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NYC Social Sports Club Rules
Number of Players A team must have a minimum of 5 players to start. A maximum of 7 players may be on the field at any given time, two of whom must be women.
Substitutions
New York professionals are a busy bunch! We understand that, despite your best efforts, registered members may not be able to attend every game. To promote the social spirit of our league, we will be allowing teams to bring substitute players for our Spring leagues. Game Length And Structure The game will consist of two 20-minute halves and a 5-minute half time. The 1st half will have a continuous running clock except for referee and team time outs. In the 2nd half during the last 2 minutes, the clock will stop for out of bounds, incomplete passes, and scores if the teams are within 16 points of each other. All teams receive 1 time out per half. The 1st half time out is not usable in the second 2nd half. GENERAL FLAG FOOTBALL RULES
Non-Contact There is NO CONTACT ALLOWED in this league. No stiff-arming, no blocking, no picks, no protecting flags, no getting grabby. Starting The Game
At the start of the game, the head referee will flip a coin to determine which team will have first possession. The winner of the coin flip has the choice to receive, or defer to the 2nd half. The loser of the coin toss is left with the remaining option. Teams will then line up at their respective goal lines for the opening “kick off”. The “kicking” team may either punt or throw the ball to the receiving team. Place-kicking is not permitted and no one may pass the ball until the ball leaves the kickers possession. Any infraction will result in an offsides penalty added on to the end of the return. The ball cannot cross the goal line until it is released. The kickoff is a live ball. The ball may be fielded off a bounce and advanced, but if the ball is touched by any player and then hits the ground, the play will be blown dead immediately. The first team to touch the ball once it has passed the midfield line gains possession of the ball. If for some reason the kicking team is unable to get the ball across midfield, the receiving team gains possession at the spot of the dead ball. If the kick goes out of bounds, before reaching midfield it will be placed where it went out of bounds. If a kickoff goes out of bounds after the midfield line, the receiving teams takes possession at the last cone the ball past before going out of bounds (either the midfield or down marker). If the ball goes into the opposing team’s endzone on a kickoff, the receiving team can either run the ball out or kneel down with the ball. Kneeling ends the play and is considered a “Touchback”. Touchbacks are placed at the 15-yard line. If the ball hits the back fence of our field on a kickoff, it will be an automatic Touchback. Initiating A Play
The center should only touch the ball once the official deems the ball ready for play. The entire team must come set at once, prior to the snap. Any movement after that will result in a false start penalty. One player is allowed to be in motion parallel to the line of scrimmage or moving away form the line of scrimmage at the time of the snap. No more than one player may be in motion at any one time. The ball must be in contact with the ground before it can be snapped. Once the ball is considered ready for play, the offense will have 25 seconds to snap the ball. If those 25 seconds pass without a snap, a delay of game penalty will be called. The ball must be snapped to a player clearly positioned in the Quarterback's position on all plays. Defenders are not allowed to rush the backfield (cross the line of scrimmage) until 1 of 3 things happens:
There are no blitzes. Fake hand-offs and play action passes are allowed. As long as the ball does not change possession in the backfield the rusher must continue the 5 Mississippi count. Any premature crossing of scrimmage to pursue the fake will be deemed offsides. All players on the field are considered eligible receivers. The Field The whole field is 75 yards long and 21.5 yards wide. There are 7.5 yard end zones at the ends of the field. In addition to these end zones, the playing field is 60 yards long. The playing field is split into fourths, and there are cones at 0 yards, 15 yards, 30 yards, 45 yards, and 60 yards. First Downs
First downs are earned based on distance. They are spaced evenly on the field every 15 yards across the field. These first down markers are not mobile and they are at fixed positions on the field (15 yards, 50 yards, and 45 yards). If your team passes a first down marker during normal play, they will receive a new set of downs. If your team passes a first down marker and then loses yardage on a following play, you cannot get another first down from a marker you have already passed. Referees will always have the final word if a team has successfully made it past a first down marker or not. However, every third PLAY must be an active female play. This count resets after every attempted female play, meaning that the next two plays in the drive are "open", and can go to either male or female.
