather makes it unsafe or unplayable for players and
spectators. In general, a tournament will be played if there is light to
moderate rain, with no thunder or lightning. If there is inclement weather
on the day of the tournament, call PSTC for updates. If a tournament is
cancelled or rescheduled, Prime Time Sports will apply all fees paid by a
team towards entry into a future PSTC event.
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