2009 OFFICIAL STATE 7 ON 7 PASSING TOURNAMENT RULES

 

MOUTH PIECES:  It is required that mouth pieces be worn!   

 

1.  Field Dimensions:

      A.  Field Length--45 yards long

      B.  Field Width--160 feet (60 feet to hash mark, 40 feet between)

      C.  End Zone--10 yards deep

 

2.  Starting the game:

A.     A central time keeper will be designated.  All games will begin and end on this persons instructions.  He will also announce the time remaining at the 10, 5, and 2 minute mark

B.     Visitors will have first possession and wear white (top team in bracket or first team listed will be the visitor).  The home team will have first possession the 2^nd half and wear a dark color (bottom team in bracket or 2^nd team listed will be the home team).  NO TEAM WILL BE ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE WITHOUT SHIRTS!                      

C.     All teams will have two jerseys (white/dark jersey, t-shirt, etc.) WITH PLAYERS NUMBER ON FRONT AND BACK.        

D.     NO FOOTBALL JERSEY'S OF ANY TYPE SHALL BE WORN.  T-shirts, Underarmour, or basketball type sleeveless shirts are the only choices of acceptable jerseys.

E.      Visitors (team in white), will always align their team on the right sideline facing the end zone, home (dark jersey), will always align their team on the left sideline facing the end zone.         

F.      Ball is always placed on the right hashmark when at the 45 yard line.

G.     Referee will announce/post score before each offensive possession begins.

 

3.  Moving the ball.

A.     Offensive Plays Must All Be Passes! (No Kicking/Punting)

B.     Field is marked at 15 yard intervals with cones.  (3 first downs without a penalty would result in a touchdown)

C.     Possession always begins at the 45 yard line at the right hash mark.  HASH MARK PLACEMENT OF THE BALL MUST BE ENFORCED BY OFFICIALS, IN ACCORDANCE WITH NCAA RULES, ONCE THE BALL HAS BEEN ADVANCED.

D.     NO PENALTY WILL BE ASSESSED IN EXCESS OF THE 45 YD. LINE.  On an unsuccessful or successful offensive play from the 45 yard line resulting in an offensive penalty:  The ball will be returned to the 45 yard line and 1^st down will become 2^nd down;  2^nd down will become 3^rd down, and 3^rd down will result in a turnover.   

E.      Offenses always move in the same direction

F.      All passes must be forward.  A pass caught behind the line of scrimmage must be a forward pass.  ONCE A FORWARD PASS HAS BEEN THROWN, A BACKWARD PASS (lateral) IS ALLOWED. 

G.     Should a swing pass not cross the LOS and before the 4 second count has expired, a defensive player tags the ball carrier behind the 45 yard line, it is a SAFETY.

 

4.  Special Rules

A.     No blocking. 

B.     Receiver/Ball carrier is legally down when touched with one or both hands.

(Excessive force by shoving, pushing, or striking a blow will be penalized by automatic first down and 5 yards.  Expulsion of a player(s) if ruled unsportsmanlike & flagrant).

C.     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 affect on snaps.

D.     Each team will have 25 seconds to snap the ball once it has been marked ready for play.  Two delay of game penalties in the same possession results in a turnover.  A DELAY OF GAME PENALTY ON THE EXTRA POINT TRY RESULTS IN A TURNOVER!

E.      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.

1.  If release is under 4.0 seconds, the play goes on.

2.      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)

3.      The only infractions possible when a 4 second count is called are unsportsmanlike acts.  

F.      Defensive Pass Interference will be a spot foul (1^st down at the spot).

G.     Responsibility to avoid contact is with the defense.  There will be NO chucking. Deliberate bumping or grabbing.  These actions will result in a "tack on" penalty at the end of the play (5 yard penalty)            

H.     Offensive pass interference is the same as NCAA rules. (15 YARD PENALTY)                                

I.        Interceptions may be returned ("no blocking" rule applies).  If an interception is returned beyond the 45 yard line (the offensive origination point) it is a touchdown and point after attempt should ensue.  The teammates of the person who intercepted the ball MAY trail the runner so as to be in position to take a backwards pass.  THEY MAY NOT BLOCK FOR OR SCREEN FOR THE RUNNER. 

J.       Offensive team is responsible for retrieving and returning the ball to the previous spot or the new scrimmage spot in a timely fashion.  Failure to do so can result in a delay of game penalty.                       

K.    The offensive center is not an eligible receiver (teams must have a center).  THE BALL MUST BE SNAPPED FROM THE GROUND BETWEEN THE SNAPPERS LEGS! (mirror the game of football)

L.      The center will be responsible for setting or re-positioning the Referee's bean bag at the line of scrimmage.  On change of possession, the team moving to offense will ensure the bean bag gets to the new scrimmage line. (centers on both teams responsible).

M.   No taunting or "trash talking".  (5 yard penalty & expulsion if flagrant).

N.    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).

O.    Fighting:  the player(s) 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!  They will also be disqualified from participating in the state tournament.

P.      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, now the offense, would be starting play with 2^nd down.

Q.    NO OUT OF STATE TEAMS WILL BE ALLOWED TO PLAY IN A STATE QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT.  NO COMBINATION OR SELECT TEAMS ARE ALLOWED TO PLAY IN A STATE QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT.

