Pegskin® Football  Rulebook

List Of Pieces

Prior Games

In the evolution of football board games Pegskin® Football is the most advanced in its design. Never before has there been a football board game designed where the two opponents have had as much control in the outcome of each play. In previous games there were vibrating fields which simulated player movement, or cards with predetermined, unchangeable, plays. In either case the football enthusiast had only minor control over the movements of his players. Only Pegskin® Football allows the competitors to control each of the eleven players on the field.

Game Description

Pegskin ® Football is a uniquely designed football game where you are the coach of the perfect team in a perfect chalkboard environment. However, there are interceptions and incompletions, which are determined by player position at the time of the pass.

Player movement is restricted similar to that of a chess game. The coach must be able to plan player moves in advance, always keeping in mind his opponents moves. The player moves are determined by using specially marked dice. The higher the roll of the dice the higher the number of overall moves for your players. Since this game is designed to create football plays the objective of winning may be determined by scrimmage statistics (i.e. overall yardage for a set number of plays), or by playing a complete game.

Rules

Pegskin® Football Playing Board

The board is used as a playing field. Holes in the board are used to set-up pegs or 'players' for each down. Spaces between the holes represent a one yard distance. Game progress is tracked on the 100 yard gauge, which runs along the sideline of the field, and on the Pegskin® Football Yardcard . All plays are started at the line of scrimmage (white and red line at center of board). This allows for large gains and losses. Should a play run to the end of the board, the ball-carrying piece is returned to the line of scrimmage at the same point of distance from the sidelines when the player reached the end of the board. The defender in pursuit of the ball carrier follows the same rule. The ball carrier continues until he is tackled or until enough yardage is gained to reach the end-zone, as designated by the sideline gauge.

pegskin football board game picture three

100 Yd. Gauge Marking Pegs

The three 100-Yd gauge marking pegs are used, with the 100-Yd gauge on the side of the board, to keep track of the location of the ball. The two-striped black and white pegs are used to mark the 10 yd. distance necessary for a first down. The three-striped black and white peg is used to mark where the ball is located at any time. For example, if the ball is at the 20 yd. line, one of the two-striped marking pegs will be placed at the 20 and the other on the 30 yard line of the right side gauge, and the three-striped peg will be placed on the 20 yard line of the left side gauge. After each play the offensive coach should move the peg on the left gauge to reflect the outcome of the gained or lost yardage. Note: Only move the two-striped pegs when a first down is achieved or if the ball is turned over.

Football Players

The colored pegs are used as players. Each team consists of 11 players. The following combination of pieces makes an eleven man offense. Five offensive lineman (two-striped men), Four offensive backs including QB's, RB's, and TE's ( three-striped men), and two receivers (four-striped men) (Fig. 1). The lineman can only block and are ineligible to handle the ball. The four offensive backs and the two receivers can block as well as carry the ball. Wide receivers may be placed in the backfield during play set-up. The defensive team uses the same combination of pegs as the offense.

rulebook fig.1

Figure 1

Playing Dice

There are five dice used in this game. One white and black colored die which is rolled by the offensive coach after all motion is completed ( motion will be discussed later under the heading 'Start of Play'). The roll of this die determines who will roll first for that play. The three white sides of this die signify the offense, and the three black sides signify the defense.

The remaining four dice consist of two each of a numbered die and an SDT die. Each coach gets one numbered die and one SDT die (Fig. 2). The SDT die has three sides marked with an S (for Single), two sides with a D (for Double), and one side marked with a T (for Triple). The numbered die has two sides marked with a 2, two sides marked with a 3, one side marked with a 4, and one side marked with a 5.

rulebook fig.2

Figure 2

Peg Movement

Both the SDT and numbered dice are rolled simultaneously. The number showing on the numbered die is multiplied by 1,2,or 3, depending on the outcome of the SDT die (S=1, D=2, T=3).

   For example, if a coach rolls S2 (1 x 2 = 2), he would have a total of two team moves.    Likewise, a roll of D4 would be a total of eight team moves.

Team moves consist of total player movements keeping in mind the player movement restrictions. There may be times when a team cannot use or does not want to use the maximum number of moves that the roll of dice allows.

Each two or three-stripe peg may move a maximum of four holes laterally in either direction, and a maximum of two holes in the forward, backward, or diagonal directions. A peg may not move more than four spaces in total for each roll of the dice during 'line play'. (Fig. 3)

rulebook fig.3

Figure 3

If the offensive receiver (four stripe pegs) does not have the ball he can move a maximum of four holes forward, backward, or diagonally. If he has possession of the ball behind the line of scrimmage, then he is like any other ball carrier and may only move two spaces forward or backward. The defensive pegs with four stripes can move a maximum of three spaces forward, backward, or diagonally. All pegs may move four spaces laterally at all times during 'line play'.

