Name: Nicholas K.
Football
Football is commonly thought of as a bunch of large, sweaty guys wearing pads running into each other. In reality though, football is actually full of strategy. The game of football consists of many rules, penalties, and formations. When analyzing a game, you can see how players on both teams execute their jobs and how that can change the outcome of the game. Football is a very strategic game, a game that one must be smart to play.
In football, there are many different rules. A football field is a rectangular field one hundred yards long (300 feet) and fifty-three yards wide. At both of the two ends of the field there is a touchdown zone measuring ten yards long (the touchdown zone is commonly referred to as the end zone). At the start of the game, the referee flips a coin and the team that wins the coin toss gets to choose if they want to get the ball and be on offense, or to be on defense. The team that gets to be on defense then kicks the football to the other team. If a person on the other team catches the ball, they are able to run with the ball until they get tackled. If someone catches the ball and doesn’t want to run, they can just touch the ground with their knee. If the kick goes out of the end zone or the person on the receiving team touches their knee to the ground in the end zone, they start offense at the twenty yard line. If the ball goes ten yards from the kick and is still on the ground or is touched by the receiving team, the kicking team can recover the ball and then the kicking team gets to be on offense. When a team gets the ball, they have a first down. That team gets four downs to get ten yards, and if they succeed in getting ten yards, they get another first down. If the team comes to a fourth down they can choose to punt it to the other team. A punt is when a player drops the ball from his hands and kicks it down the field. If the opposing team gets into the opposite team’s end zone it is a touchdown, which is worth six points. After a team gets a touchdown, they can either try to kick an extra point through a pair of uprights which are ten feet tall. The extra point kick is worth one point. A team can also try to run the ball in or pass into the end zone for two points. If a team is tackled in its own touchdown zone, the team that tackled the other team gets two points; this is called a safety. Often times a team may try for a field goal instead of a touchdown. The offense would then try and kick the ball into the uprights from farther away. If they make it, they get three points, however, if they don’t, the other team gets the ball at the spot that they tried to kick the field goal from. After every score, the team that scored kicks the ball to the other team.
There are also many different penalties in football that can set the offense or the defense back or move them forward in yards. When a referee sees a penalty, he throws a yellow flag into the air and then reports what penalty it is. One of the most common penalties is a facemask; when a player on either team grabs the facemask of a player on the opposing team. The penalty is fifteen yards back from the spot of the ball. Another penalty is a block in the back, which is when a player from the offense hits a player on the defense in the back. This is a ten yard penalty. The next penalty is holding, which is when a player on the offense holds the jersey of a player on the other team. The penalty for holding is ten yards. A false start is another penalty; when a player from either team moves before the ball is hiked, leaving a five yard penalty. Another penalty is delay of game, which is when the ball is not hiked within the amount of time given by the referees. These are all the most common penalties in football but there are many other penalties that don’t get called very much.
In the game of football, there are many different formations. A football team can have eleven players on the field at a time, and an offense has to have seven or more people on the line and four or less in the backfield. There is always a center (the man that hikes the ball) and a quarterback, who will pass the ball to a receiver or hand it to a running back. The running back will take the ball and try to run it into the end zone. Other positions are tight ends and wide receivers that block and go out for passes. There are four offensive linemen, and they can only block. On defense, there can be two to six line men that try to stop the offense from running the ball. In addition, there are also linebackers, which are stationed behind the line and will defend against the pass or attack the runner. Cornerbacks will defend against the pass also. Finally, on defense there are safeties that will watch for anything coming their way including passes or runs.
Football is very much a mental game; it takes a long time to understand the whole sport. If you just see a lot of guys hitting each other, than you’re not seeing the plays and tackles that wouldn’t have happened without strategies. Football is a very strategic game. When you understand how it works, it is a lot of fun to play and watch.
Works Cited:
"Penalty (gridiron Football)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Oct. 2013. Web. 31 Oct. 2013. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penalty_(gridiron_football)>.
