The rise has been meteoric. In just three years, 79 San Diego Section high schools have begun playing girls flag football. The quality of play has far exceeded expectations. So why, then, are national officials changing the rules? That’s exactly what the coaches are asking. Recently, the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) sent out 15 rules changes for the 2025 season. The CIF San Diego Section is adopting them all: The governing body’s preseason bulletin used three exclamation points, noting “Significant changes for the 2025 season!!!” The sentence was both underlined and highlighted in yellow. Will these rule changes affect the game? “Yes, 1,000 times, yes,” said Grossmont High School coach Tony Lawrence, perhaps the most outspoken coach on the rules changes. The key changes include: • Longer drives: After scores or at the start of the game or half, possession will now start at the 14-yard line. The old rule was the 20. • Blocking: Screen blocking is now allowed anywhere on the field, but must be non-contact. The old rule only allowed blocking at or behind the line of scrimmage. • Rush rules: Any defender may line up 1 yard off the line of scrimmage and rush the passer. The old rule allowed no more than two players to rush the quarterback at a time and dictated that legal rushers all had to start 7-plus yards off the line. • Passing rules: There is no more 7-second rule for throwing the ball. Under the old rule, the quarterback had to throw the ball within 7 seconds. • Running rules: Offenses can now run the ball at any time. The old rule designated “no-run zones” where the ball could not be advanced by run.Quarterbacks can now run the ball at any time. The old rule limited offenses to one quarterback run per set of downs. • Punting/kicking rules: Scrimmage kicks are allowed and must be declared. All players freeze until the kick. The receiving team may recover a grounded kick, but not a muffed kick. The kicking team cannot recover. Under the old rule, there was no punting. A change of possession always placed the ball at the 20. • Offensive formation/snap rules: Only the snapper is required to be on the line of scrimmage. The old rule stated that four players had to be on the line of scrimmage at the snap. • Diving: Diving is now allowed. • Intentional grounding: Intentional grounding is now a penalty that includes loss of down. There was no penalty for intentional grounding under the old rule. “The game is completely changing with the new rules,” said San Ysidro coach Giantoni Canale. “The biggest change is moving the defensive rusher from 7 yards to 1 yard (off the line). To counter that, the offense is allowed to have some blockers.” Many coaches, if not all of them, fear the new rules may lead to more physical play. “There are punts now with girls running full-speed downfield. Where do most injuries occur in football? On kickoffs and punts, where players are running full speed into each other,” Lawrence said. “With no one on the line of scrimmage, teams can use a ‘Flying V’ (formation) to run the ball. Injuries? You bet. I’m upset. And I’m not alone.” Lawrence believes the NFHS adopted many of the new rules from the NAIA, where 17 small colleges now play flag football. “This isn’t the flag game we know,” Lawrence said. “It’s not the wide-open, relatively safe game we knew. It will become single-wing football, and the single wing is boring. Under these rules, flag will become more like tackle football and rugby. “The number of kids/people playing flag is up at all levels — youth, high school and NFL program — because it was a cool game: throw-catch-run, wide open, timed passing. “We’ll see how it plays out. But I fear a very different game.”