Alright Collegiettes, now that football season is under full swing you might be feeling like you’re losing your boyfriend or your best guy friends to another woman (in this case the NFL) every Sunday and Monday night. Instead of getting jealous, join in!
No one likes the person that asks, “Where are those little X’s and O’s?” or “Wait, why is that guy in the helmet running that way?” or my personal favorite, “What team are we rooting for?” Ask those questions and you will never be included again. So here are a few simple rules and terms with some extra tips to help you score some of your own major points.
Basic Rules and Terminology (so you don’t sound like a complete idiot):
– The Field
A) It measures 100 yards long and 53 yards wide. There are little white ticks lining the side of the field that indicate each yard. Every five yard line is extended the length of the field and every ten yard line is indicated with a numeral (i.e. 10, 20, 30, 40, or 50).
B) Each end zone adds an additional 10 yards in length making the entire field 120 yards total.
– Scoring
A) A touchdown is made when the football is crossed over the goal line of the opposing team’s end zone. It is worth six points when made by a run or a pass. It is worth two points if the offensive team runs or passes it into the end zone right after another touchdown instead of kicking a field goal.
B) A field goal is made when a team kicks the ball through the two posts at the ends of the field. It is worth one point when made after a touchdown and three points when made on its own.
– Time
A) The game is composed of four 15-minute quarters. Halftime is 12 minutes long and quarter breaks are 2 minutes long.
B) Each offensive team has 40 seconds from the end of a given play until they must snap the ball for the start of the next play otherwise they will be penalized. The clock stops at the end of an incompletion, when a player goes out of bounds, or when a penalty is called. It starts again when the referee re-spots the football.
C) Due to time outs and time in between downs, a typical game lasts about three hours.
– Teams
A) The offense is made up of eleven players. They go on whenever their team has possession of the ball. There is typically one quarterback, one fullback, one halfback, two wide receivers, one tight end, one center, two tackles, and two guards. Of these players the main thing to know is the center snaps the ball to the quarterback who passes it off to one of the backs or receivers while the guards and tackles hold off the defense.
B) The defense is also made of eleven players. They go on whenever the opposing team has possession of the ball. There are typically two ends, two tackles, three linebackers, two corner backs, and two safeties. Basically, the ends, tackles, and line backers try to tackle the quarterback while the cornerbacks and safeties try to intercept or tackle the wide receivers.
C) Special teams also has eleven players and goes on only in kicking situations (i.e. punts, field goals, and kickoffs).
– Objective
A) The offensive team tries to get as much “yardage” as possible by running or passing the ball forward while the defense tries to intercept or stop the play. A team uses a mix of running and passing plays as to not become too predictable.
B) A team is allowed four chances to advance the ball 10 yards. These chances are called “downs.” If a team does not want to risk losing the ball and is too far from making a feasible completion, they will punt the ball away.
– Penalties
Extra Terms to Know (if you want to really hit it off with the guys):
1. A Safety is worth two points and occurs when the offensive ball carrier is tackled behind his own goal line.
2. A sack is when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage.
3. An audible is when the quarterback changes a play as the line of scrimmage.
4. A fumble is when the ball carrier drops the ball and it can then be recovered by any player on the field to get or retain possession.
5. Intentional grounding is when the quarterback throws an incomplete pass toward an area of the field where there are no players to avoid being tackled. This can result in a loss of a down and ten yards from the spot of the pass.
6. A Hail Mary is generally used on the last play at the end of a half or game when a field goal is just out of range. This is when the quarterback throws the ball up in the air without a particular target, hoping someone will catch it.
7. A blitz is when a defensive player vacates his normal blocking responsibilities in order to pressure the quarterback into making a pass quickly.