Female Plays
Teams must include in the play AT LEAST one active female play every three plays. This means one of the following must take place in each set of 3 plays:
Any play that violates this rule will be nullified and the down lost, but no further penalty will be assessed. This will continue until an active female play is run. Change of Possession The ball is turned over to the other team when one of the following occurs:
Catches/Scoring
A catch is considered legal if it is thrown from behind the line of scrimmage, the receiver has control of the ball, and it is made with at least one foot in bounds. Play stops when a flag is pulled from the ball carrier, when the ball carrier steps out of bounds, or when any part of the ball carrier’s body touches the ground (besides feet, of course!). If the flag falls out or the belt is lost during a play, a player is down when they are touched with two hands by the defense. If the player intentionally loses belt/flag it will be ruled as guarding the belt with contact, and a 10-yard penalty will be assessed A touchdown is scored when the ball breaks the plane of the goal line. Touchdowns are worth 6 points. Teams may go for 1 point or 2 points more after achieving a touchdown, as explained below: Extra Points
The female-play count resets regardless of which conversion option the team chooses, and the play shall be open. No extra point attempts may be returned by the other team for a touchdown.
1-point Conversion: A run or pass play that crosses the goal line from the 5 yard line. 2-point Conversion: A run or pass play that crosses the goal line from the 10 yard line. Safety A safety occurs when the team in possession of the ball fumbles it and touches the ball first in their own endzone; a player has a flag pulled or goes out of bounds in their own endzone; or the team in possession of the ball commits a penalty inside their own endzone. The result is 2 points for the opposing team and their possession of the ball at mid-field. Note: If a player receives a punt or kickoff or intercepts a pass and the momentum of the of the play carries them into the endzone a safety will not be ruled unless the player leaves the endzone under their own power and then returns into the endzone. Penalties
Penalties are assessed as follows depending on the severity of the infraction. An exception is the Unsportsmanlike Conduct Penalty. 5-yard Penalties
10-yard Penalties
Spot of the Foul Penalty
Unsportsmanlike Conduct Unsportsmanlike conduct is considered anything intentional and with the ability to injure, excessive arguing, or anything considered an act of aggression towards another person. The offending player will be ejected. Any team receiving 2 unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in 1 game will forfeit that game automatically no matter what the score and receive a forfeit loss in the official scoring. Equipment
Belts and flags are provided for you. Shirts are provided by the league and must be tucked in. Any player wearing a non-league shirt deemed too confusing to the other team (ex: wrong color or wrong league) and will not be allowed to play. Clothing with loops, large pockets, and hard surfaces are not permitted. Metal/removable spikes are not allowed. Molded cleats are permitted provided they don’t tear up the field. We’re playing on turf, so make appropriate shoe decisions. Forfeits
If a team has less than 5 players or less than 2 women at game time, the team suffers an automatic forfeit in the standings, although the game will still be played for fun. A game will be ruled a forfeit if any of the following occur:
Forfeit time for all games is officially the scheduled game time. Exceptions can be made if a team is waiting on a couple of players (e.g. transit issues) with the understanding that the delay will cut time from the end of their game, and that the final decision is subject to the referee’s discretion.' Sportsmanship points will be deducted from teams that forfeit a game due to a 'no-show' or a 'low-show.' Teams can minimize the deduction by Contacting Us ahead of time. Teams will receive:
Inclement Weather In the event the games have been started and then have to be called off due to inclement weather while underway, the games will be restarted from the beginning if less than half of the game has been played and will be called or resumed from the stoppage of play if gameplay crossed the half-game mark . Any games postponed for weather will be rescheduled and information on the rescheduled game will be sent to all players and gamestaff by email. SEASON ABANDONMENT Registered teams that miss two weeks of play will be considered to have abandoned their place in the league. Teams in this category will be contacted by a NYC Social Sports Club staff member to confirm their status. Teams failing to respond within two business days will be removed from the season schedule and will forfeit their registration fees. Teams that do respond will be required to supply reasoning for lack of attendance and petition the league for reinstatement. Season abandonment and reactivation decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis at the sole discretion of the league management and must be resolved before returning to play in the current season or in subsequent seasons. SPORTSMANSHIP RULES Each team will be awarded a sportsmanship score following the game. Teams must have an average sportsmanship score of 4.0 at the end of the regular season to participate in the playoffs. Any team receiving below a 3.5 sportsmanship score will be required to send an email to the league explaining their actions before the team/offending players will be allowed to compete again. 