Football is constantly evolving. There is a never-ending quest to improve the entertainment factor while ensuring the game is as safe as possible for those involved. One of the ways that the NCAA has strived to do that in college football is by overhauling overtime rules. Everyone loves free football, but how does it all work this season?
College football overtime rules explained
From the start of the 2021 college football season, the rules governing what happens when a game is tied changed. Suppose a winner hasn’t been decided by the end of the first overtime period. In that case, the extra-point attempt following a touchdown will be replaced by a mandatory two-point effort from the start of the second overtime period.
Previously, that element of college football overtime rules started from the third period of overtime. In an attempt to shorten college football games, the NCAA moved up that overtime rule a period.
If the game is still tied following the conclusion of the second overtime period, then a sudden death shootout begins in the third overtime. There is no drive down the field to find the end zone. Instead, each time makes alternating two-point attempts until a winner emerges. For the past two seasons, this came into play from the fifth overtime period.
Those are the most recent amendments to the college football overtime rules. But, how did we get to those? What are some of the more basic elements of college football overtime?
How does college football overtime work?
Each offensive possession in college football overtime begins at the opponent’s 25-yard line. It gives the offense a short field to work with, increasing the spectacle and shortening the game.
With a short field, unlimited clock, and no chance of a tied game, there was essentially no limit on how long a game could go on. If you had two high-powered offenses going toe to toe or impressive defenses restricting scoring opportunity, multiple overtime periods in college football were possible.
The record for college football overtime is seven periods. Arkansas and Ole Miss played out the first during the 2001 season. The Razorbacks were participants in two of the five games to go well beyond regulation time.
Following a 2018 clash between LSU and Texas A&M that saw over 200 snaps in a record 74-72 game, it was agreed that changes needed to be made to limit the game while maintaining the sporting elements of the rules.
As a result, in 2019, new amendments came for college football overtime rules. They introduced a mandatory two-point attempt from the third overtime period. Furthermore, the NCAA added the alternating two-point sudden death rule from the fifth period of overtime.
The history of college football overtime
Just as nature abhors a vacuum, football fans abhor a tied game. After battling for hours on the field, fans want to see a victor emerge. However, up until the 1996 college football season, overtime didn’t exist.
A tie score after regulation time remained just that — a tie.
While there is something poetic about two teams equalling each other in a battle of excellence, it presents some issues when trying to crown a national champion. Take the 1992 Michigan team, for example. Technically the Wolverines went unbeaten that year, an exceptional feat. Except they had three ties, which were not quite as outstanding.
Hence, the introduction of college football overtime.
Are the rules different from the NFL?
College football overtime rules have some fundamental differences with the controversial NFL equivalent. Now, I admit my bias in saying college football is superior to the NFL. However, I think we can all agree that college football overtime rules are just better.
Each team gets the opportunity to have an offensive possession. The NFL equivalent is considered unfair because if the team with the first offensive possession scores a touchdown, their opponent doesn’t have the opportunity to strike back with a score of their own. In college football overtime, there is no clock — each overtime period consists of one possession per team. If the game remains in a tie, it moves on to the following overtime possession.
Therefore, the coin toss in college football overtime rules becomes a strategical element of the game. The visiting team calls the toss, and the winner gets to choose whether they play offense or defense first and which side of the field they will attack when on offense. The loser of the toss gets to choose in the second overtime period and any subsequent even-numbered periods if the game is undecided following the first overtime.
This can be more important than you’d think with raucous college football stadiums, especially for the road team.