NCAA Committee Reportedly Could Propose Rule Change for Targeting Suspensions, More

The NCAA is reportedly considering changes to the rules regarding targeting and equipment during the NCAA Football Playing Rules Committee's annual meeting this week, according to The Athletic's Chris Vannini.

Per that report, "the committee could propose to remove the carryover suspension part of the punishment for first-time offenders on second-half targeting penalties, leaving in place a 15-yard penalty and ejection. Players flagged for targeting multiple times within the same season could be subject to harsher punishment. The rules committee will come up with proposals at its meetings Tuesday and Wednesday, then spend the next month gathering feedback before final decisions in March."

Miami cornerback Xavier Lucas missed the first half of this year's National Championship Game against Indiana because he was penalized for targeting in the second half of the Fiesta Bowl, the current penalty for such an infraction.

With targeting infractions dropping across the board, however, there is a push to remove such a harsh and lingering punishment.

"Everybody's done a tremendous job, and now it doesn't feel like the punishment fits the crime, where the majority of these are just football plays," Fox Sports rules analyst and NCAA director of replay, Dean Blandino, told Vannini. "We'll see if there's enough impetus to get rid of the carryover, but the rule has worked."

There is less interest in removing targeting as an infraction.

"What targeting has driven in terms of player behavior change has been really good and the numbers reflect that," Steve Shaw, the national coordinator of officials and the NCAA's secretary-rules editor, told Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports. "But how can we continue this trend of taking out more of these hits we don't want in the game while being less punitive?"

The committee will also discuss stricter enforcement on the rule that requires pants to be worn to the knee, with many players ignoring the rule and wearing shorter pants in recent years. It's largely a safety issue, given the need for thigh and knee pads.

There will also reportedly be discussions for requiring for players on the offensive line to wear a number between 50-79 to eliminate the ability for teams to run deceptive fake punts.