Can you run the ball in the no-run zone?
No. Inside the 5, it has to be a pass.
The no-run zones are the 5 yards in front of each goal line. When the ball is snapped on or inside the 5 going toward the end zone, the offense has to run a forward pass play: a forward pass that crosses the line of scrimmage.
No handoffs and runs, and no shovel passes caught behind the line. Under IFAF rules there are no-run zones only at the goal lines, not at midfield.
IFAF Flag Football Rules 2023, R 2-1-4, R 7-1-3-f
Illegal run play: 5 yards from the line of scrimmage, plus loss of down (signal S19). A touchdown scored on the play doesn’t count.
NFL FLAG has no-run zones in the 5 yards before midfield as well as before each goal line.
Watch this play in the free flag football rules quiz.
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