Football

We are proud to offer Flag Football for the first time at SGAA this spring. You can download the rules and regulations by clicking this text.

Equipment:

1.  All players must wear approved SGAA: Flag Pulls, Belts, and uniforms. SGAA will provide these items to every participant. 

2.  Players must wear rubber soled shoes, cleats, or molded cleats. Metal cleats are not allowed. 

3.  Players must wear a mouthguard. 

4.  Players are permitted to tape their forearms, wrists, hands, fingers, knees, calves, or ankles.  

5.  Players are permitted to wear gloves, elbow pads, arm sleeves, knew pads, and leg sleeves. 

6.   Players are permitted to wear softshell helmets, hats, beanies, headbands, bandannas, and head-ties. 

7.  Players are permitted to always wear sunglasses so long as they’re secure. 

8.  Players are permitted to wear face paint. 

9.  Players are prohibited from wearing exposed jewelry including chains, piercings, rings, etc. Players are permitted to wear silicon or fabric-based bracelets.

Field:

1.  The field shall measure 25 yards wide from sideline to sideline. 

2.  The field shall measure 70 yards long with two 10-yard Endzones. 

3.  A midfield “line to gain” will be located at the 25-yard mark. 

4.  No run zones located 5 yards either side of the midfield line, and five yards from the Endzones.

Game Rules:

1.  At the start of each game, captains from both teams meet at midfield for the coin toss to determine who starts with the ball. The visiting team calls the toss. 

2.  The winner of the coin toss has the choice of offense or defense. The loser of the coin toss has the choice of direction. Possession changes to start the second half to the team that started the game on defense. 

3.  The offensive team takes possession of the ball at its 5-yard line and has four (4) downs to cross midfield. Once a team crosses midfield, it has three (3) downs to score a touchdown. If the offensive team fails to cross midfield, on 3 downs, and elect to "punt" on 4th down, possession of the ball changes and the opposition starts its drive from its own 5-yard line. If the offensive team goes for it on 4th down and does not cross field, the opposing team will start its possession from the spot. Offensive Teams MUST declare 4th down intent; “Play or Punt”, when asked by the referee and prior to the ‘Ready for Play’. Teams may use a timeout only to change the declaration of “Play” at any time prior to the expiration of the play clock. If the declaration is “Punt” the ball changes possession and will be placed at the opposing Team’s       yard line, 1st down, with NO option to change the declaration. If the offense fails to score, after crossing midfield the ball changes possession and the new offensive Team starts at its 5-yard line. 

4.  Teams change sides after the first half. Possession changes to the team that started the game on defense.

Timing:

1 .  Regular season and Playoff games are played on a 40-minute continuous clock with two 20-minute halves. The clock will stop at timeouts, halftime, injuries, and the Officials discretion. 

2.  Halftime is 120 seconds. 

3.  Timeouts are 60 seconds. 

4.  Each team possesses one 60-second timeout per half. Timeouts do not carry over if unused. 

5.  If score is tied at the end of regulation play, an overtime period will be used to determine a winner.

Overtime:

1.  At the start of overtime, captains from both teams meet at midfield for the coin toss to determine who starts with the ball. The visiting team calls the toss. 

2.  Overtime will be played in a TUG-OF-WAR fashion. 

Play will begin from the midfield line. 

Each team will alternate turns, utilizing 1 play per turn to progress the ball towards their opponents Endzone. 

Possession will change after the play is whistled dead. The next play will begin with the opposing team at the spot of the ball. 

If during their play, any team should score, they’re awarded 1 point, the game is immediately over, and the scoring team is declared victor. 

If no team scores after alternating possessions for 5 rounds, the team who advanced the ball beyond the midfield line, into their opponents half of the field, are awarded 1 point, and the scoring team is declared victor.

Scoring:

1.  Touchdown: 6 Points

2.  Point After Touchdown (PAT) PAT must be declared by the scoring team following a touchdown. Once a declaration is made, a timeout is required to change the declaration. 5-yard (pass only) PAT: 1 Point 10 Yard PAT: 2 Points 

3.  Safety: 2 Points 

4.  Interception:  3 Points 

5.  Turnover On Downs:  1 Point 

Turnover On Down points will only be awarded if an opposing offense is stopped from advancing a ball on 4th down while within the offenses own half, and 3rd  down while within the defense’s half of the field. Coaches are required to sign off and verify scorecards after each game. If coaches fail to verify the scorecard with a signature, the score will be assumed as valid.

