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Football Equipment

Written By gurucool on Thursday, August 23, 2012 | 7:18 PM

Football Equipment
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The Football

The main piece of equipment for football is the ball. It's a funny oblong spheroid shape. This unique shape helps the ball to travel well when thrown with a spiral and is part of what makes the sport so interesting.


football ball


All major levels of play including the NFL, college, and high school use a similar size football. It is around 11 inches long with a circumference of around 21 inches at the width. It weighs between 14 and 15 ounces. Smaller balls are available for younger kids. These can be helpful, especially for learning how to throw the ball at a younger age.

The football has the nickname "pigskin" because it used to be made out of pigs bladders. Today footballs are mostly made from cow leather or synthetic materials.

Helmet

Perhaps the most important piece of equipment is the helmet. Football can be a dangerous sport and all players should wear a helmet at all times. The helmet provides padding and a hard exterior to protect the player's head from injury.

Across the front of the helmet is the face mask. This helps protect the player's face and eyes while letting the player see the field.

Often attached to the helmet is a mouth guard. This is another protective item that should be worn while playing football to protect your teeth.

Pads

Football pants and pads


All football players need to wear pads. The thickness and type of pads may vary depending on the position played. Pads and protection that should be worn include shoulder pads, collar pads, hip pads, thigh pads, knee pads, neck rolls, athletic supporter, rib pads, forearm pads, and tailbone pads.

You should work with your parents and coaches to best determine what pads and type of pads you should wear. It can be tempting to avoid certain pads in an attempt to be lighter or more flexible, but you won't be a very good player if you are on the sidelines injured.

Uniform

The football uniform includes the helmet, a jersey, and pants. Sometimes these can be very colorful and many teams change up the colors and styles of uniforms throughout the season.

Numbers

Each player has a number on their jersey to help the fans and officials recognize players. In the NFL certain positions must have a number within a certain range. For example, a quarterback must have a number between 1 and 19. Here is a list of the numbers and positions:
  • 1-9: Quarterback, kicker, punter
  • 10-19: Quarterback, wide receiver, kicker, punter
  • 20-29: Running back, corner back, safety
  • 30-39: Running back, cornerback, safety
  • 40-49: Running back, tight end, cornerback, safety
  • 50-59: Offensive line, defensive line, line backer
  • 60-69: Offensive line, defensive line
  • 70-79: Offensive line, defensive line
  • 80-89: Wide receiver, tight end
  • 90-99: Defensive line, line backer
Cleats

Football players wear cleats for shoes. Linemen often wear high top cleats for the most ankle protection, while wide receivers, quarterbacks, and running backs will wear mid-top cleats for some ankle protection, but more maneuverability.
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Football Down

Written By gurucool on Tuesday, August 21, 2012 | 6:48 PM

The Football Down
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What is a football down?

One of the most important concepts in the game of football is the down. A down is really another name for play. On each down a play is made.


Football down markers
Downs are shown by markers on the sidelines


There are 4 Downs

The offensive team has 4 downs or plays to either score or gain 10 yards. If the team gains 10 yards, then the downs start over. If they don't gain 10 yards, after the fourth try, the opposing team gets possession of the football at the spot of the tackle.

Each down is called by its name or number: First, second, third, and fourth down.

Playing Each Down

To start the down the football is hiked from the center the quarterback. From there, the quarterback can run with the football, hand it off to another player like a running back, or throw the ball to another player like a wide receiver.

The down or play is over once the player with the football is tackled, goes out of bounds, or one team scores. The next play or down will start from the point where the player was tackled or went out of bounds.

Fourth Down

Fourth down is the offensive team's last attempt to try and gain 10 yards. If they don't get to the 10 yards mark, then the other team gets the football. There are a few options:

Go For It: A football team can choose to play a regular play on fourth down and try to gain the 10 yards. If they don't, then the other team gets the ball at the spot of the tackle. In some cases this could give them really good field position.

Kick a Field Goal: If they are close enough, a football team will try and kick a field goal and gain three points. If they miss, the other team gets the football at the point where the ball was spotted on fourth down.

Punt: In many cases a football team will choose to punt. They kick the ball as far as they can down field to the other team and then try to tackle the player who catches the ball. By punting the team gives up the ball, but they gain field position.