Once a wide receiver or other ball handler reaches five yards from the line of scrimmage, the illegal chuck rule applies and the receiver may not be blocked by a defensive peg but only 'covered'. Offensive players may block after five yards downfield, on running plays only, and the ball carrier must be behind the line of scrimmage while all blocking is taking place.

Blocking

Blocking can only occur during line play. Therefore, blocking should be completed prior to the offense declaring run or pass. A block is accomplished by moving a peg to the same location as an opponents peg and placing your peg on top of your opponents peg. The team that makes the block controls the area around the block 1 space in every direction (Fig. 4). If a coach moves the peg with the ball through this area the ball is down at that point.

Once a block occurs, the pegs involved can no longer be moved. Keep in mind the 'illegal chuck rule'. After offensive ball handlers have gone five or more yards down field defensive players can not block but only cover the offensive peg.

rulebook fig. 4

Figure4

Start of Play

For the purposes of starting the game it is assumed that the kickoff is a touchback and the offense has the ball on their 25 yard line. This is also assumed after every scoring drive. Opponents may flip a coin to decide which coach is the offense and defense at the start of the game.

The offensive coach sets his pegs at the line of scrimmage according to the rules of football. This is followed by the defensive coach setting up his pegs according to how he plans to defend against the offensive lineup. Once both teams are set-up the defensive coach asks the offensive coach if he plans to set a man in motion. The offense may now put one man in motion. The man in motion may move a maximum of four spaces laterally. If he is on the line of scrimmage originally he must also move one space backward (either straight back or diagonally to the left or right). Any player behind the line of scrimmage may use the same movement as a player that started from the line of scrimmage but does not have to take a step backward. If the defense is in a blitz formation, the QB may move straight back 2 spaces into a shotgun position. Whether the offense has chosen to use its 'motion' moves or not the defensive coach can have his pegs react. The defense has a total of three moves to be used by any defensive pegs in any combination.

Line Play

After each team has had the chance to move their pegs in motion, the offensive coach rolls the black & white die to see which team starts the line play. Line play is the period of play after rolling the Black/White die and prior to the time the offensive coach declares his play as a run or a pass. This will determine who controls the line of scrimmage. If black is rolled then the defensive coach will roll first, if it is white offense goes first. During line play both the SDT and numbered dice are rolled. Line play can consist of a minimum of one offensive roll or many rolls. line play continues as long as the ball carrier has not reached or crossed the line of scrimmage or until the offensive coach declares a run or a pass. Once the ball carrier reaches the line of scrimmage, or if all of the players other than the ball carrier are blocked, the play automatically becomes a run. A coach completes his turn by picking up the dice from the field of play, therefore, it is important to complete all of the desired player movement prior to picking up the dice.

Once the ball carrier has reached or crossed the line of scrimmage, line play is over and only the numbered die can be used to move a player. The offense must roll both dice at least once before declaring pass or run. Additionally, the defense gets to roll both dice every time the offense rolls both dice. Whether black or white is rolled the offense must roll both dice at least once. The defensive coaches must roll both dice before the offense can declare a run or pass. After every defensive roll the offense must decide to continue line play or to declare a run or pass. The offense may roll the line play dice until the ball carrier is the only unblocked peg or until he makes the decision to run or pass. The defense will always be the last to roll the line play dice because the offensive coach must declare run or pass at the beginning of his turn.

Hand-Offs & Pitch-Outs

Hand-offs and pitch-outs are done during line play. For example, if D4 is rolled, the offense has eight total team peg moves. The coach can use two of his team moves, hand-off or pitch the ball, then use the six remaining team moves. No team moves are used to hand-off or pitch the ball. In order for a peg to hand-off the ball to another peg, the eligible peg receiving the hand-off must be within one space in any direction from the peg with the ball. In other words, there cannot be any spaces between players. The intended receiver of a pitch-out must be either on the same lateral line as the ball carrier or no more than two spaces behind. He must also be within four spaces laterally from the ball carrier (Fig. 5).

rulebook fig. 5

Figure 5

The SDT die is rolled by itself to determine if the pitch is complete. If an S or D are rolled the pitch is complete. If a T is rolled, one of three situations occurs. If there are no defensive pegs within one space of either of the offensive pegs (pitching or receiving) the pitch would be incomplete and the ball is down where the pitching peg stands. This simulates a fumbled ball recovered by the QB at the spot of the fumble. If the defensive team has a peg within one space of the offensive peg pitching the ball it is a loss of yardage by sack. If the defensive peg is within one space of the receiving offensive peg when a T is rolled the pitch is intercepted by the defense and it is the defensive teams ball where he stands.

