WEST CENTRAL YOUTH FOOTBALL LEAGUE RULES FOR 2020 SEASON

A. THE LEAGUE WILL BE DIVIDED INTO  FIVE TACKLE DIVISIONS:

1. 3rd Grade, not to turn 10 before 1 July 2020. (Junior)
2. 4th Grade, not to turn 11 before 1 July 2020. (Junior)
3. 5th Grade, not to turn 12 before 1 July 2020. (Senior)
4. 6th Grade, not to turn 13 before 1 July 2020. (Senior)
5. 7th Grade, players may participate two years max in this division, not to turn 14 before July 1 2020.
6. Any Player may play up one division (if the town does not have a team in that grade), but cannot play down.

B. WEIGHT RESTRICTIONS WILL APPLY TO ALL ELIGIBLE RUNNERS AND RECEIVERS:

1. Weigh-ins will be 45 mins. prior to the first Scheduled Game, for every team, the FIRST WEEK of the Season (Host Towns to supply scales).
2. Players that do not make the Weight Limit may still Kickoff, Punt, Kick PAT(s), and move behind the line of scrimmage to avoid a rush (cannot advance or line up in a position to receive the ball).
3. All Players can be weighed out of Uniform! But must have jersey available for identification.
4. Weight Limits:
• 3rd Grade Weight Limit is 100lbs.
• 4th Grade Weight Limit is 110lbs.
• 5th Grade Weight Limit is 120lbs.
• 6th Grade Weight Limit is 130lbs.
• 7th Grade Weight Limit is 150lbs.
5. When teams weigh-in there must be a representative from the other team or from the town where the weigh-in’s are being held, they will sign and put their phone number on the sheet. The league will provide a sheet that the name, jersey number, and weight can be recorded (ALL SHEETS MUST BE IN NUMERICAL ORDER). There are no protests of weights if teams have their signed weight sheets with them. If a team does not have their weight sheet and a player is protested that player will be marked as over weight for that contest or until weight has been verified by Town Rep. All Coaches must supply a copy of their weight sheet to their town rep after weigh-in’s.
6. If a player is not available the day of weigh-ins, it will be the Town Reps responsibility to weigh that player, record it, and sign the weight sheet beside the player’s name.
7. To designate an overweight player there will be a red stripe from the base of the helmet over the crown to the front of the helmet. If a player has a helmet that red helmet, then black tape will be used.

C. UNCONCIOUS PLAYER:

1.    If a PLAYER is knocked unconscious that player cannot compete in the remainder of the game! NO EXCEPTIONS!!! Safety is number one goal.

D. A DOWNSIZED BALL WILL BE SUPPLIED BY EACH TEAM:

1. Each ball will be made of Leather, Composite, or Rubber.
2. Ball Types:
• 3rd / 4th will use a K2 Wilson (Pee Wee), R5-PW Rawlings, or a ball equal in size.
• 5th / 6th will use a TDJ Wilson (Junior), R5JR Rawlings, or a ball equal in size.
• 7th Grade Division will use a TDY Wilson (Youth), R5Y Rawlings, or a ball equal in size.

E. EACH GAME WILL HAVE 4 TIMED QUARTERS:

1. Senior and 7^th Grade divisions will be 8 minutes with a 25 second play clock.
2. Junior Division will be 8 minutes with a 35 second play clock.

F. OVERTIME-ALL DIVISIONS:

1. Each Team will receive Four Untimed Downs from the 10 Yard Line until a Winner is Determined.
2. Coin Toss will determine Offense, Defense, and Direction of Play.

G. TIMEOUTS-ALL DIVISIONS:

1. Each Team will receive Three Timeouts per Half.
2. In overtime the team will lose all time outs and be given one time out for each overtime not to carry over to the next.

H. POINT(S) AFTER TOUCHDOWN:

1. Successful Run/Pass - 1 Point (For Senior and Junior)
2. Successful Kick - 2 Points (For Senior and Junior)
3. Seventh Grade will be same as in High School.
4. In Junior Division if a Kick attempt is declared for the PAT there will be no Rush by the Opposing Team. The Holder may not leave their knee to retrieve the ball or it is considered an unsuccessful attempt.

