NCAA Football Rules: Mouthpieces ARE "mandatory"

[FWIW4922463]

I found the 2021 NCAA Football Rule Book, and here's what it says:

"Mandatory Equipment
ARTICLE 3. All players must wear the following mandatory equipment:
a. Helmet.
b. Hip pads.
c. Jersey.
d. Knee pads.
e. Mouthpiece.
f. Pants.
g. Shoulder pads.
h. Socks.
i. Thigh guards.

"e. Mouthpiece. The mouthpiece must be an intra-oral device of any readily
visible color. It must not be white or transparent. It must be made with
FDA-approved base materials (FDCS) and cover all upper teeth. It is
recommended that the mouthpiece be properly fitted."

So there you have it. Jack Campbell, Iowa's middle linebacker, has been quoted by two Press-Citizen reporters this week in two stories saying he won't be wearing a mouthpiece on Saturday.

I also noticed in the Nebraska-Illinois game last week that Oliver Martin, among others, was wearing his pants above the knee, so he had no knee pads, another rules violation. The specific rule says, "d. Knee Pads. Knee pads must be covered by pants. Furthermore, the pants and knee pads must cover the knees. [ my emphasis] No pads or protective equipment may be worn outside the pants."

It would appear that these rules need to be enforced or removed from the rule book, and it's too late to remove them for this season, so things could get interesting. Or not.

 

[F5n5]

if somebody wanted to play without a helmet... now that would be interesting..
knee pads and mouth pieces... not so much

 

[HawkIDrummer]

I blame it all on the fact that they stopped calling "traveling" years ago...

 

[UNIowaHawk]

Religious exception

 

[kceasthawk]

if somebody wanted to play without a helmet... now that would be interesting..
knee pads and mouth pieces... not so much

That just shows right there that these are not enforced. Almost NONE of the skill players wear knee pads anymore, and most wear the pants pulled up over the knee anyway......

 

[UNIowaHawk]

These rules will probably enforced when Iowa is down one, on the 35 yard line, and kicking for the game winning FG.... in the Natty of course.

 

[SDHawkDoc]

Rules don't mean much if they aren't enforced.

I have yet to see a penalty in a game called because a player wasn't using a mouthguard. The likelihood of this happening anytime soon is, to be generous, quite low.

 

[OILCHECKER]

Define "wear.". Lots of players (QBs) leave their mouthguard in their facemask but don't actually put in it their mouth, at least not every play.

 

[HawkAlum2002]

Define "wear.". Lots of players (QBs) leave their mouthguard in their facemask but don't actually put in it their mouth, at least not every play.

And similarly I think they have kneepads in their pants, whether they actually cover the knee at any particular moment is another thing.

 

[LetsGoHawks83]

Dug up this thread... Was watching the Oregon game last night and their QB had his mouthpiece stuck in the top of his helmet as he tossed a TD to a WR with his mouthpiece dangling from his facemask. 🤣

Surprised we aren't seeing more guys breaking teeth.

 

[Titanhawk2]

Dug up this thread... Was watching the Oregon game last night and their QB had his mouthpiece stuck in the top of his helmet as he tossed a TD to a WR with his mouthpiece dangling from his facemask. 🤣

Surprised we aren't seeing more guys breaking teeth.

Said mouth piece never left his helmet, was stuck there the entire game. I was surprised no official ever said anything

 

[OutbackBowl2017]

It is amazing to me the number of mouth pieces hanging from helmets and not put in the mouth or the pants above the knees. I always wore both and had neoprene sliders covering both knees so I didn’t get grass or carpet burns when I played. The NCAA needs to enforce the rules of using a mouth piece and pants below the knees with knee pads to protect both areas of the player.

 

[BBHawk]

It is amazing to me the number of mouth pieces hanging from helmets and not put in the mouth or the pants above the knees. I always wore both and had neoprene sliders covering both knees so I didn’t get grass or carpet burns when I played. The NCAA needs to enforce the rules of using a mouth piece and pants below the knees with knee pads to protect both areas of the player.

It's their God-given right not to!

 

[HemiHawk]

I found the 2021 NCAA Football Rule Book, and here's what it says:

"Mandatory Equipment
ARTICLE 3. All players must wear the following mandatory equipment:
a. Helmet.
b. Hip pads.
c. Jersey.
d. Knee pads.
e. Mouthpiece.
f. Pants.
g. Shoulder pads.
h. Socks.
i. Thigh guards.

"e. Mouthpiece. The mouthpiece must be an intra-oral device of any readily
visible color. It must not be white or transparent. It must be made with
FDA-approved base materials (FDCS) and cover all upper teeth. It is
recommended that the mouthpiece be properly fitted."

So there you have it. Jack Campbell, Iowa's middle linebacker, has been quoted by two Press-Citizen reporters this week in two stories saying he won't be wearing a mouthpiece on Saturday.

I also noticed in the Nebraska-Illinois game last week that Oliver Martin, among others, was wearing his pants above the knee, so he had no knee pads, another rules violation. The specific rule says, "d. Knee Pads. Knee pads must be covered by pants. Furthermore, the pants and knee pads must cover the knees. [ my emphasis] No pads or protective equipment may be worn outside the pants."

It would appear that these rules need to be enforced or removed from the rule book, and it's too late to remove them for this season, so things could get interesting. Or not.

You forgot to mention how much you hate Kirk Ferentz.

 

[mvhomerl]

Mouth pieces infringe on freedom of speech! They must go! Oh and also you said knee pads... awesome!