The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-10-07
NEW FOOTBALL RULES.
Change, Made BY Intercoiler iate Committee
Promise Good Results.

The few changes IN the football rules made
by the intercollegiate Committee last spring
have worked well SO far. though IL Will be some
time yet before they are thoroughly under
stood. The principal change las been made In
rule IS covering penalties, including those for
oIside play, Last year a team could be de-
prived Of the ball for orside tactics as well as
being pcnalIzed for distance. but this regula-
zion has been changed TO read:
An ofside play by the side In possession Of ths
bali shah be pen,liIti not by the loss Of the ball but
by the loss of,en yards, the number Of the down and
the point ~ which the ball must be advanced for the
nrst down remaining unchanged
In this way it h believed that tho game will
be made more Interesting. on many occa-
sions In the past a team might have carried
the ball the whole length Of the field to within
ten yards Of an opponents goal. Then some
body got ofside. possibly by accident and
the official ruling promptly took the bah away.
As a consequence all the hard work In making
ground went for nothing. With the new rule
In effect a team that has successfully attacked
another for big gains Ia penaliZed ten yards
for an oTside play, II 1t should be tho third
down the team at fault would have TO make I'D
that ten yards plus the amount Of ground to
be otherwise gained TO entitle It To n first down.
III bNNtI Nplh't al A'FHlllk Ntdll sun mas a
chance TO score while Its opponent receives an
opportunity to better its defence In. the last
ditch. Ii also prevents partisan officials from
dcpriving n team Of the ball at a critical point
by declaring somebody onside. Many a time
an eleven has lost the ball bacause some Official
thought he saw "a man ohside.
Another important point is an addition to
Rule 81 which, when enforced, will prevent a
repetition Of the, tactics pursued by h. Yale
elevon At Cambridge last veal. IL will be re-
called that The Yale captain In order 10 re,
what Is known. As the twenty yard rule"
which reads rs follows:
II. In these consecutive downs unless the ball
the ball i've yards nor taken II back twenty yards.
i shall 20 to the opponents on the spot Of the fourth
down,
The Yale captain fell hack twenty ward. on
several occasions on tie third down when Hsr-
Yards d fence was found 10 be inpreCnabls.
possession and still played under q strict inter
pr.tation OF tho rules. But this rlan is impos-
sible nov with the fo!lov!"g addition TO the
rule In effect:
team may not retain possession OF the ball by
talirE ! back twenty yaidSs second time unless the
ball In the meantime has been in tho possession OF The
opponcutN
This restriction will result in the practical
Disappearance, of tho play, as would he
yards on thu third down under the circum-
Of the ball.
The third and most popular change IA that
relating 10 coaching from the side lines. In
years gone by the coaching privilege at the
big games has been steadily abused. The
side lines have fairly swarmed with men who
said they were coacher4 and who got
In the way of spectators and PLAYERS. The
rules have always clearly stipulated that coach
ing during the playing time should be pro-
hibitad but that restriction has been violated
many times. Last year during the Yalc-
Princeton game at New Haven. a Princeton
substitute ran across the CTidirun and was
accused of giving n tip to Poe 10 try n goal
from the field IN order ~ win tho dav with
u minute of play remaining. Whether tho
been proved, but Poe kicked the goal lust
the same and Yale was v%anquishcd There
was quito q howl over this Incident and tn
prevent another ono II the kind tho Rules
Committee framed M IN" following
Whenever the umpire notices ~ Is Informed by the
referee Or llneNman that n substitute ~ MY other ner,
son not Participating In the game I, coaching b shall
Immediately 'Nclute IN u1rnder Tor the remainder VI |
the gsmt from thr nrlghhnrhOod Of thr neld 81 plNy;
1 = send the offender behind the ropes OF fence sur
rounding the held Of play
fuftl crw0'r. g. runLife hail Inlet a rfualty " a
loss n ten yl'ds upon the slrc witch is tHus coached,
the number ~ the down and the point IN To- reHched
for The INST Gown remaining The same. only nVe men |
shall h allowed TO wall M md dow g on each side OF
~ nrld tn rest including AuhStitUt-s, water eat-
ri'rs md al VIII 'tc ADMITTED -'t'in the incloSute. |
must b seated along IN. Inc u ihe Enclosure.
There Ia o 9. otncr new Uoi I that should not
be overlooked, In measuring distance 10 be
gained, tn torvard Toint ~ the ln., not its |
centre, must he tafe en- asthe determining point.
This vii do away with n,edles controversy. In
all other respects The rules remain the same a.
last year 4