What changed

This historical entry compares the NCAA’s 2022 and 2023 editions. The change restricted when a team could spend its timeouts, while preserving the three-per-half allowance. It affected coaches planning stoppages, officials handling requests and spectators waiting for play to resume. See the NCAA-authored 2022 rulebook and 2023 rulebook, Rule 3-3-4.

Before-and-after example

Suppose a defense has all three timeouts and requests one before a field-goal attempt. Before the next snap, its coach requests another. Under the 2022 provision, a second charged timeout was available. Under the 2023 provision, that team has already used its allowance for this dead-ball period, so another charged team timeout is unavailable. The restriction is per team: it does not itself prevent the opponent from using its own available timeout. This example applies Rule 3-3-4 in the 2022 and 2023 editions.

Adoption, commencement and scope

The Football Rules Committee’s February 28–March 3, 2023 report proposed this change with immediate effect, subject to approval. The Playing Rules Oversight Panel approved the submitted timeout restriction on April 20, 2023. The effective date recorded here is derived from that approval date and the approved recommendation’s immediate-effect provision; it is not taken from the rulebook’s publication month. See committee recommendation, action item 2(c) and oversight-panel report, April 20, item 5(c).

The NCAA announced approval on April 21 and described implementation for the 2023 season. Its announcement expressly included all three divisions for the timeout restriction. The separate Division III reconsideration concerned first-down clock stoppages, not this change. No division-specific early or delayed implementation of the timeout restriction is identified in these records. See the NCAA adoption announcement.

This is an edition-to-edition historical record, not a claim that a new change occurred in 2026 or a complete statement of today’s rules. It does not establish rules for NFL, high-school, youth, Canadian or flag competitions. Return to American Football for other resources.

Official evidence

Change status

Confirmed change

Effective from:

Before and after

Before and after
Situation National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) · 2022 NCAA Football Rules and Interpretations · Historical NCAA college football rules for Divisions I, II and III; the previous charged-team-timeout provision.National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) · 2023 NCAA Football Rules and Interpretations · Historical NCAA college football rules for Divisions I, II and III; the restriction on repeated charged team timeouts during one dead-ball period.
Repeated charged team timeouts during one dead-ball periodThe 2022 NCAA rule allowed a player or head coach to request a charged team timeout while the ball was dead if timeouts remained. It provided three per half without a one-per-team limit for an individual dead-ball period.The 2023 NCAA rule retained three charged team timeouts per half but limited each team to one in an individual dead-ball period. The same team could no longer take consecutive charged team timeouts before play resumed, even if it had unused timeouts.

Rule editions and sources

  • National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) · 2022 NCAA Football Rules and Interpretations · Historical NCAA college football rules for Divisions I, II and III; the previous charged-team-timeout provision. — 2022 NCAA Football Rules and Interpretations
  • National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) · 2023 NCAA Football Rules and Interpretations · Historical NCAA college football rules for Divisions I, II and III; the restriction on repeated charged team timeouts during one dead-ball period. — 2023 NCAA Football Rules and Interpretations