I. MERCY RULE-ALL DIVISIONS:

1. Any Team ahead by 21 Points or more at anytime during the game will not be allowed to call a timeout.
2. The clock will run continuous as long as there is a 21 point lead any time in the second half, stopping only for all injuries and timeouts called by the team that is behind.

J. HEAD TACKLING-ALL DIVISIONS:

1. Any intentional Contact by the Tackler above the Shoulder Pads to bring the Ball Carrier down will be considered Head Tackling. If considered Flagrant by the Official there will be a 15 Yard Penalty for un-necessary roughness, the players number will be recorded and if committed twice by the same player, that player will be disqualified (disqualification is for that game only unless it is the last play of the game then the player will sit out the first half of the next scheduled game).

K. FOOTWEAR:

1. NO STEEL CLEATS! Football Shoes approved by State High School Rules are acceptable.

L. COACHES-ALL DIVISIONS:

1. Maximum of FIVE Coaches per Sideline.
2. Head Coach will be given 1 warning to clear sidelines of non-coaches, 2nd warning Un-Sportsman Like Conduct-15 Yard Penalty, 3rd warning Head Coach is ejected with penalty (Towns will designate a place for spectators).
3. During a timeout or an injury no more than 2 coaches will be allowed on the field.

M. NO ORGANIZED PRACTICE UNTIL AFTER AUGUST 1ST-ALL DIVISIONS:

1. Exception: ALL teams are allowed to have three conditioning practices the last week of July. 1 August ALL Teams are allowed 3 Practices a week before School starts. After School starts teams are allowed 2 contact and one non-contact practices. 7th grade is allowed 3 practices and one non-contact practice the entire season.
2. A Practice will be limited to 2 Hours (not to include warmup).
3. Remember to monitor Heat Index and follow the set guide lines.

N. DEFENSE

1. Junior Division only all defensive players on the line of scrimmage between the offensive tackles must be in a three or four point stance.

O. KICKING OFF ALL DIVISIONS AND DECLARED PUNTS-JUNIOR DIVISION ONLY:

1. If a team is ahead by 21 points or more that team CANNOT on-side kick. If a kickoff is on-side kicked by a team with a 21-point lead or more the ball will be given to the receiving team at the point of recovery plus a 15-yard penalty will be assessed. An on-side kick attempt will be determined by the officials.
2. PUNTS: Junior Division only, the ball will be moved thirty yards from the line of scrimmage. The receiving team takes possession.
3. Junior Division only there will be no kick off, the ball will be spotted on the 30 yard line to begin play.

P. EJECTION-ALL DIVISIONS:

1. Any Player Ejected for any reason will Sit Out the following Scheduled Contest except as listed in Rule J.
2. Any Non-Player (Coach or Spectator) will not be allowed to attend any other contest for the remainder of the day.

Q. ROSTERS - ALL DIVISIONS:

1. All Rosters must have last/first name, jersey number, and weight. All rosters will be will be frozen after the first Saturday of play for all teams (Sept 8, 2018)
2. If a player is discovered on the field or had played one down in the game that is not on the roster the game will

Be stopped and the team that is in violation will automatically forfeit the game.

3. Players cannot play on a team in another town unless the town they live in does not have a team in that age group. (example: if you attend a school with a West Central team, you cannot play on a different towns team unless that town does not have a team in that age group).

R. HOST TOWN CRITERIA-ALL DIVISIONS:

1. Each Town will have a set amount of Games schedule on their Home Field according to the amount of Teams entered. Each Town will provide an Announcer (if used), and Clock Operator. Chains ran by Home Team.
2. Each Facility will have from 25 to 25-yard line and 15 yards back marked for Fans to sit!
3. There must be a visible clock at each location played. If the clock malfunctions the time can be kept on the field.

