The first week of the XFL regular season begins this weekend, with two games on Saturday and two on Sunday. Referees Reggie Smith, Brandon Cruse, Jeff Heaser and James Carter will lead their teams during the inaugural XFL renaissance week. Follow our live coverage here and on our Twitter page, @footballzebras.
The game assignments are below. All times are from the East.
Game assignments
Saturday February 8
Seattle Dragons at DC Defenders, 2 p.m. ABC
R | 2 | Reggie smith | Large 12 |
VS | 27 | Adam Savoie | ACC |
U | 35 | Brad Hudak | Big Ten |
re | 47 | Rod Ammari | Pac-12 |
The | 21 | Maia Chaka | USA conference |
F | 63 | Daniel Gautreaux | SECOND |
S | 94 | Maurice Pierre | USA conference |
B | 29 | Jimmy DeBell | USA conference |
DJ Rod Ammari (O’Neill team) is replacing DJ Dale Keller this week.
- Official replay: Glenn King
- Bullet detector: Derek Hatten
- Supervisor: Larry Upson
Los Angeles Wildcats at Houston Roughnecks, 5 p.m. FOX
R | 81 | Brandon cruse | Large 12 |
VS | 51 | Tab Slaughter | Large 12 |
U | 88 | Mike Morton | ACC |
re | 42 | Tangela Mitchell | SWAC |
The | 59 | Brett Bergman | Big Ten |
F | 3 | Anthony Flemming | Large 12 |
S | 76 | Eric Hartman | ACC |
B | 23 | David Ross | Pac-12 |
- Official replay: Mark butterworth
- Bullet detector: Jason LaBorde
- Supervisor: Steve Strimling
Sunday February 9
Tampa Bay Vipers at New York Guardians, 2 p.m. FOX
R | 84 | Jeff Heaser | ACC |
VS | 33 | Chris Snead | SECOND |
U | 49 | Scott Campbell | Large 12 |
re | 17 | Barrett Cravonne | Pac-12 |
The | 55 | Robin DeLorenzo | Big Ten |
F | 6 | Lo Van Pham | Large 12 |
S | 91 | Frank Steratore | Big Ten |
B | 58 | Joe Johnston | Pac-12 |
- Official replay: Robert Lu
- Bullet detector: Corey Hanson
- Supervisor: Chuck Bresnahan
Battlehawks of Saint-Louis at the Dallas Renegades, 5 p.m. ESPN
R | 19 | James Carter | SECOND |
VS | 31 | Amanda Sauer-Cook | Big Ten |
U | 38 | Mike Moten | SECOND |
re | 79 | Michael Dolce | Big Ten |
The | 28 | Tom eaton | SECOND |
F | 5 | Glen Fucik | SECOND |
S | 99 | Clay reynard | Pac-12 |
B | 26 | Justin Nelson | Pac-12 |
LJ Tom Eaton (O’Neill crew) replaces LJ Steven Matarante this week.
- Official replay: Mike Chase
- Bullet detector: Crystal cooksey
- Supervisor: Wes Booker
Live
New innovation from the 9th crew member in the field: the bullet tracking official
One of many XFL refereeing innovations is the addition of the ball tracking official. This 9th official, who is positioned in the offensive field between the referee and the central judge, has no fault responsibilities, but is solely responsible for having a soccer ball ready for the next match. The first match ball official, Derek Hatten, wears the red hat, as all ball officials will wear. We see it mirroring the timing mechanisms by going back in time for the next game.
R Reggie Smith with the first penalty announcement for the new XFL
XFL teams have options on tryouts
To increase the point excitement after touchdown, the XFL has introduced three test options that make the extra point less automatic. The team that scored the touchdown may attempt an offensive game for 1 point from the 2-yard line, 2 points from the 5-yard line or 3 points from the 10-yard line. No kick is allowed. The defense can return a fumble or an interception during a try, and if it is returned to the end zone, the defense will score the same number of points as the offensive was seeking.
U Brad Hudak takes a spill
Referee Brad Hudak gets caught in the middle of the action and hits the bridge. The NFL has abandoned the traditional position of referee in favor of a safer place in the offensive field, however, college football still uses the traditional position in the “meat grinder”.
Referees are wired for sound
In addition to the wireless microphone to announce the sanctions, the arbitrators also wear microphones that broadcast lectures, like these, to the live television audience. Here, referee Reggie Smith and the crew discuss the application of penalties for a personal foul of a dead ball.
Timing rules after the two-minute warning
In the XFL, the timing rules after the two-minute warning differ from the NFL for all games where a runner is tackled within the limits. The game clock will stop at the end of each game and start again 5 seconds after locating the ball. The exception is for incomplete passes and games that end out of bounds, where the timer will start at the next snap, which is the traditional timing rule. Keep an eye on the clock in this clip, it stops at 1:35 when the current game ends and restarts 5 seconds after the start of the game clock, which indicates that the ball is spotted.
Short free kick is similar to an out of bounds NFL kick
In the XFL, if a kick does not exceed 20 yards from the receiving team in the air, it is treated as a short free kick and the receiving team will automatically take possession of the ball on the 45 meters from his opponent. This is somewhat similar to an out of bounds kickoff in the NFL, however, the XFL rule grants the team that receives an additional 15 yards position on the field. An out of bounds kick in XFL is treated the same as a short free kick.
R Reggie Smith and CJ Adam Savoie confer and collect the flag
Although we are only catching the end of this conference, referee Reggie Smith and central judge Adam Savoie have come together to pick up a flag for mistreating the ferryman because the quarterback established a running posture and lost protection against low hits. Savoie is a white hat at ACC, so he has experience in roughing passes.
“Stop the game, stop the game, stop the game!”
The proofreading manager, Robert Lu, intervenes here to launch a review of the proofreading of an escapee, who was reversed in an incomplete pass. Tampa Bay tight end Nick Truesdell did not complete the capture process until the ball was released, so this game was a proper reversal.
DT Vipers Ricky Walker kicked out for punching
Tampa Bay defensive tackle Ricky Walker has the (dis) honorable distinction of being the first XFL player to be disqualified. Walker threw a punch and logged in after the game was over. Another Tampa Bay defensive lineman was offside, but only one foul is applied, which is the same as the principle of application. NFL penalties. Hear the crew’s discussion before ejecting Walker, including referee Jeff Heaser back and forth with Judge Cravonne Barrett confirming that the application was applied correctly.
CJ Amanda Sauer-Cook makes his XFL debut
You can read more about center judge Amanda Sauer-Cook and her story as an officer here.