I was at Amino Vital over the weekend and saw several spring college games including Ritsumeikan's and Keio's blowouts of Tokai and Tokyo Gakudai, and a game between Teikyo and Hitotsubashi that was much closer, at least until later in the 4th quarter.
Meanwhile, there was a large family event going on at Ajinomoto Stadium, and the "Big Flea Market" going on just outside the gates.
This of course, was a good chance to expose and promote football to families attending. Indeed, inside the gates of Amino Vital, there was a popular attraction with mini footballs for kids to try to throw through a hole and volunteers instructing them- that was fun; and a table with information on American football, and helmets for kids to try on a get Polaroid pictures taking. A nice start. I'd like to see more of this, and perhaps a bit more aggressive promotion (e.g. sending volunteers (perhaps in Teams Japan jerseys and helmets) through the flea market, and outside Tobitakyu Station and Ajinomoto Stadium. Perhaps there are other attractions for the kids and families as well. One of the things that makes football special in the US is the tail gate picnic atmosphere that I think would be fantastic to adopt here. I hope to post more about this subject of promoting football in Japan in the near future, and welcome any comments and suggestions you may have.
More needs to be done to draw families into becoming fans, so let's applaud that effort, and really hope to see more, and more often.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
times are changing
Football in Japan have finally updated the clock procedures to match the NCAA rules- the so called 40/25 clock. Normally 40 seconds to run a play; 25 second when the clock is stopped. When the ball goes out of bounds (in all but the last two minutes of each half), the clock stops only until the ball is set and the official gives the "Ready For Play" signal. This was done to speed up games in the NCAA, which have been exceeding 3 hours.
The actual results of the rule? For one, it will make it easier for a team with a lead to run out the clock, as they have 40 seconds to snap the ball now, rather than 25 seconds plus whatever time it took officials to set the ball. Which points to one of the reasons why it is probably a good rule, as previously the officials were often quite inconsistent in the time it took to setting the ball.
Some may argue that 40 seconds is a bit longer than teams need- while 30 seconds may be too fast, perhaps it should be 35 or 36 seconds. I don't know.
What I would like to see rather than- or in addition to- stopping the clock when the ball goes out of bounds would be stopping the clock temporarily on incomplete passes. As it currently stands, the game clock stops on all incomplete passes. I think this has resulted in a large variation in the length of football games in recent years. Running plays stop the clock far less often, especially now with the out of bounds clock rules. In NCAA games where some teams pass 50 or 60 times each, that can possibly mean stopping the clock fifty to a hundred times for incomplete passes. Some (60 minute) games now approach four hours in length. Making the timing consistent run or pass, would result in games of more uniform time length.
Irregular lengths of games certainly creates problems for television, as it throws off programming and paid advertising schedules. Scheduling for facilities, teams, and fans can be improved when games are of more uniform length. Just as importantly (though I am not aware of any statistics yet), one may surmise that longer games quite probably lead to more health and safety issues. Longer time on the field- particularly in hot or poor weather conditions- increases the exposure to injury or other medical issues.
The actual results of the rule? For one, it will make it easier for a team with a lead to run out the clock, as they have 40 seconds to snap the ball now, rather than 25 seconds plus whatever time it took officials to set the ball. Which points to one of the reasons why it is probably a good rule, as previously the officials were often quite inconsistent in the time it took to setting the ball.
Some may argue that 40 seconds is a bit longer than teams need- while 30 seconds may be too fast, perhaps it should be 35 or 36 seconds. I don't know.
What I would like to see rather than- or in addition to- stopping the clock when the ball goes out of bounds would be stopping the clock temporarily on incomplete passes. As it currently stands, the game clock stops on all incomplete passes. I think this has resulted in a large variation in the length of football games in recent years. Running plays stop the clock far less often, especially now with the out of bounds clock rules. In NCAA games where some teams pass 50 or 60 times each, that can possibly mean stopping the clock fifty to a hundred times for incomplete passes. Some (60 minute) games now approach four hours in length. Making the timing consistent run or pass, would result in games of more uniform time length.
Irregular lengths of games certainly creates problems for television, as it throws off programming and paid advertising schedules. Scheduling for facilities, teams, and fans can be improved when games are of more uniform length. Just as importantly (though I am not aware of any statistics yet), one may surmise that longer games quite probably lead to more health and safety issues. Longer time on the field- particularly in hot or poor weather conditions- increases the exposure to injury or other medical issues.
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