UNC Football: Important Rule Changes for the 2023 Season

Heading into the 2023 college football season, here are some important rule changes that could ultimately affect the UNC football program.

The 2023 college football season is just a few weeks away.

With this in mind, the National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame has partnered with the College Football Officiating (CFO) to highlight the key rule changes that will take effect this fall.

The goal in mind is not only to develop and evaluate potential rule changes to enhance the game but also to generate awareness for new rules that have been put into place. This year’s changes will, of course, impact the UNC football program, as well as college football teams across the country.

Three strategic initiatives were focused on this year by the rules committee:

Keep the game moving (pace of play)
Moderately reduce the number of plays per game
Ensure consistency in officiating mechanics in regard to managing the game clock

Here are some of the major rule changes as outlined and explained by the National Football Foundation:

"Stopping and Starting the Clock – First Downs When the offense gains a first down, the clock will no longer be stopped to award a first down except with less than two minutes remaining in the 2nd and 4th quarters. Consecutive Charged Team Timeouts Consecutive charged team timeouts will no longer be allowed by the same team in any individual dead ball period.  Each team is entitled to three charged team timeouts during each half, with no more than one charged team timeout available per team, per individual dead ball period. Extension of PeriodsA period shall be extended for an untimed down in the 2nd or 4th quarter only if a penalty is accepted for a live-ball foul if there are offsetting fouls, or an inadvertent whistle.  The 1st and 3rd quarters will not be extended, and any penalty enforcement will be carried over to the following quarter. Drone PolicyDrones are not allowed over the field or the team area when squad members are present within the playing enclosure.   Halftime Intermission The field will be available to squad members for halftime warm-up no later than three minutes prior to the second-half kickoff.  When any Squad Member enters the playing enclosure during the halftime intermission, a staff member from that team must be present on the field.If kickers or other squad members come onto the playing enclosure before the field is available, their activities must be confined to the team area.  Instant Replay without an Instant Replay Booth OfficialThe optional use of instant replay in games that do not have an instant replay booth official is now permissible and must be in full compliance with Rule 12 (the replay rule) with some exceptions (as outlined in the official press release)."

For Mack Brown and the UNC football program, these changes in rules are notable, as they should have an impact on games throughout the season. In an effort to improve the pace of play, the starting and stopping of the clock difference must be noted, as the clock won’t be shut down for a team gathering a first down unless there are under two minutes remaining in the half or the final quarter of play.

Additionally, back-to-back timeouts won’t be allowed, so coaches won’t have the ability to “ice” the kicker more than once at a time. Some college coaches would utilize two timeouts to make the kicker wait longer, but that strategy is one that won’t be permitted starting this season.

The changes put in place are rather interesting, as the rule committee is working hard to improve the game. We’ll have to wait and see just how much these rules impact the game once we get into regular season action in a few weeks.

Follow us @KeepingItHeel on Twitter and like our fan page on Facebook for continued coverage of UNC Football news and recruiting updates.