College football fans, brace yourselves—there might be a big shake-up coming to how the game handles injuries, or rather, the fake ones.
According to reports shared by On3, The NCAA rules committee is considering a new rule that could finally put an end to the not-so-subtle art of feigning injuries to slow down high-tempo offenses. If you’ve ever shouted at your TV because an opposing player suddenly went down right when your team’s offense was picking up steam, you’re not alone.
The proposed rule would require injured players to sit out an entire drive before returning to the game, with the exception of quarterbacks and certain defensive players who wear the “green dot” (those with helmet communication from coaches). This exemption is meant to avoid drastically altering the flow of the game when key players go down. Instead, the focus is on rotational players, who are often the ones dropping to the turf conveniently when momentum shifts.
Steve Shaw, the national coordinator of officials, made it clear that this isn’t just a passing idea.
“We can’t kick the can down the road once again,” he said, emphasizing the pressure from coaches and stakeholders who are fed up with the growing trend of fake injuries.
The idea of players faking injuries has been a thorn in the side of college football for years, especially with the rise of hurry-up offenses designed to tire out defenses and keep them on their heels. But now, with the NCAA seriously considering this rule change, the days of conveniently timed “injuries” might finally be numbered.
The problem got so bad last season that SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey issued a warning to his conferene that there would be penalties if a team was caught faking injuries.
It's unclear if this rule change would go into effect in 2025 or not.