S. EVERYONE PLAYS-ALL DIVISIONS:

• All Parents will be given the Town Representative's Phone Number to Contact if they feel there is an unfair allotment of playing time. It is the Town Reps and Coaches Responsibility to make sure this does not happen. The criteria for playing time is designated by each town (example: if a player does not come to practice the town may elect not to allow that player to play in the next game).

T. LEAGUE FEES-ALL DIVISIONS:

• Each Town will Pay the amount set by the League per Team Entered into the League to cover all Officiating and League Expenses.

U. GAMES-ALL DIVISIONS:

1. Each Team will have a guarantee of SIX Games per Season. Not counting post season play.
2. All games will be played on a Regulation High School field.
3. Game time will be forfeit time. It is up to the town rep to make sure that teams are notified of any changes to the schedule.

V. MOUTH PIECES:

• All mouth pieces will be connected to the face mask of the players helmet (cut off mouth pieces will not be allowed) unless designed for oral protection due to braces, etc.

W. DIVISION WINNERS-ALL DIVISIONS:

• The Division winners will be determined by a Single Elimination Tourney. All divisions will be split into 4 team brackets depending on the amount of teams in that division, this will be determined by ranking. If two teams have the same record the first tie breaker will be Points Allowed, 2nd Points Scored. If still tied it will be determined by the flip of a coin.

X. TIE BREAKERS FOR DIVISION WINNERS ALL DIVISIONS

1. HEAD-TO-HEAD
• Always comes first if two teams are tied and A is 5-1 and B is 5-1 but A beat B, then A Wins.
2. (High School Rules) RULE (+/- 13)
• A win by 13 or more points, the maximum number of points awarded for overall rank is 13, A win by less than 13 points: then the number of points given for overall rankings will be the difference of final score. (example: 13-7 score, is a +/-6)

3. Strength of Schedule
• (Total Wins of Teams Played) + (Total Ties of Teams played * 0.5) - (Total Losses of Teams played).
  
  Example (we will use 2nd grade, Team 6):
1. Get the schedule for Team 6. Team 6 plays teams 12,5,2,9,4,3.
2. Get the win, loss, and tie records for each:

3. Add all the wins together, which is equal to 1
4. Add all the ties together, and multiply times 0.5, which is equal to 0
5. Add all the losses together, which is 5
6. Now do (sum_of_wins + sum_of_ties) - sum_of_losses, so it is (1 + 0) - 5, which is a strength of schedule of -4.
3. Coin Flip: (Team rep from both teams present)
• If three or more teams tied:
              IF: A beat B & C, then A would rank ahead of B & C and criteria would be needed for these two only. If three or more teams are tied with overall record, head to head (they all did not play one another in which a clear winner is determined, example A Beats B, B beats C, C beats A), +/-, common opponents, then we could go to opponent’s overall record.

Y. RAINOUTS-ALL DIVISIONS:

1.  In the event of a rainout it is the responsibility of the Town Representative (where the games are being played) to call all Town Representatives and notify them of the rainout. Each Town needs to provide all coaches name, phone #, and email if available to all other towns.
2. The Town Representative is responsible for cancelling or moving games for inclement weather. If possible games will be moved to the end of the schedule. If games cannot be moved, then they will be made up either on Sunday or on a Wednesday depending on field availability. If games are moved to an alternate location the first game of the day will be the last and all others will play their slotted time. This will continue until games can start play (example: if we cannot start play until 12:30PM the 9AM game would move to 5PM and the 10:30AM game would move to 6:30PM)

Z. OFFICIALS-ALL DIVISIONS:

• Each game will have 4 High School qualified Officials.

AA. ALL OTHER RULES-SEVENTH, SENIOR, JUNIOR DIVISIONS:

• State High School Rules Apply.

AB. TOWN CRITERIA TO JOIN WEST CENTRAL YOUTH FOOTBALL LEAGUE

       To join West Central Youth Football League, you must do the following:

1. Have open signups for all age divisions
2. Your entire community will participate in the league. No individual teams.
3. You will follow all WCYFL rules and guidelines.
4. You will appoint a town representative to attend all meetings.
5. Each town will be responsible for their own equipment.