College Football Glossary | U-Z
- Unbalanced Line
- An offensive formation where more players are lined up on one side of the center than the other.
- Unnecessary Roughness
- An illegal play where a player, in the judgement of the officials, uses
tactics that are above and beyond what is neccesary to block or tackle
another player.
- Unsportsmanlike Conduct
- A dead-ball foul in which a player, in the judgement of the officials, taunts or otherwise acts in an unsportsmanlike manner.
- Uprights
- The vertical posts above the crossbar on the goalpost.
- Veer
- A quick-hitting run in which the ball is handed to a running back whose
routes are determined by the slant of the defensive linemen.
- Vince Lombardi Trophy
- The trophy awarded to each year's winner of the Super Bowl.
- Weak Side
- The side of the offense opposite the side on which the tight end lines up.
- Wideout
- An offensive player who lines up on or near the line of scrimmage, but
split to the outside. His primary job is to catch passes from the
quarterback.
- Wide Receiver
- An offensive player who lines up on or near the line of scrimmage, but
split to the outside. His primary job is to catch passes from the
quarterback.
- Wild Card
- The two playoff berths given in each conference to the two non-division
winning teams that have the best record in the conference.
- Wing Back
- A running back used in a wing formation.
- Winning Percentage
- The percentage of games a team has won over a specific period of time or under certain circumstances.
- Wishbone Formation
- An offensive formation that features a fullback and two halfbacks in the backfield.
- Xs
- Refers to diagrams of plays on paper, chalkboard, or computer.
- Yardage
- The amount of yards gained or lost during a play, game, season, or career.
- Zone Defense
- Coverage in which the secondary and linebackers drop away from the line of
scrimmage into specific areas (zones) when defending a pass play.