Football
Football is commonly thought of as a bunch of large, sweaty guys wearing pads running into each other. In reality though, football is actually full of strategy. The game of football consists of many rules, penalties, and formations. When analyzing a game, you can see how players on both teams execute their jobs and how that can change the outcome of the game. Football is a very strategic game, a game that one must be smart to play.
In football, there are many different rules. A football field is a rectangular field one hundred yards long (300 feet) and fifty-three yards wide. At both of the two ends of the field there is a touchdown zone measuring ten yards long (the touchdown zone is commonly referred to as the end zone). At the start of the game, the referee flips a coin and the team that wins the coin toss gets to choose if they want to get the ball and be on offense, or to be on defense. The team that gets to be on defense then kicks the football to the other team. If a person on the other team catches the ball, they are able to run with the ball until they get tackled. If someone catches the ball and doesn’t want to run, they can just touch the ground with their knee. If the kick goes out of the end zone or the person on the receiving team touches their knee to the ground in the end zone, they start offense at the twenty yard line. If the ball goes ten yards from the kick and is still on the ground or is touched by the receiving team, the kicking team can recover the ball and then the kicking team gets to be on offense. When a team gets the ball, they have a first down. That team gets four downs to get ten yards, and if they succeed in getting ten yards, they get another first down. If the team comes to a fourth down they can choose to punt it to the other team. A punt is when a player drops the ball from his hands and kicks it down the field. If the opposing team gets into the opposite team’s end zone it is a touchdown, which is worth six points. After a team gets a touchdown, they can either try to kick an extra point through a pair of uprights which are ten feet tall. The extra point kick is worth one point. A team can also try to run the ball in or pass into the end zone for two points. If a team is tackled in its own touchdown zone, the team that tackled the other team gets two points; this is called a safety. Often times a team may try for a field goal instead of a touchdown. The offense would then try and kick the ball into the uprights from farther away. If they make it, they get three points, however, if they don’t, the other team gets the ball at the spot that they tried to kick the field goal from. After every score, the team that scored kicks the ball to the other team.
There are also many different penalties in football that can set the offense or the defense back or move them forward in yards. When a referee sees a penalty, he throws a yellow flag into the air and then reports what penalty it is. One of the most common penalties is a facemask; when a player on either team grabs the facemask of a player on the opposing team. The penalty is fifteen yards back from the spot of the ball. Another penalty is a block in the back, which is when a player from the offense hits a player on the defense in the back. This is a ten yard penalty. The next penalty is holding, which is when a player on the offense holds the jersey of a player on the other team. The penalty for holding is ten yards. A false start is another penalty; when a player from either team moves before the ball is hiked, leaving a five yard penalty. Another penalty is delay of game, which is when the ball is not hiked within the amount of time given by the referees. These are all the most common penalties in football but there are many other penalties that don’t get called very much.
In the game of football, there are many different formations. A football team can have eleven players on the field at a time, and an offense has to have seven or more people on the line and four or less in the backfield. There is always a center (the man that hikes the ball) and a quarterback, who will pass the ball to a receiver or hand it to a running back. The running back will take the ball and try to run it into the end zone. Other positions are tight ends and wide receivers that block and go out for passes. There are four offensive linemen, and they can only block. On defense, there can be two to six line men that try to stop the offense from running the ball. In addition, there are also linebackers, which are stationed behind the line and will defend against the pass or attack the runner. Cornerbacks will defend against the pass also. Finally, on defense there are safeties that will watch for anything coming their way including passes or runs.
Football is very much a mental game; it takes a long time to understand the whole sport. If you just see a lot of guys hitting each other, than you’re not seeing the plays and tackles that wouldn’t have happened without strategies. Football is a very strategic game. When you understand how it works, it is a lot of fun to play and watch.
Works Cited:
"Penalty (gridiron Football)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Oct. 2013. Web. 31 Oct. 2013. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penalty_(gridiron_football)>.