Think of this as a high-stakes telephone game.
You may have noticed that college football quarterbacks are increasingly wearing helmets to muffle the sounds of the nation's loudest stadiums. That's because all 134 programs in the Football Bowl Subdivision have enabled coach-to-player helmet communication this season.
Thirty years after the NFL introduced the technology, the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Committee decided to implement helmet communications (and sideline tablets) for FBS teams in April after a trial period at last season's bowl games. Approved for use.
Here's how it works:
Who has access to helmet communications and how does it work?
One player on the field for each team (one on offense and one on defense) can communicate through their helmets. On offense, that player is usually the quarterback.
Designated players are identified by a green dot on the back of their helmets, similar to the NFL. According to the NCAA, if multiple green dots are detected on the field by referees for each team, that team will be assessed a five-yard equipment violation penalty and a conference review will automatically begin.
The conference review will look into whether the team intentionally allowed a second green dot helmet to be used at the same time in the game. An NCAA official with knowledge of the review process said the review will take place within days after the game and any additional discipline will be up to the conference.
On the sideline, each team is limited to three coach-to-player calling radios and belt packs. Most likely, the team will assign them to the head coach, offensive coordinator, and defensive coordinator.
Coach-to-player helmet communication is cut off at the 15-second mark of the play clock or when the ball is snapped, whichever comes first, and remains cut off during downs. Resetting the regeneration clock to 25 or 40 seconds will restore communication. (The play clock is set to 25 seconds after a penalty, charge team timeout, media timeout, or injury timeout for offensive players and 40 seconds after the end of play or injury timeout for defensive players.) Masu.)
Cutoff operators are hired, assigned, and managed by each conference.
Coach-player communication does not work when playing free kicks.
Each team may use up to 23 regular headsets in the team area, coaches box, or coaches booth. Any team member can wear one, and technicians use two additional headsets to monitor the system and address technical issues.
Is helmet communication required between coaches and players?
USC coach Lincoln Riley reviews a tablet on the sideline during a game against LSU on Sept. 1 at Allegiant Stadium. (Photo: Rick Tapia/Getty Images)
no. This technology is optional, as is using a tablet to view in-game video such as broadcast feeds, all-22 sidelines, and end zone angles.
Teams can use helmet communications even if their opponents do not use helmet communications. If a team chooses not to use or rely entirely on technology, coaches can communicate with QBs through traditional methods of sideline signs and hand signals.
However, if one team's communications stop working, the opposing team must also stop using helmet communications.
What happens when an FBS team plays an FCS team?
Although helmet communications are not allowed at the Football Championship subdivision level, FCS teams can use the technology when playing against FBS opponents.
North Dakota State did that in the first week of the season against Colorado. Bison offensive coordinator Jake Landry said in August that the one-game adjustment would still be a “learning curve” for the team, which lost 31-26 to the Buffaloes.
“How much information is too much information?” Landry said, according to 247Sports. “How much do you want to know? What tidbits of information can I provide?”
According to Georgia quarterback Carson Beck, one thing is important:
This offseason, Georgia's QB1 said he “loves” having offensive coordinator Mike Bobo talking in his ear. Do this, do this, just like little things. ”
Advantages and disadvantages
Michigan State staff watching last year's championship game. College teams have long used signs, some unconventional, to communicate plays to teams on the field. (Photo: Carmen Mandert/Getty Images)
A coach can do more than just tell the QB what plays to run. Helmet communications can also be used to remind you of time, down, situation, and the bigger picture when to take risks or play it safe.
Another big advantage is that sign stealing can be minimized.
Using electronic devices to record or “steal” an opponent's signs is illegal in college football. The NCAA also prohibits off-campus in-person scouting of future opponents during the same season. Allegations of a conspiracy at the University of Michigan regarding the latter led to an NCAA investigation last year.
However, on-field sign stealing is permitted. Former Michigan quarterback JJ McCarthy estimated that “80 percent” of college football teams steal signs, and said in January that “this is legal.”
even deeper
“It's as big as it gets”: How important is it to know your opponent's signals?
Teams haven't stopped using sideline signals. But moving some of that communication to the helmet eliminates or at least reduces communication interception, right?
“Sign stealing happens every game,” Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said in March. “There's nothing wrong with teams trying to steal our signs. There's nothing wrong with us trying to see their signs. That's why we should have microphones on our helmets.”
Coach Rhule touched on sign stealing and whether he was aware of it during the game. #Michigan 👀 pic.twitter.com/NsZQDtXNY3
— 247 Huskers (@247Huskers) October 23, 2023
The enemy of coach-player helmet communication is, ironically, noise. Rhule, who coached the Carolina Panthers from 2020 to 2022, said college games “tend to be louder” than NFL games.
“In general, how loud (fans) are in the stadium has a big impact on the game,” Rhule told reporters after Nebraska's Week 1 win over UTEP. “It's no longer just, 'Third down, let's let them run offsides,' it's, 'Let's make it harder for them to hear the play calls and checks,' because that was difficult for us at times.”
Helmet communication is helpful but incomplete. Auburn coach Hugh Freeze said his team is preparing alternatives as it heads into Georgia's harsh road conditions on Saturday. The Tigers played their first five games of the season at home.
“At practice, we let them know out loud that they're having trouble communicating and we see how they handle it,” Freeze said, according to AL.com. “We’re looking at making sure we have alternatives for how we’re going to do the play calling or whatever we need to do to make sure our kids at least have a good understanding of what’s going to be modified going forward.”
Must read
(Photo: James Black/Icon Sportswire, Getty Images)
