Two-minute warning

The two-minute warning (dt .: Two-minute warning) is a mandatory break in the American football -Liga National Football League , takes place every two minutes before the end of the second and fourth quarter. If one or more 15-minute extensions ( overtime ) are necessary, a two-minute warning will also be carried out for each extension.

In the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the referee must notify both the respective team captains and the head coaches if there are only two minutes left in one half of the game when the official timer is not visible. He is allowed to stop the clock, but there is no time out.

The two-minute warning was necessary in the early days of football because at that time the referee team only unofficially read the game time from the stadium clock, which was neither precise nor transparent. With this break they “warned” both the players and the audience that there were only two minutes left in the second and fourth quarter. For the teams, the two-minute warning is synonymous with an additional time-out. It is useful from a tactical point of view for scoring points, but it can also be a disadvantage if the ball-bearing team would prefer to let the clock run out.

Official timekeepers have been around since the 1960s, but with the advent of television broadcasts, the two-minute warning is primarily used for advertising . The basic idea is that shortly before the end of the first or second half of the game, relatively few TV viewers switch.

There are special rules within the two-minute warning. In order to avoid deliberate fouls in teams without a timeout (e.g. to stop the clock due to an insignificant rule violation), such fouls are punished with a 10-second time penalty ("10 second runoff"). In addition, no coach is allowed to throw the red flag during this time period to attack a referee's decision using video evidence. However, in the event of critical decisions, the Replay Official may order the video review.

In arena football there is a one-minute warning, in Canadian football there is a three-minute warning, one minute or three minutes before the end of the second or fourth quarter (and possibly every overtime period) takes place. In the Arena Football League , the one-minute warning was abolished for the 2019 season . A 30-second warning was introduced for the fourth quarter, the second quarter was not replaced.

Web links

The Two-Minute Warning in the NFL Official Rulebook , nfl.com

Individual evidence

↑ 2012 AND 2013 NCAA Football Rules and Interpretations. (PDF) NCAA, accessed on August 10, 2016 (English): "Unless a visual game clock is the official timepiece, the referee also shall inform each field captain and head coach when approximately two minutes of playing time remain in each half. He may order the clock stopped for that purpose. 1. The play clock count is not interrupted. 2. The clock starts on the snap after the two-minute notification "
↑ 2019 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE, RULE CHANGES ANNOUNCED. Retrieved on June 28, 2019 : “The first-half's one-minute timing rules will be eliminated. There will be no automatic clock stoppage at the one-minute mark in the second quarter and the game clock will follow regular guidelines. Additionally, in the fourth quarter, the traditional AFL clock stoppage rules will not take effect until the thirty second mark. "

[1] 2012 AND 2013 NCAA Football Rules and Interpretations. (PDF) NCAA, accessed on August 10, 2016 (English): "Unless a visual game clock is the official timepiece, the referee also shall inform each field captain and head coach when approximately two minutes of playing time remain in each half. He may order the clock stopped for that purpose. 1. The play clock count is not interrupted. 2. The clock starts on the snap after the two-minute notification "

[2] 2019 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE, RULE CHANGES ANNOUNCED. Retrieved on June 28, 2019 : “The first-half's one-minute timing rules will be eliminated. There will be no automatic clock stoppage at the one-minute mark in the second quarter and the game clock will follow regular guidelines. Additionally, in the fourth quarter, the traditional AFL clock stoppage rules will not take effect until the thirty second mark. "