Running:

1.  The ball is spotted where the ball is when the flag is pulled. 

2.  The quarterback cannot directly run with the ball. The quarterback is the offensive player who receives the snap. 

3.  Only direct handoffs behind the line of scrimmage are permitted. Handoffs may be in front, behind or to the side of the offensive player but must be behind the line of scrimmage. The offense may use multiple handoffs. “Center sneak” play prohibited.  . The QB is not allowed to handoff to the center on the first handoff of the play. 

4.  Any player who receives a handoff can throw the ball from behind the line of scrimmage. 

5.  No-run Zones are located 5 yards before each end zone and 5 yards on either side of midfield are designed to avoid short-yardage power-running situations. Teams are not allowed to run in these zones if the subsequent line is live. 

Age Groups 8U & 6U may run or pass anywhere on the field. 

6.  Runners are not permitted to dive or hurdle any player while advancing the ball. Ballcarriers may leave their feet and the play will continue for spinning, jump cuts, QB’s passing progression or if there is a clear indication that he/she has done so to avoid a collision with another player and the play will continue without stoppage. However, if while leaving the ground, contact is made unnecessary roughness penalty may be enforced by the official. 

7.  No blocking or “screening” is allowed at any time. 

8.  Offensive players in close proximity of the ball-carrier must stop their motion once the ball has crossed the line of scrimmage. No running with the ball-carrier. 

9.  Flag obstruction – All jerseys MUST be tucked in before play begins. The flags must be on the player’s hips and free from obstruction. Deliberately obstructed flags will be considered flag guarding.

Passing:

1.  All passes must be thrown with one hand from behind the line of scrimmage, thrown forward and ball out of hand prior to breaching the line of scrimmage.

2.  There is no intentional grounding 

3.  All passes that do not cross the line of scrimmage, whether received or not, are illegal forward passes, unless touched by a defender. 

4.  The quarterback may throw the ball away to avoid a sack. Pass must go beyond the line of scrimmage. 

5.  Shovel passes are allowed but must be received beyond the line of scrimmage. 

6.  If the quarterback throws the ball and then catches it, the play is dead and treated like an incomplete pass.

Receiving:

1.  All players are eligible to receive passes (including the quarterback if the ball has been handed off behind the line of scrimmage). 

2.  Only one player is allowed in motion at a time. All motion must be lateral to the line of scrimmage and no motion is permitted toward the line of scrimmage. 

3.  A player must have at least one foot or other body part in bounds, contacting the ground first with possession. 

4.  In the case of simultaneous possession by both an offensive and defensive player, possession is awarded to the offense. 

5.  Interceptions are not returnable.  Interceptions are awarded 3 points and change of possession.

Rushing:

1.  All players who rush the passer must be a minimum of seven yards from the line of scrimmage when the ball is snapped. Any number of players can rush the quarterback. Players not rushing the quarterback can defend on the line of scrimmage.

***7U DEFENSES MAY NOT RUSH THE PASSER*** 

Once the ball is handed off, the seven-yard rule no longer is in effect and all defenders may go behind the line of scrimmage. 

A special marker, or the referee, will designate a rush line seven yards from the line of scrimmage. Defensive players should verify they are in the correct position with the official on every play. 

2.  A legal rush is:

Any rush from a point 7-yards from the defensive line of scrimmage. 

A rush from anywhere on the field AFTER the ball has been handed off by the quarterback. 

3.  A penalty may be called if: 

The rusher leaves the rush line before the snap and crosses the line of scrimmage before a handoff or pass – illegal rush (5-yards from the line of scrimmage and first down). 

Any defensive player crosses the line of scrimmage before the ball is snapped – offsides (5-yards from line of scrimmage and first down). 

Any defensive player not lined up at the rush line crosses the line of scrimmage before the ball is passed or handed off – illegal rush (5-yards from the line of scrimmage and first down). 

If the offense draws the rusher(s) to jump the seven-yard marker prior to the snap of the ball, that rusher(s) CANNOT rush during that play. However, any other defender that is seven yards back may rush instead. Jumping the rush is not a penalty until the rusher crosses the line of scrimmage prior to the handoff or passed ball. 

4.  Players rushing the quarterback may attempt to block a pass; however, contact to the QB, unless ruled incidental by the official, would result in a roughing the passer penalty. 