5.0 – Excellent conduct and sportsmanship: This is the baseline, grading should start here. A team that does not have any problems will receive a '5'. Players cooperate fully with the officials and other team members. The captain calmly converses with the officials about rule interpretations and calls. The captain also has full control of his/her teammates & fans. 4.5 – Very few complaints. A good match with very little or no taunting or unsportsmanlike behavior exhibited by either team. 4.0 – Average conduct and sportsmanship: Team members verbally complain about some decisions made by the officials and/or show minor dissent. 3.5 – Team (and/or fans) complains more frequently and may get warned for unsportsmanlike behavior, but NO unsportsmanlike conduct penalties are assessed. Teams that alert the office before either a 'no-show' or 'low-show' forfeit are assigned a rating of 3.5. 3.0 – Below average conduct and sportsmanship: Team shows verbal dissent toward officials and/or opposing team that merits an unsportsmanlike penalty. Captain exhibits minor control over his/her teammates, spectators, but is in control of himself/herself. Teams that don't alert the office before a 'low-show' forfeit are assigned a rating of 3. 2.5 – No more than two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. No ejections. Captain tries to help the situation. Teams that don't alert the office before a no-show forfeit are assigned a rating of 2.5. 2.0 – Poor conduct and sportsmanship: Team member and/or spectators constantly comment to the officials and/or opposing team from the field and/or sidelines. Captain has some control over team. A team has no more than two unsportsmanlike penalties and/or will receive a 2.0 if one player gets ejected from match. 1.5 – Single ejection or multiple unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. The team captain exhibits little or no control over teammates, fans, or himself/herself. 1.0 – Multiple ejections. Captain has NO control over team and/or is not willing to work with NYC Social Sports Club Game Staff. 0.5 – Unacceptable conduct and sportsmanship: Captain has no control over teammates and/or himself/herself. Captain gets penalized for unsportsmanlike behavior. Team is completely uncooperative. Any team which receives multiple ejections or has a match stopped due to sportsmanship will receive a '1' rating. Ejected players and team captain must send an email to NYC Social Sports Club and get approval to participate in any future games or leagues. 0 – Out of control conduct and little to no sportsmanship: Fighting, shoving players, and shoving supervisors. Multiple ejections or behavior so poor that it merits comparison to a fight or to actual contact of an employee. If the match is discontinued due to teams’ poor behavior, a rating of '0' will be given. A team that receives a 0 rating must send an email to NYC Social Sports Club and get approval to participate in any future games or leagues. Note: Teams that do not arrive to the game with the appropriate colored jerseys will be docked a half a point (.5)for each missing t-shirt from their earned Sportsmanship Rating. Any team that has two (2) ejections for unsportsmanlike conduct during the same contest will receive a loss and a '1' in sportsmanship rating, plus their team captain will be required to send an email to NYC Social Sports Club regarding why his team should be allowed back. Ejected Participants All ejected participants will be required to send an email to NYC Social Sports Club regarding why they should be allowed to play again. Additionally, any individual ejected will be placed on the Sanction List and will not be permitted to participate in ANY hosted event until such time determined by the league. Participation in any further events prior to approval from the league will be looked upon as a blatant disregard of our policies. When rendering any further penalties, NYC Social Sports Club will take this action into account. Rulings may include, but are not limited to: probation, game/league suspension, and in severe cases, lifetime expulsion. PLAYOFFS AND AWARDS Team rankings will be determined by 1) number of wins, 2) sportsmanship, and 3) point differential. The playoffs will include the top teams in a single elimination tournament. The top three teams will receive medals and prizes. Bar and Spirit Awards will be awarded to individual teams. For more info on our Season Awards, CLICK HERE. Teams not making the playoffs will be awarded a consolation game during the last week of the season To be eligible for playoffs, teams cannot forfeit more than one game during the season. They must also have an average sportsmanship rating of at least ‘4.0’. Any team receiving a below average sportsmanship rating during the playoffs will be eliminated from the playoffs, plus their team captain will be required to send an email to NYC Social Sports Club regarding why his team should be allowed back into future leagues. MOST IMPORTANTLY!
THIS IS A SOCIAL LEAGUE: Have fun and make new friends. The games may or may not go your way, but the beer is still cold and cheap!  |
