Forward Pass or Lateral?

[Voice of Reason]

In the Oregon OSU game, there was a play where Oregon QB Gabriel pitched the ball to a running back as he was scrambling. If you look at that play, it clearly looked like a lateral when it happened. Then they reviewed the play and called it a forward pass because the ball left Gabriel's hand at the 22 yard line and the back caught it at the 21 yard line, 15 yards to Gabriel's right. The entire time from when Gabriel lateraled it to when the back caught it, the back was 4/5 yards behind Gabriel. If someone has video, please add it.

The question is this - and it is actually a physics question. Gabriel lateraled the ball backwards. But he is running hard so when he let's go of the ball, doesn't the ball have momentum that carries it forward even if it is lateraled backwards? So is it a lateral or a forward pass?

[theguru]

Taking the simple approach here, I think you look at the beginning point (where the ball leaves the QB's hand) and the ending point (where the receiver catches the ball).  If the ending point is forward of the beginning point, it is a forward pass/lateral.

[theguru]

On the physics question, yes I believe, just like jumping up inside a speeding train or in a jet, you have the same forward momentum as the vehicle. I think in traditional physics this is true for everything other than the speed of light. 

With all that said, we need some of the smart BGP members to weigh in on this one. 

[Voice of Reason]

11 hours ago, theguru said:

Taking the simple approach here, I think you look at the beginning point (where the ball leaves the QB's hand) and the ending point (where the receiver catches the ball).  If the ending point is forward of the beginning point, it is a forward pass/lateral.

That is how they did it in the Oregon OSU game. 

[Jumper_Dad]

This play is the victim of instant replay. While the officials called it correctly, it is a play that for the 70 years before replay would have never been questioned. As VoR said the ball was behind the pitchman the entire time and prior to replay would have never drawn a flag.

That pitch was clean to the spirit of the rule, just not to the letter of the rule.

[9068]

I'm a physics guy and also officiated football for 25 years. I said backwards pass( no mention of lateral in rule books) right away to my wife. When I worked we looked at the pitch man's position and the direction of the ball at the time of backwards pass.... definitely looked like the RB was behind the QB.

[Oldercoach]

No physics guy here, but the pass angle was probably 20 degrees behind the point of release.  Think of a right triangle with A and B at the ends of the hypotenuse and C the out of bounds directly even with the point of release A and the receiver at point B moving identically with the whole triangle.  The 20 degree backward integrity is maintained and point B moves forward as the triangle does.  It was always a backward pass, but as mentioned the forward movements of all points of the triangle simultaneously dictate the forward movement of catch point B.

Not sophisticated enough to graph the above.  Sorry.  But it was always a backward pass and as someone mentioned earlier an unintended victim of rule ambiguity and instant replay.

[futurecoach]

Personally I think if as mentioned the angle of the ball is released initially going backwards from the guy releasing the ball. Then it should be considered a lateral. 

[9068]

18 hours ago, futurecoach said:

Personally I think if as mentioned the angle of the ball is released initially going backwards from the guy releasing the ball. Then it should be considered a lateral. 

Backwards pass lol!!

[Oldercoach]

1 hour ago, 9068 said:

Backwards pass lol!!

I’m embarrassed.😂