The offense cannot impede the rusher in any way. The rusher has the right to a clear path to the quarterback, regardless of where they line up prior to the snap. The PATH is set pre-snap from the rusher or rushers directly to the QB. PATH does not move once the quarterback moves. If the “path or line” is occupied by a moving offensive player, then it is the offense’s responsibility to avoid the rusher. Any disruption to the rusher’s path and/or contact will result in an impeding the rusher penalty. If the offensive player does not move after the snap, then it is the rusher’s responsibility to go around the offensive player and to avoid contact. 

5.  A sack occurs if the quarterback’s flags are pulled behind the line of scrimmage. The ball will be spotted where possesion of the ball is once the flag is pulled. 

6.  A Safety is awarded if the sack takes place in the offensive team’s end zone. 

Flag Pulling:

1.  A legal flag pull takes place when the ball-carrier is in full possession of the ball. 

2.  Defenders can dive to pull flags but cannot tackle, hold or run through the ball-carrier when pulling flags. 

3.  It is illegal to attempt to strip or pull the ball from the ball-carrier’s possession at any time. 

4.  If a player's flag inadvertently falls off during a play while that player has possession, the player is down immediately and the play ends. The ball is placed where the flag lands. 

5.  If a player who has one or no flags in their belt takes possession of the ball, the play is dead at that spot on the field. 

6.  A defensive player may not intentionally pull the flags off of a player who is not in possession of the ball. 

7.  Flag guarding is an attempt by the ball-carrier to obstruct the defender’s access to the flags by stiff arming, dropping the head, hand, ball, arm or shoulder or intentionally covering the flags with the football jersey. 

Formations:

1.  Offenses must have a minimum of one player on the line of scrimmage (the center) and up to four players on the line of scrimmage. 

The quarterback must be off the line of scrimmage. Teams may shift formations prior to the snap as long as they are set for at least 1 second before the ball is snapped. 

One player at a time may go in motion at least 1 yard behind the line of scrimmage. 

2.  Movement by a player who is set or a player who runs toward the line of scrimmage while in motion is considered a false start. 

3.  The center must snap the ball with a rapid and continuous motion between his/her legs to a player in the backfield, and the ball must completely leave his/her hands.

Unsportsmanlike Conduct:

1.  If the referee witnesses any acts of intentional tackling, elbowing, cheap shots, blocking or any unsportsmanlike act, the game will be stopped and the player will Be ejected from the game. The decision is made at the referee’s discretion. No appeals will be considered. 

2.  Offensive or confrontational language is NOT allowed. Officials have the right to determine offensive language. If offensive or confrontational language occurs, the officials will determine if a warning or immediate ejection is warranted. 

3.  Players may not physically or verbally abuse any opponent, coach or official. 

4.  Ball-carriers MUST make an effort to avoid defenders with an established position. 

5.  Defenders must give free releases off the line of scrimmage to offensive players and are not allowed to run through the ball-carrier when pulling flags. 

6.  Fans may not encroach upon the field of play during the game, for any reason unless directed by teh referee in the case of an emergency.  

Coaches:

1.  Coaches are expected to adhere to NFL FLAG philosophies, coaching guidelines and code of conduct. 

2.  Coaches are permitted to coach on the sideline except for 7U teams.  In this age groups Coaches are permitted to coach from the field. If coaching from the field, you are prohibited from inhibiting play.  You must remain at a distance greater than 5 yards from the deepest player.  Once play begins you must make every effort to move away from the flow of the play.  Coaches who interfere with the play: First Warning, 5 Yard Penalty, automatic first down.  2nd Warning, Unsportsmanlike Conduct penalty. 

3.  All team photographers, managers, position coaches, team moms, fans, etc. are required and must remain a minimum of 5 yards off the field in the designated league viewing or coaching area. 

Coaches, this is your responsibility to keep your fans and any other team associated members in the designated areas.

Penalties:

1.  The referee will call all penalties. 

2.  Referees determine incidental contact that may result from normal run of play. 

3.  All penalties will be assessed from the line of scrimmage, except as noted. (Spot fouls) 

4.  Only the team captain or head coach may ask the referee questions about rule clarification and interpretations. Players may not question calls. 

5.  Games or halves may not end on a defensive penalty unless the offense declines it. 

6.  Penalties are assessed live ball then dead ball. Live ball penalties must be assessed before play is considered complete. 

7.  Penalties will be assessed half the distance to the goal yardage when the penalty yardage is more than half the distance to the goal. 

8.  Spot fouls in end zone: Defensive (Ball on one-yard line, first down)/Offensive (Safety)

For a full list of the penalties, please download the 2024 SGAA Flag Football Rules and Regulations PDF.