College football rule changes, including starting the clock first, are coming, with the goal of shortening games

The NCAA Football Rules Committee announced Friday that it has approved several rules aimed at speeding up college football games in an effort to control the flow of the game and add consistency to in-game officiating. Once approved by the NCAA’s Rules Oversight Panel in April, the rules will be implemented in the 2023 season, and the committee will monitor their impact on the game, particularly the number of games played in each contest.

The biggest change concerns the first downs. Currently, the clock stops on first downs until the refs spot the ball. The new rule keeps the clock running on first downs except in the final 2 minutes of the second and fourth quarters. This mimics the NFL’s current rule.

CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd pointed out last month that the model currently used by college football has been in use since 1968.

“This rule change is a small step to reduce overall playing time and give us time to evaluate the impact of the change,” said Georgia coach Kirby Smart, chairman of the committee.

Among other rule changes, the committee has initially approved:

• No consecutive timeouts: This mostly affects field goal attempts, with opponents calling multiple timeouts to “hit the ice”.
• Timeless Punishments: Off-the-clock violations in the first and third quarters would carry over to the next quarter, limiting “untimed timeouts” to the end of halves.
• Playback controls: In games where there is no replay referee in the booth, on-field officials have an optional replay where they can use the available video after a coach’s challenge.

The committee also clarified a couple of current rules. Drones may not be allowed over the playing surface or team area while teams are on the field, and teams may not warm up before the second half until the field has been cleared.

The panel will vote on the official implementation of these rules on April 20.