Speaking the Lingo

When downs are described the number of the down is followed by how many yards are left to go. So the typical first down will be described as "first and ten". This means it is first down and there are 10 yards to go to get the next first down. When someone says "fourth and 1", this means its fourth down and there is 1 yard to go to get another first down.

Referee signals for downs

First down signal


The referee signals first down by pointing with his right arm toward the defensive team's goal.

The referee signals fourth down by raising one arm above his head with his hand in a fist.

* referee signal pictures from the NFHS
6:48 PM | 0 komentar

Football Timing and the Clock

Written By gurucool on Monday, August 20, 2012 | 6:42 PM

Football Timing and the Clock
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How long is a football game?

Football games are divided up into two halves or four quarters. In high school each quarter is 12 minutes long while in the NFL and college each quarter is 15 minutes long. The clock doesn't run all of the time, however. It gets stopped for time outs and between certain plays.

Each half is started with a kick off, and the football teams change sides at the end of each quarter.

When does the clock stop in football?

The clock stops in football for a number of reasons:
  • During timeouts
  • At the end of a quarter
  • When a ball carrier runs out of bounds
  • On a penalty
  • When a player is injured
  • When a team scores
  • When the ball changes possession
  • After a play ending in an incomplete pass
  • When the officials need to measure for a first down
  • In college and high school the play clock also stops when a team gets a first down. This changes a lot of strategy at the end of games versus the NFL.
  • In the NFL the clock is stopped for the Two Minute Warning. This is like a time out with two minutes in the game left.
Football Clock Strategy

Because the clock stops on certain kinds of plays, this means football teams use different strategies depending on the score and the amount of time left. At the end of the game or the half, one team will be trying to score. They may try to run the football out of bounds or run pass plays where the clock will stop between plays rather than keep running. They will also try to use less time when setting up for plays and use their timeouts at critical times to stop the clock. This speed-up offense is often called the Two Minute Offense.

Meanwhile the other team will be trying to "run-out" the clock. They may run the football a lot or try to tackle the other team in-bounds to try and keep the clock running.

What are the 25 and 40 second play clocks?

The offensive team only has so long to hike the football and start another play. In the case where play is continuing, they have 40 seconds from the end of the previous play to start a new play. If play has stopped, like for a timeout, then they have 25 seconds from the time the referee sets the ball and starts the play clock.

Referee Clock and Timing Signals
  • Timeout - A timeout is signaled by the referee waving his arms above his head.
  • Clock not Stopping - The referee can signal that the clock isn't stopping by moving his arm in a wide circle in the clockwise direction.
  • Delay of Game - If the play clock goes to zero before the offensive team starts a play, the referee will signal delay of game by folding his arms in front of him.
  • Reset Play Clock - To start the 25 second clock the referee will hold his right hand in the air, open palm out and pump his arm to signal the clock starting. He will use both arms to signal the 40 second clock is starting.
6:42 PM | 0 komentar

Football Field

Written By gurucool on Sunday, August 19, 2012 | 7:06 PM

The Football Field
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Football is played on a field. Most of the time the field is grass, but sometimes fake grass called artificial turf is used. Because the lines on the field look like a grid, the nickname for the field is the "gridiron".


Football field dimensions Click to see larger version


Dimensions

The main playing area of the field is 100 yards (300 feet) long by 53 1/3 yards (160 feet) wide.

End Zones

At each end of the field is an end zone. This area extends the field another 10 yards on each side. The line between the field and the end zone is the goal line. In order to score a touchdown some portion of the ball must cross the goal line in the possession of an offensive player.

Play outside the lines of the end zone is considered out of bounds.

Yard Lines

Every five yards a line crosses the field. Each 10 yards this line is marked with a yardage number. At the center of the field is the 50 yard line. In each direction from the 50 yard line to the end zone, the yard line decreases the closer you get to the end zone.

Hash Marks

Hash marks are small lines made every yard on the field. These lines help to spot the ball on the field and give an indication of the distance left to achieve a first down.

Field Goal

At the end of the end zone and centered on the field is the field goal. The bottom of the field goal is 10 feet high. In the NFL and college the posts are 18 feet 6 inches wide. In high school the posts are 23 feet 4 inches wide.

Side Lines

The side lines are considered out of bounds. If any part of the player touches the line, then they are out of bounds.

Goal Line

The goal line is the line between the playing field and the end zone.

End Line

The end line is the line at the back of the end zone.
7:06 PM | 0 komentar

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