The NCAA football rules committee recently issued guidance to address a loophole that allowed second-ranked Oregon to exploit an illegal substitution penalty in their victory over Ohio State. During Ohio State's final possession with seconds left on the clock, Oregon was penalized for having too many defenders on the field, resulting in a 5-yard penalty that also ran four seconds off the clock. This move ultimately contributed to Oregon's 32-31 win.
The new guidance states that after the Two-Minute Timeout in either half, if the defense commits a substitution foul with 12 or more players on the field, the game clock can be reset to the time displayed at the snap at the option of the offended team. The game clock will then restart on the next snap. However, if the 12th defender had no influence on the play and was attempting to exit the field, the normal substitution penalty would be enforced without a clock adjustment.
