By Tom Nader

Publisher and Editor

Getting the call right is extremely important to Adam Loudin.

The 2006 Waterloo High School graduate has been working toward that perfection since beginning his basketball officiating career in 2007.

A year later, he jumped onto the gridiron to begin his football officiating career.

His desire to transition his love for sports — Loudin was a three-sport athlete for the Vikings (football, basketball, baseball) — transpired while he was a Portage South Hot Stove umpire as a teenager.

“I enjoyed it,” said Loudin, who is now the assistant principal at Youngstown East High School after graduating from Kent State in 2011 with a degree in secondary social studies education and earning his Master’s in 2018 from Youngstown State in educational leadership.

Loudin has partnered with Portage Sports to help share some officiating perspectives with this weekly series titled “Under Review.”

Today’s Topic: Helmet to Helmet Contact

Q: Describe the rule for offensive players and how it differs for defensive players.

A: From a rules standpoint, there is no difference in what a player may do or not do in terms of helmet to helmet contact. The two main rules violations that involve helmet to helmet contact are spearing and targeting.

Spearing has always been in the rule book, whereas targeting made its way into the high school rule book several years after it was adopted at the NCAA level.

Spearing is the act by any player who initiates contact with the crown (top) of his helmet to any body part below the shoulders.

Targeting is an act by any player who takes aim and initiates contact against an opponent above the shoulders (head and neck area) with the helmet, fist, forearm, shoulder or elbow.

Q: What are you looking for in these instances?
A: What officials look for are indicators by the defender. These include:

     • Lowering the head

     • Crouching, then followed by an upward thrust at an opponent

     • Leading with the helmet

     • Launching (leaving their feet) to attack an opponent

     • Forcible contact of any kind to the head and neck area of an opponent

Q: What is the difference of a defensive player leading with their helmet and an offensive player leading with their helmet (to brace for impact)?

A: This is a really difficult rule to apply, especially to the offense. The rule is not different for the offense or defense, but it is officiated differently. Rarely do we call targeting on the offense, even though running backs lower their head and attack their opponent routinely. In my opinion, this is one of the areas we need to be more consistent in for player protection. Honestly, I am not sure how we can apply the rule more equitably, but it is something that we are constantly working toward.

Q: How has this topic grown in awareness since you started?
A: The movie, Concussion, really changed the game. The way the game is played and officiated since that time is completely different. It started with the implementation of targeting and has now grown to include illegal blind-side blocks. The NFL, NCAA and NFHS (high school) are dedicated to player safety and protection. They want the “big hits” out of the game. The days of taking opponents out are over and it is for the better. The NFL and NCAA are way ahead of the high-school game at this point, but the high-school associations and officials are getting better at being consistent with these plays.