The Run

When the offensive coach declares run at the beginning of his turn, line play is complete and only the numbered die is used, by both coaches, to determine the number of moves for the ball carrier and defender. The defensive coach at this point will usually use his closest defensive peg to the ball carrier, however he may use any unblocked peg. For the offensive team, only the ball carrier may be moved from now until the end of the play. Once a run is declared there are no longer restrictions on movement. The number of spaces a player may move is limited only to the number rolled (2 to 5 spaces) on the number die. The rolling of the numbered die continues until the ball carrier is tackled or until he gains enough yardage to score a touchdown.

The Pass

If the offensive coach declares pass, again line play is complete and the SDT die is used to determine pass completion. Depending on the defensive coverage completions are as follows:

If an unblocked defensive peg is within one space of the intended receiver (Fig. 6), an S is incomplete, a D is intercepted, and a T is complete. If a defender is not within one space but is no further than three spaces (Fig. 7), an S is complete, a D is incomplete, and a T is intercepted. If the defender is not within three spaces of the receiver an S is complete, and a D or T is incomplete. If the defensive team has a player within one space of the passing peg and a T is rolled, the passer is sacked for a loss of yardage. If both passing and receiving pegs have a defender within one space and a T is rolled, the first rule applies and the pass is complete.        rulebook fig. 6                    rulebook fig. 7

Once the pass is completed, the defender rolls only the numbered die to start pursuit of the receiver. From this point both coaches roll the numbered die as was stated previously in the section called 'The Run'.

The Screen Pass


The screen pass is any pass thrown to an eligible ball carrier behind the line of scrimmage, parallel to or in front of the QB, and separated by four or more spaces laterally. Completions are determined as described in the section called 'The Pass'. The 'Screen Pass' is separated from 'The Pass' because once the screen pass is thrown 'Line Play' may continue. This means that if the pass is complete the offensive coach may continue to use his other players to block for the ball carrier until he decides to run (notice that another forward pass is not a legal option). Line play is over once the ball carrier crosses the line of scrimmage.

Pegskin® Football Yardcard

The Pegskin® Football Yardcard is used to keep statistics that will determine how accomplished each coach is against his opponent. Statistics such as the total yards, the number of first downs gained, or total score.

After a play is completed the offensive team records the play description and the number of yards gained or lost. Additionally, the new down, yards to go, and ball-on statistics are recorded before the next play. For example, if the offensive coach called for a sweep right, but due to the roll of the dice had to audible to a pitch left, and ran the ball for a seven yard gain, the Pegskin® Football Yardcard would look like that in Fig. 8.

:

Figure 8

Full Four-Quarter Game

A full four quarter game can be played, if desired, and could take several hours to play if the coaches do not impose time limitations on player movements. However, as a coach becomes more familiar with the peg movements and rules, playing time is reduced greatly. Also with the Pegskin® Football Yardcard the full game does not have to be played in one sitting. Two coaches could start a game and keep track of all the plays. Set the game aside for a time, perhaps days, and resume the same game by picking up where they left off according to the Pegskin ® FootballYardcard.

The following rules apply when playing a full game:

1.  All kickoffs are assumed to be touchbacks and the
   offensive possession starts at the 25 yard line.

2.  Each quarter consists of 25 plays (this is because
   the Pegskin Football Yardcard is 25 plays long
   per sheet, four sheets would make up a full game).

3.  If a coach decides to punt the ball he rolls the
   numbered die twice with the outcome as follows:
      Multiply the first roll by ten and add that to
      double the second roll. For example, if the
      first roll is a four and the second roll is a
      three the total yardage for the punt would be
      46 yards ( 4 x 10 = 40 plus twice the second
      roll 3 x 2 = 6).

4.  The punt return team rolls the SDT die and the
   numbered die with the return yardage equal to the
   total number of team moves as described in Line
   Play.

5.  Fourth down punt plays are included in the total
   number of plays per quarter.

6.  If a team is in field goal range and the coach
   decides to try for three points he rolls both his and
   his opponents SDT dice and the following applies
   (yardage is from goal line):

       Yards from goal line Attempt complete for

       0 -10 yards All but TT
       11-20 yards All but TT and DT
       21-30 yards Only SS and SD
       31-40 yards Only SS
       41-50 yards Only TT

Good luck, and may the best coach win!

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