Mercy Rule

A mercy rule, slaughter rule, knockout rule, or skunk rule ends a two-competitor sports competition earlier than the scheduled endpoint if one competitor has a very large and presumably insurmountable scoring lead over the other. It is called the ''mercy'' rule because it spares further humiliation for the loser. It is common in youth sports in North America, where running up the score is considered unsporting. It is especially common in baseball and softball in which there is no game clock and a dominant team could in theory continue an inning endlessly.

The rules vary widely, depending on the level of competition, but nearly all youth sports leagues and high school sports associations and many college sports associations in the United States have mercy rules for sports including baseball, softball, American football and association football.

However, mercy rules usually do not take effect until a prescribed point in the game (like the second half of an association football game). Thus, one team, particularly if it is decidedly better than a weaker opponent, can still "run up the score" before the rule takes effect. For instance, in American football, one team could be ahead by 70 points with three minutes left in the first half; in baseball, the better team could have a 20-run lead in the second inning, but the game would still continue.

American football

Middle and high school football

At the middle- or high-school level, 34 states use a mercy rule that may involve a "continuous clock" (the clock continues to operate on most plays when the clock would normally stop, such as an incomplete pass) once a team has a certain lead (for example, 35 points) during the second half (Louisiana adopted a rule in 2022 which states the running clock is invoked when the margin reaches 42 points at any time during the game). That greatly decreases the amount of time taken for a game to complete, which reduces the leading team's chances to score more and the time that the trailing team must spend in facing an insurmountable deficit. In most states, the clock stops only for scores, timeouts (officials', injury, or charged), or the end of the quarter. Plays that would normally stop the clock, such as penalties, incomplete passes, going out of bounds, or change of possession, would not stop the clock. The rule varies by state; for example, the clock does not stop upon a score in Colorado, Indiana, Kansas (regular-season games only), or Missouri (fourth quarter only).

In most states, once the point differential is reduced to below the mercy rule-invoking amount, normal timing procedures resume until either the end of the game or the mercy rule-invoking point differential is re-established; in Colorado, Georgia, Kansas and Louisiana, the clock continues to run even if the differential falls below the threshold. Most states that have mercy rules waive this rule for a championship game.

In some states, coaches and game officials may choose to end a game at their own discretion at any time during the second half if the continuous clock rule is in effect; that usually happens if a lopsided margin continues to increase or if threatening weather is imminent. Sometimes the coach of the team that is losing agrees to shorten the length of a quarter in addition to the continuous clock rule. Although it is rare, some states or high school conferences have rules in which the team with a very large lead may not run a certain play for the rest of the game, such as a deep pass or outside run.

In some states (where 8-man and 6-man football is widely used), the rules call for a game to end when one team is ahead by a certain score (like 45 or 50 points) at halftime or any time thereafter. In other states with 6- or 8-man football, continuous clock rules are used, and the rule may be modified; for instance, in Iowa, the rule goes into effect if the 35-point differential is reached at any time after the first quarter.

In a variant on the mercy rule used in Connecticut high school football from 2006 to 2016, the team's coach was issued a one-game suspension (i.e., for the team's next game) if at any point the team had a 50-point lead. In 2016 it was replaced with a running clock rule.

College football

The National Collegiate Athletic Association's mercy rule provides, "Any time during the game, the playing time of any remaining period or periods and the intermission between halves may be shortened by mutual agreement of the opposing head coaches and the referee." (NCAA Football Rule 3-2-2-a) NCAA Football Approved Ruling 3-2-2-I cites an example: "At halftime the score is 56–0. The coaches and the referee agree that the third and fourth quarters should be shortened to 12 minutes each. The coaches also request that the second half be played with a 'running clock' i.e., that the game clock not be stopped." The NCAA Football Rules Committee determined, "The remaining quarters may be shortened to 12 minutes each. However, the 'running clock' is not allowed; normal clock rules apply for the entire game."

The most recent example of an NCAA football game shortened by invoking this rule occurred on October 1st, 2022 when the Syracuse Orange played the Wagner Seahawks. The mismatched Wagner team trailed the 4-0 Syracuse team 49-0 at halftime. In the second half coaches and the referee agreed to 10 minute quarters. Syracuse head coach Dino Babers made the controversial choice of leaving some of Syracuse's starting players in late into the second half. The final score of the game was 59-0.

September 1, 2018 the rule was enacted during a game Georgia played against Austin Peay in Athens Georgia.  With the score 45–0 in the 3rd quarter and a high heat index, the Austin Peay Coach Will Healy suggested to Georgia head coach Kirby Smart that they play a 10-minute fourth quarter instead of the typical 15 minute fourth quarter.  The coaches and referee agreed and the game was shortened.

September 24, 2016 the Missouri Tigers led Delaware State 58–0 at halftime. The coaches agreed to shorten the third and fourth quarters from 15 minutes to 10 minutes each, shortening the total game time from 60 minutes to 50 minutes. Missouri added three touchdowns in the abbreviated second half to make the final score 79–0, setting team records for the most points scored in a game (79), the greatest margin of victory (79), and the largest number of touchdowns scored (11).

Also in 2016, the game between Clemson and South Carolina State had both the third and fourth quarters shortened from 15 minutes to 12 as a result of Clemson leading the game at half 45–0. The final score of the game was 59–0.

Earlier in 2016, the game between Texas State and Arkansas saw the fourth quarter shortened to 10 minutes when severe thunderstorms were approaching Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Arkansas led 42–3 at the end of the third quarter, and the final period was scoreless. A similar scenario took place in 2017 in the game between TCU and Kansas, where the coaches agreed to a running clock for the final 12:49 of the game due to severe thunderstorms approaching Amon G. Carter Stadium.

In a 2013 game, Old Dominion University (ODU) was losing to the University of North Carolina (UNC) 80–20 when ODU coach Bobby Wilder asked for the fourth quarter to be shortened by five minutes, which UNC coach Larry Fedora agreed to. Fedora also directed his quarterback to take a knee on fourth and goal with 1:53 remaining to not run up the score.

In a 1988 game, Kansas Jayhawks