Is it possible to red-shirt some of the members of the NCAA rules committee? I love college football, but there are a few rules that need to be changed.    There is a rule in place that a person cannot go straight to the NFL directly out of high school.  I don’t have an issue with that being a regulation, but if the NCAA is going to be used as a developmental league for the NFL, then I believe that it is vital to try to mirror the rules between the two entities.

Let’s begin with rule that most 6th graders don’t even use in playground football…you know the one where you are down if your knees hit the ground, whether or not you have been touched by another player.  This has to be a rule that was put in place back in an era where they played with leather helmets, and they opted to mirror what high schools where using for their rules.  Have you ever watched your favorite NFL team playing, and their defense forgets to touch someone that fell to the ground without being forced down, and that player proceeds to get up and run for a touchdown?  One of the reasons that happens is because the players have been conditioned their whole football career leading up to the NFL that once their knees touch the ground, the player is down.  It is time that the NCAA change this pointless rule as it actually punishes the viewers that want to see high scoring offensive games.

That brings me to the next rule that is equally as pointless, telling college players that they only need to have one foot inbounds to make a legal reception. If the NCAA continues using that rule, then they are essentially promoting mediocrity for the receiver and tight end positions.  However, if they elect to change the rule for the college game, it will likely lead to receivers entering the NFL already having excellent balance, vision, and concentration as learned skills, rather than just potential attributes.  I hope that with the implementation of instant replay into the college game, and after some further review, that rule will be overturned.

Lastly, I think the overtime system in NCAA has the right idea, but there is still some room for improvement.  The current system of each team having one possession starting from the 25 yard line does nothing but pad the stats and allow for a team as good as LSU to lose in triple overtime twice.  In my humble opinion, I think both teams should get one possession, but the drive would start with a kickoff.  The rule would be that the teams would have to go for the two point conversion with each touchdown.  If neither team scored on their first possession, then they would kickoff to the team that first played defense in the overtime, and then the game would turn into sudden death. 

After further review, the idea that NCAA football rules needing to be changed, stands as called. 

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