 

5.     Scoring: 

A.  6 points for TD

B.  1 point for PAT from 3 yard line, 2 point PAT from 10 yard line (interception on PAT is dead ball). 

C.  Official score is kept by field referee and game manager.

 

6.  Tie Breaker: 

A.  After coin flip to determine first possession, teams will alternate 4 down series from the 15 yard line.

B.  A winner is determined when one team scores during its possession and the other does not.  (Federation rules). 

C.  If a second overtime period is necessary, each team must then go for two points on the conversion attempts. 

 

7.  Time:

      A.  20 minute halves (continuous clock for each half--see: "starting the game").

      B.  No time outs.  (EXCEPTION:  Injuries.  Both games on the Field will halt until player(s) can be removed as soon as safety dictates).

A.     10 minute half-time/10 minutes between games.

      D.  7 on 7 tournaments require that all games start/end at the same time.  If a team(s) are late and can not 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 1^st half.  Forfeit will occur after 10 minutes of the 1^st 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.

 

8.  Secondary Coverage's:

      A.  Coverage will be the choice of each participating team.

                                               

9.  Squad Members/Tournament Fees

A.     Players:  Maximum of 20 players per team.  This rule will be strictly enforced in all qualifying tournaments!

B.     Tournament Fees:

1)      Each participant must pay $15 to play in a state qualifying tournament.

2)      Minimum Registration of $180 (12 players) must be sent to the SQT host school when registering for an SQT Tournament. (non-refundable deposit)

3)      Maximum Registration Fee for an SQT Tournament is $300 (20 players).    

C.     Squad members must be from same school.  (NO SELECT TEAMS)

D.     All participants must have at least one year remaining of high school eligibility.

E.      No out of state teams will be allowed to compete in a state qualifying tournament.

 

10. Officials:  (3)--Referee; Field judge, Back Judge

      Timekeeper:  A designated official will keep the 4 second clock.

 

11. Coaches—Fathers.

A.     No high school coach may serve as a coach or stand with the team on the sideline.

B.     Each team must have a coach accompany it to any/all events to serve as a school administrator on duty for their particular team(s).  This individual is responsible for the ACTION OF THOSE REPRESENTING HIS SCHOOL!

C.     ALL HIGH SCHOOL COACHES PRESENT MUST SIT IN THE END ZONE.  NO HIGH SCHOOL COACHES ARE ALLOWED ON THE SIDELINE.

D.     All team coaches will wear an identifying tag for clarification purposes.  A team may not have more than four (4) coaches on the sideline.

E.      Head Coaches or his designee is the Tournament Director in all SQT's.

                                                                                               

12.  Failure to Pay Entry Fee:

IN ALL SQT's, THERE WILL BE A $15 PER PLAYER CHARGE UP TO A MAXIMUM OF 20 PLAYERS.  THE MINIMAL COST PER TEAM IS $180.  THIS RULE WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED AT ALL SQT's.  VIOLATION OF THIS RULE WILL RESULT IN A DISQUALIFICATION FROM ADVANCEMENT TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND.

              

13.  Team Area:

NO TEAM SHALL HAVE ADDITIONAL ATHLETE'S ON THE SIDELINE OR IN THE TEAM TENT PARTIALLY DRESSED IN A TEAM UNIFORM (SHORTS AND/OR T-SHIRTS)

 

14.  QUALIFYING ELIGIBILITY (State Qualifying Tournament)

A.     Teams are eligible to qualify for the Texas State 7 on 7 Tournament by placing 1^st or 2^nd in an SQT.

B.     State Qualifying Teams that fail to participate in a SQT that they have registered for without "prior notice", will be eliminated from further SQT play and from the State Tournament even if they have qualified for the State Tournament in a previous SQT.

* PRIOR NOTICE is defined as informing the host school by the 1^st business day of the week

of the SQT.  (Subject to Board Review) THE TERM OF THE DISQUALIFICATION IS ONE CALENDAR YEAR FROM THE DATE OF THE MISSED TOURNAMENT!

 

15.  TOURNAMENT TIE BREAKERS –

A.     Head to Head, Points Scored, Points Allowed will determine the pool winners or teams to advance. 

B.     In a three way tie, once a winner has been declared, the remaining two teams will revert back to head to head, points scored, points allowed to break the remaining tie.

C.     A forfeit will be treated the same as a qualifying team in a bracket.  The team forfeiting or the team that has qualified will not count in the tie breaker scenario when determining head to head, points scored or points allowed.  In essence, a bracket with a qualifying or forfeiting team becomes a three team bracket!

 

16.  COMMON SENSE –

Fans may sit behind their team when they are playing.  However, after the contest, they must relinquish their    position to the fans of the team schedule to play.  Fans may not sit behind someone else's team during a contest.

 

 

7 ON 7 STATE CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT – COLLEGE STATION

 

A.     Class 4A/5A, 64 teams will divide into sixteen groups of four and play a round-robin (3 games each team)  Class 1A/2A/3A, 32 teams will be divided into 8 groups of four and play a round-robin (3 games each)

B.     The top two teams from each pool will then be entered into a 32 team single elimination championship tournament.  The remaining 32 teams will then be entered into a single elimination consolation tournament, Class 4A/5A.  The top two teams from each pool will them be entered into a 16 team single elimination tournament.  The remaining 16 teams will then be entered into a single elimination consolation tournament, Class 1A/2A/3A.

C.     If there is a tie in pool play, head-to-head is the first tie breaker, total points scored is second, total points allowed will be third.  After that, we will flip a coin!

D.     A team removed from any state qualifying tournament for fighting will not be allowed to participate in the state tournament for that particular year.

E.      Any team leaving the state tournament causing forfeiture of a scheduled game, will result in said team being kept out of all state qualifying tournaments the following year.

 

 

Updated 1/25/09