By Kevin Askeland
MaxPreps.com
The National Federation has made its ruling, but the A-11 enthusiasts have only just begun to fight.
In its annual press release regarding rule changes, the National Federation announced changes to the scrimmage kick formation rules – changes which essentially make the A-11 offense illegal.
However Kurt Bryan and Steve Humphries of Piedmont High School in California, the two coaches who originated the offense last year, are not ready to abandon an offense that has become a burgeoning sensation among small schools across the country.
“Within the next several weeks, our group will present our own state association and the NFHS with some excellent options,” Bryan said in a press release Monday. “They will be very beneficial and viable alternatives for any high school team in the country wanting or needing to utilize the A-11 Offense to help their program.”
The A-11 Offense utilizes the scrimmage kick formation rule in order to make every player on the field eligible for a pass. All players wear non-lineman numbers and line up along the line of scrimmage except for two quarterbacks who line up in shotgun formation. Just prior to the center snap, the required number of players take their place on the line of scrimmage and the ball is snapped to one of the quarterbacks.
Proponents of the A-11 offense hail the offense as a way for small school teams to match up with larger opponents. Because the offense does not rely on large, physically imposing linemen to open holes in the defense, teams without those types of players have a better chance to compete against schools that do.
“During the last two years as the A-11 Offense has spread across the country, it has been incredible to hear from the thousands of coaches, players, and administrators from the small to mid-sized high schools in America who have been searching for a different style of offense to help their football program be more competitive,” stated Bryan. “And, we've also heard from a variety of schools that are routinely overmatched, based on their own school's enrollment status within their assigned state classification.”
The new ruling by the NFHS requires that on first, second and third down, four linemen must have numbers ranging from 50-79 (rendering them ineligible) and a snapper must have a number from 1-49 or 80-89, but the snapper is also ineligible.
While Bryan and Humphries used the NFHS rulebook to come up with an offense designed to be unpredictable and present a multitude of formations and plays, members of the NFHS football rules committee felt the coaches’ offense was unsportsmanlike.
The NFHS and the California Interscholastic Federation initially okayed the A-11 offense when it was first presented in 2007, but opposition from game officials and state organizations ultimately resulted in the ruling change.
“Three years ago, when we submitted our ideas about the A-11 Offense to the NFHS and CIF, we never dreamed it would spread like this, and that other schools in situations like ours would implement the offense as well,” said Bryan. “It is our first hope, that the NFHS is able to change with the times and will be most willing to help create an A-11 Football sub-federation within the framework of their existing organization.”
The NFHS sets rules for all interscholastic sports and state organizations can utilize all of the rules stated by the NFHS or they may change some in order to fit the needs of that state. Texas, for example, uses college rules in football rather than rules set by the NFHS.
Therefore, Bryan adds that the fight to retain the A-11 offense will begin at the state level and he, along with Humphries, expect to be at the forefront of the charge.
“Throughout the history of high school football many precedents have already been established. Multitudes of different teams have competed against each other from differing states, leagues or sections, even though they have had differing rules. That has and will continue to take place,” Bryan said. “However, there are many schools across the country that want or need to use the A-11 Offense, and we are going to help them by leading the way.”
For more on the A-11 offense, check out Bryan and Humphries’ website at http://www.A11Offense.com.