How Football Game Time Is Measured in Quarters
To keep things in small, easily digestible chunks, every football game is divided into quarters and these quarters are divided into smaller segments whenever the game clock stops. In college and pro football, each quarter lasts 15 minutes; high schools use 12-minute quarters.
After the second quarter comes halftime, which is generally a 15-minute break that gives players time to rest and allows bands and cheerleaders time to perform (it also gives fans time to go get a hot dog). There are often halftime ceremonies in which coaches, players, or alumni are honored.
The game clock doesn’t run continuously throughout those 15- or 12-minute quarters, though. (If it did, when would they show the TV commercials?) The clock stops for the following reasons:
Either team calls a timeout. Teams are allowed three timeouts per half. Consecutive team timeouts can be taken, but the second timeout is reduced from a full minute to 40 seconds.
A quarter ends. The stoppage in time enables teams to change which goal they will defend (they change sides at the end of the first and third quarters).
The quarterback throws an incomplete pass.
The ball carrier goes out of bounds.
A player from either team is injured during a play.
An official signals a penalty by throwing a flag.
The officials need to measure whether the offense has gained a first down or need to take time to spot, or place, the ball correctly on the field.
Either team scores a touchdown, field goal, or safety.
The ball changes possession via a kickoff, a punt, a turnover, or a team failing to have advanced the ball 10 yards in 4 downs.
The offense gains a first down (college and high school only).
Two minutes remain in the period (NFL only).
A coach has challenged a referee’s call, and the referees are reviewing the call (NFL only).
Unlike college and professional basketball, where a shot clock determines how long the offense can keep possession of the ball, in football the offense can keep the ball as long as it keeps making first downs.
However, the offense has 40 seconds from the end of a given play, or a 25-second interval after official stoppages (such as replacing a wet ball with a dry one), to get in the proper position after an extremely long pass gain. If the offense doesn’t snap the ball in that allotted time, it’s penalized 5 yards and must repeat the down.
With the exception of the last 2 minutes of the first half and the last 5 minutes of the second half of an NFL game, the game clock is restarted after a kickoff return, after a player goes out of bounds on a play, or after a declined penalty.
Football Glossary
ACC
The Atlantic Coast Conference of college football teams.
Football Glossary
AFC
An acronym for the American Football Conference.
Football Glossary
AFL
An acronym for the American Football League.
Football Glossary
BCS
An acronym for the Bowl Championship Series.
Football Glossary
Big Ten
A college athletic conference whose eleven-member institutions are located mainly in the Midwestern United States.
Football Glossary
bye week
A week during which an NFL team doesn’t play; every NFL team has one week of the season off.
Football Glossary
center
The player who snaps the ball to the quarterback. A center handles the ball on every play.
Football Glossary
DEF
An acronym for Team Defense.
Football Glossary
fullback
A player who’s responsible for blocking for the running back and also for pass-blocking to protect the quarterback. Fullbacks, who are generally bigger than running backs, are short-yardage runners.
Football Glossary
kicker; placekicker
The member of the special team who is responsible for field goal and extra point attempts.
Football Glossary
NCAA
An acronym for the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
Football Glossary
NFC
An acronym for the National Football Conference.
Football Glossary
NFL
An acronym for the National Football League.
Football Glossary
Pac-10
The Pacific-10 Conference is a college athletic conference that operates in the western United States.
Football Glossary
Punt
A kick to the opponent without the use of a tee.
Football Glossary
quarterback
The leader of the team. The quarterback calls the plays in the huddle, yells the signals at the line of scrimmage, and then receives the ball from the center. Then he hands off the ball to a running back, throws it to a receiver, or runs with it.
Football Glossary
running back; tailback; halfback; wingback
A player who runs with the football.
Football Glossary
SEC
The Southeastern Conference of college football teams.
Football Glossary
snake draft
A draft in which each fantasy coach has one pick in each round. Each team makes its first-round pick based on a predetermined order.
Football Glossary
ST
An acronym for Special Teams.
Football Glossary
stud
A top-rated fantasy football starter.
Football Glossary
tight end
A player who serves as a receiver and also as a blocker. The tight end lines up beside the offensive tackle to the right or the left of the quarterback.
Football Glossary
waivers
A situation where a player is dropped from a team roster; the player goes on waivers for a limited time before becoming a free agent. All coaches then have a set amount of time (usually two days) to decide whether to add him to their teams.
Football Glossary
wide receiver
A player who uses his speed to elude defenders and catch the football. Teams use as many as two to four wide receivers on every play.