The NCAA approved a proposal Tuesday that will let coaches challenge one official ruling per game and have it reviewed by replay, provided his team has an available timeout.
Under the rule change, approved by the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel, a team will retain a timeout if the challenge is successful and lose it if the ruling on the field stands.
The rule change comes a year after the NCAA allowed, but didn?t require, video replay at all schools and conferences. Nine of the 11 Division I conferences used some form of replay in 2005 with officials in a video booth making all of the decisions dealing with questionable calls.
The Football Rules Committee proposed adding the coach?s challenge component to the video replay regulation during a February meeting. That 12-member committee is composed of coaches and school administrators from across the country.
“After experimenting with video replay for a year, we were looking for a uniform system for all of college football,” said Ty Halpin, the NCAA Associate Director for Playing Rules Administration. “Although there is no requirement to use video replay, everyone will be playing under the same replay rules. After reviewing the replay system last year, adding a coach?s challenge was something the Football Rules committee felt was necessary.”
Locally, at least one head football coach favors the rule changes. Navy coach Paul Johnson said adding the option of a coach?s challenge is a step in the right direction with regard to video replay.
“Having the challenge is something I?ll have to think through on the field,” said Johnson, entering his fifth year at the helm. “You need to have a pretty good idea that the call will get overturned because you don?t want to lose a timeout. But, if you are going to have replay, allowing a coach a challenge is the right way to do it.”
Also in football, the panel approved a revision of the rule on the length of halftime. The recommended time is 20 minutes, but that can be lengthened or shortened if both competing schools consent to a change.
NCAA RULE CHANGES
» The panel approved a number of changes for men?s and women?s basketball, including a requirement that all Division II and III schools, by the 2010-11 season, have a game clock that displays 10ths of a second and shot clocks that are mounted on the backboard.
» Also approved was the Basketball Rules Committee?s proposal that does not allow an airborne player falling out of bounds or into the backcourt to be granted a timeout.
