Another onside question

[Coach Fryar]

Going to preface this question with this statement. The situation I am asking about had no impact on the outcome of our game tonight. Just curious because I don't know.

The other team touches the kick at 13 yards. Our team doesn't come across the 15 yard line, which according to my understanding protects them until the ball crosses that line. They then proceed to hit our kid positioned to receive the jailbreak kick. No penalty. We just got the ball where the other team touched it. What's the rule? Does the receiving kid not have protection since the ball never crossed the line in play?

 

[Legacy Zebra]

The kicking team may not initiate a block until it is eligible to recover the kick. If your kid never touched the kick and it never went 15 yards, it sounds like there should have been a flag.

 

[Coach Fryar]

The hard part of this situation is that the ball did go past the 15 yard boundary AFTER it was touched and knocked forward by the kicking team at 13 yards. The kid who hit the receiving player probably had zero clue that his teammate accidentally touched the ball before it crossed 15 yards.

 

[Legacy Zebra]

If the ball had gone 15 yards at the time of the block, then there is no foul. The illegal touching doesn't matter.

 

[rickref72]

Sounds like a flag should have been called. It is a 5 yard penalty for an illegal block. Since it sounds like the ball was touched and at rest 13 yards beyond the kickers line then you would have a choice if there was a flag.
Take the ball at the spot of touching and decline the foul. Or
Have the kickers backed up 5 yards and rekick.
A violation for first touching spot can not be used when a penlaty is enforced. Had you gotten the ball at say 15 yards beyond then you could have taken that spot plus 5 for the penlaty and ignored first touching. If you choose first touching spot then a called foul for the block would be declined.

 

[PopRay]

So what the ref is saying then is...iffin the kicking team touches the ball before it go 15 yards...they get a free shot at whomever they want to smack....
You get to keep the ball as the receiving team where they(the kicking team) touched it provided it doesn't go the required 15 yards..but you don't get an extra penalty yards for the extra contact...

 

[rickref72]

So what the ref is saying then is...iffin the kicking team touches the ball before it go 15 yards...they get a free shot at whomever they want to smack....
You get to keep the ball as the receiving team where they(the kicking team) touched it provided it doesn't go the required 15 yards..but you don't get an extra penalty yards for the extra contact...

I respectfully disagree with the way you put it. A "free" shot is not valid view to this at all. It is a football play. Kicking teams may not initiate a block on receiving team players unless they have become eligible to touch it. Meaning either Recievers touch it or the ball has traveled 15 yards . Blocking prior to this is a 5 yard penalty. I just never see teams thinking they will touch a free kick short and go block someone. That makes no sense.

A caveat. Kicking team members could do something stupid and committ a personal foul in many ways coming down on these types of kicks. Head hunting with a purpose and doing something outside the scope of the rules. Examples - blocking a kid below the waist, leading with helmet, a straight up tackle or hold. There is no yardage restriction with regards to the ball etc on this type of action and in the play example would place the ball back 15 on a new kick. Or coaches choice to take at the spot. I saw this once in a six man game years and years ago. Team was way ahead against a rival and only cared to hit during the kick as no one went for the onside kick. One kid went for a kids knees and we DQ'ed him. It was flagrant with intent to hurt someone. We had no other issues after that.