Two-minute warning

For the 1976 film, see Two-Minute Warning.

In the National Football League, the two-minute warning is given when two minutes of game time remain on the game clock in each half of a game, i.e. near the end of the second and fourth quarters. There is an additional two-minute warning in the rare event only two minutes remain in an overtime period. If the football is in play when the clock reaches 2:00, the two-minute warning is called immediately after the play concludes, when the ball is declared dead. The two-minute warning stops the game clock in all cases.

History

This event dates from the days in the NFL when the official game time was kept by a member of the officiating crew, with the stadium clock being unofficial. Its purpose was a checkpoint to ensure that the teams knew how much time remained in the game.^{[citation needed]} Since the late 1960s the NFL stadium clock has been official, but by then television was an important factor in the NFL, so the two-minute warning was retained as a commercial break and to serve as "tension building" time, and thus has become an important part of the game's flow.^{[citation needed]}

Rules

In addition to those practical purposes, over time some rules have evolved that are unique to the final two minutes of each half. There is no special event at the ends of the first and third quarters, aside from swapping end zones, so there is no two-minute warning then, only at the halves:

1. If a player is injured and his team has timeouts in that half remaining, a timeout is automatically charged to that team to allow the injured player to be removed from the field, unless the clock had stopped as a result of the previous play.
2. The following situations result in a 10-second game clock runoff if the team in possession of the ball and is trailing or the game is tied and has no timeouts in that half remaining. The half or game can expire on this runoff.
   1. If a player is injured with no remaining timeouts, and his team is trailing but in possession of the football, the team is awarded a free timeout without penalty to allow the injured player to be removed from the field for the first occurrence; subsequent occurrences result in a 5-yard penalty.
      1. Exception: No runoff or yardage penalty is assessed if the immediate previous play ended with a run out of bounds or the commission of a defensive penalty.
   2. One of the following six fouls is committed by the offense. Following the runoff, the game clock will resume again once the ball is set. The runoff can also occur if a team declines to use a timeout if it has timeouts remaining.
      1. False start
      2. Intentional grounding
      3. Illegal forward pass beyond the line of scrimmage
      4. Throwing a backwards pass out of bounds
      5. Spiking or throwing the ball away after a down (unless after a touchdown)
      6. Any other intentional act that causes the clock to stop
3. If the defensive team is trailing with no timeouts, a defensive foul with 40 or fewer seconds can be declined, allowing the half or game to end.
4. The half or game cannot end on a defensive foul unless it is declined by the offense.
5. All replay reviews must be initiated by the replay assistant. Coaches' challenges cannot be used inside the two-minute warning.
6. If the quarterback is sacked inside the two-minute warning, the clock continues to run. (At all other times, the clock stops on a quarterback sack.)
7. If an offensive player fumbles, only the fumbling player can advance the ball if the ball is recovered by the team in possession of the ball. If any other offensive player recovers the ball, the ball is placed at the spot of the fumble. (This rule also applies to fourth down at any point in the game.)

The two-minute warning in the fourth quarter is an important milestone in the game for a team that is in the lead and looking to run out the clock. If the leading team has the ball on first down with less than two minutes to go in the game and the opposing team has no timeouts remaining, the quarterback can often safely end the game by "taking a knee" three times in succession without risking injuries or turnovers. This is because at the end of each play, the offensive team can take up to 40 seconds to start running the next play.

NCAA

The NCAA, which is the governing body for college football in the United States, does not have a two-minute warning, although the official NCAA rule book requires the referee to inform the field captain and head coach of each team when "approximately two minutes of playing time" remain in each half, in the event that a visual game clock (e.g., on the stadium scoreboard) is not being used as the official game timepiece. This is the case because if a team earns a first down, the clock stops to move the chains. Once the chains are set, the clock restarts. The only time the two-minute warning was used in a college football game was in 1931 Bucknell vs. Temple after a power outage and a regular wrist watch was used to keep track of the time in the game.

Other football leagues

The two-minute warning was also used in NFL Europa. The CFL has a three-minute warning. The Arena Football League (and its former minor league, af2) have a one-minute warning.

External links

• "What is a two minute warning" video explanation at videojug