NCAA going back to OLD Rules

[cygnus34]

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/stories/2007/02/14/0214sptncaarules.html

[flsportsfan83]

thank god, those clock rules were horrible.

[Jihme]

interesting

[E.T.]

Sure they will be voted back to normal ... glad to see this rule GONE !

[79 Bull]

I like moving the kickoff back 5 yards.  I would much rather see a return man given a chance to shine than a touchback.

[windbane]

*sigh of relief*

More plays, more college football.  Only the press complained about long game times (saw it on Around the Horn, PTI, etc).  They don't see the need for long games.  Well, I love them.  Also, single-game records will be easier to break and now that everyone has 12-game season, the season records will be even from here on out (except for bowl game, but whatever, that's another reward for going to one...oh, and conference championships...eh).

I agree about the kickoff being 5 yards farther back.  Puts more emphasis on a good kicker as well.  At least we have some strong legs at USF.

I also love the time-saving measures with the timeouts and kickoffs.  Sure, I don't mind long games, but I'm all for getting to the action faster.  Commercials won't get shorter because they need money, so those help.

The only thing I'm worried about is the rule for 2008 where they are changing the play clock to 40 seconds.  I'm all for a uniform play clock but does that mean the game clock will start before the ball is placed like the NFL?  It would make sense to change that but college hasn't been that way for a long time as far as I know.

[Guest]

The only thing I'm worried about is the rule for 2008 where they are changing the play clock to 40 seconds.  I'm all for a uniform play clock but does that mean the game clock will start before the ball is placed like the NFL?  It would make sense to change that but college hasn't been that way for a long time as far as I know.

Yes... from the article it reads:

The rules committee also announced that starting in 2008, college football will go to a 40-second play clock like that now used in the NFL. The 40-second clock will start at the end of every play. College football currently uses a 25-second clock that doesn't start until the ball is put in position and declared ready for play.

Truthfully, there are very few plays that take more than 15 seconds from the end of one play until the ball is marked ready for play.  Now the "ready for play signal" will only affect the game clock (on first downs) and indicate that the ball can legally be snapped by the offense.

[crambone]

What team was it this year that kicked two kickoffs out of bounds to waste time before halftime?

Yeah, that was cheap.

[Guest]

What team was it this year that kicked two kickoffs out of bounds to waste time before halftime?

Yeah, that was cheap.

Wisconsin did it to Penn State.

The first kick wasn't out of bounds, but because the whole kick coverage team was so far offsides, PSU had the ball at the 10.

The second kick they were offsides as well...

I couldn't find a clip of it - but it was hilarious.

[USFPDiddy]

I don't think a great deal of people liked the clock rules.  It bothered me especially because exactly how long the refs wait before signaling "ready for play" is NOT uniform.  They don't even have to be biased to accidently give a team more or less time.  Hell, circumstances could force it, like the ball being near the line of scrimmage vs it being wayyyyy out there.

I like the ways they are considering, particularly the 40 second clock (less line of scrimmage and bizarre formation shifts dancing most likely) and the kickoffs from the 30 yards, making returners and special teams a lot more relevant.