Evening Republican, Volume 17, Number 257, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 October 1913 — CHANGE IN FOOTBALL CODE [ARTICLE]

CHANGE IN FOOTBALL CODE

Rule on Onside Kick Is Revised in Conference Held In New York— Action Regarding Officials. The entire code of football rules In effect for this season’s plays was discussed, dissected and interpreted at a gathering of more than one hundred football coaches, team managers and officials of the game In New York recently. It was the annual interpretation meeting of the intercollegiate football rules committee and the central board of officials. The only rule that met objection was Rule 20, and to this an addition was made which will be incorporated in the final version. It has to do with the privileges of players in making an onside kick. The addition will permit players behind a player making an onside kick to enjoy an equal right with men of the opposing team to go after the kicked ball. They may not interfere with players on the opposing side in their attempts to catch the ball.

Dr. James A. Babbitt, chairman of the central board, announced that the list of officials for the season now completed would show an improvement over previous seasons. Correspondence with the leading colleges had shown, he said, that the list of twenty or thirty officials each preferred largely coincided. Since this preference for a limited number of officials was so generally shown and since the list of officials In resent years has become overburdened, it was the purpose to reduce it and try to bring the officials for whom prefernce has been Indicated by the colleges in general into greater use.