In American football, a lateral pass or lateral, officially backward pass (onside pass in Canadian football), occurs when the ball carrier throws the football to any teammate behind him or directly next to him (i.e. on or behind a line running through the ball and parallel to the line of scrimmage). A lateral pass is distinguished from a forward pass, in which the ball is thrown forward, towards the opposition's end zone. In a lateral pass the ball is not advanced, but unlike a forward pass a lateral may be attempted from anywhere on the field by any player to any player at any time.
While the forward pass is an invention of the North American game, the lateral and backward pass is also a part of rugby union and rugby league, where such passes are much more common. Compared to its use in rugby, laterals and backward passes are generally rare in North American football, due to a much greater focus on ball control in American football strategy; it is most commonly used as a last-minute desperation strategy or as part of a trick play.
Read more about Lateral Pass: Rules, Alternate Uses, Famous Plays in History
Famous quotes containing the word pass:
“Nothing comes to pass in nature, which can be set down to a flaw therein; for nature is always the same and everywhere one and the same in her efficiency and power of action; that is, nature’s laws and ordinances whereby all things come to pass and change from one form to another, are everywhere and always; so that there should be one and the same method of understanding the nature of all things whatsoever, namely, through nature’s universal laws and rules.”
—Baruch (Benedict)