The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-02-19
FOOTBALL RULES COMMITTEE WILL
 DISCUSS CHANGES
Interpretation of Shift Play Rules Is First on Docket,
 Says Camp
By WALTER CA MP
Special corresnond4nt of Tho .v.,,.ra

SDeclal NorFeBp0nnent or Ihe AZe-HcrHl0
 tCopyright. tvs2. by Ehe Age-nerllnl
 New ork, February IS.-The meet ing of the football ruies committee in March is expected to clear up deti- nitely the rules governsng shift plays and their interpretation. about which there has been so much controversy in the past. Clear cut and helpful suggestions have been formulated for the assistance of the committee as a result of conferences in various sec tions of coaches and officials.
 It has been pretty generally admit ted that football last year saw much more cleanly cut decisions by offi- cials on shift plays and in calling these which were illegal. The coaches and officials in this section as re- suit of their recent meeting, have agreed/ /to recommend to the rules committee that the following be in- corporated in the rules:
 'In all shift plays. an interval ot time shall be allowed to elapse suffi- cient to permit the officials to see, 1 first, whether the play is legal. and second, to determine whether the ball was snapped while the men were in notion
 Regarding shift Plays
 The rules committee approved the priAciple outlined in the above last fall at the interpretation meeting. Ir discussing the phases "menlin mo- tion, and both feet stationary on the ground. now in the rules, the committee held they should be interp- reed as follows:
 "In all shift plays both feet sta tionary on the ground shall be in- trepeted to mean that sufficient momentary pause occur as to admit of the officials seeing that the play is legal and that the ball was not snapped while the men were in mo- tion."
 Reports from all sections show that clipping or cutting a man down from behind has practically been checked and coaches have ceased to teach any thing of the kind. The rules commit tee will be asked, however, to in clude in tho rules themselves the approved ruling of last year by which throwing the body laterally from be- hind across the legs below the knees Of player not carrying the ball is penalized as unnecessary roughness.
 Penalty For Clipping
 The committee will also be asked to take care of another situation which has come up in connection with clipping. It has been found that when clipping was penalized there was quite a difference in it's effect upon the offensive and the defensive sides The rule penalized the offen- sive side l5 yards from the spot where the ball was. put in play. But in the case of bafl kicked down the 1eld and caught and run back by the defensive side without a scr mmage, the penalty for clipping by player of the side running back the kick was really an advantage. Enforce ment of the penalty from the spot where the ball was put in play us- ually advanced the ball much further than the runner could probably>have advanced in any event. The only way to take care of this in the rules will be to change the spot from which the penalty is to be inflicted.
 Goal After Touchdown
 The kick for goal after a touch down came in for It's usual discussion at the conference of coaches and otfi- cials. A suggestion by Maj. Charles i Daly Of West Point was finally adopt ed by the meeting here and will be recommended to the riles committed Major Daly's plan is have the teams line up on say the 15-yard line after l a touchdown. The side making the 1 touchdown would be given the bal i and be permitted to try for helo i kick for goal. to enceavor to get a touchdown by running with the ball or to secure a touchdown through a | forward pass. Any score either by kick or touchdown would count only one point and only one play would be allowed. A foul by the side in pos session of the ball would lose them their chance while foul by the de tenders would be penali2ed by glV' ling their opponents their one point