High School Football Overtime Rules, Explained

If you are a parent in the stands or a first-year coach on the sideline when a high school football game ends tied, this guide is for you. Under the NFHS procedure, high school overtime gives each team one possession from the same short spot on the field, first and goal from the 10-yard line, and the teams keep trading possessions until one side is ahead after both have had the ball. There is no game clock and no kickoff. Each state association sets the details, so overtime in one state can look different from the next. Below: the standard procedure, scoring, a worked example, state changes and a comparison with college and the NFL.

What Happens When a High School Game Is Tied

The NFHS football rules book includes a recommended way to break a tie. Each state association decides whether to use it, change it, or use something else.

For example:

• Massachusetts uses the NFHS procedure in its tournament games, according to the MIAA’s 2026 overtime document.
• Minnesota’s 2023-24 football modifications point tied 9-player and 11-player games to the NFHS 10-yard procedure.
• Wisconsin and Texas start overtime from the 25-yard line instead, using versions of the college system.

Check your state’s version before the season starts.

How NFHS Overtime Works, Step by Step

1. Short break. After regulation ends tied, the teams go to their team areas for a 3-minute intermission.
2. Coin toss. The visiting captain calls the toss. The winner picks offense, defense or which end of the field to use. The loser gets the remaining choice.
3. First possession. The first offense starts first and goal at the defense’s 10-yard line, anywhere between the hash marks. Both teams use the same end of the field.
4. The series. The offense gets four downs to score. Gaining yards does not earn a new first down; only certain fouls, such as roughing the passer, kicker, holder or snapper, or certain kick recoveries do.
5. Series ends. The series is over when the offense scores or when the defense gains possession. Under the NFHS procedure, the ball is dead the moment the defense gets it, so there is no return.
6. Second possession. The other team gets its own series from the same 10-yard line.
7. Who wins. If one team leads after both series, it wins.
8. Still tied. The teams play another overtime after a 2-minute intermission. There is no new coin toss; the team that lost the original toss chooses first, and the choices alternate after that.

Each team gets one timeout per overtime period. Timeouts left over from regulation cannot be used in overtime.

How Scoring Works in Overtime

Touchdowns and the try

After a touchdown, the offense gets a try for 1 or 2 points. Under the NFHS procedure, a team is not forced to go for two, even after several overtimes. The try is skipped if the points could not change the result or playoff qualifying. The defense cannot score on a try.

Field goals

The offense can try a field goal on any down. With the ball starting at the 10, it is a short kick, so taking the points on fourth down is often the safe choice.

Defensive scores

Because the ball becomes dead as soon as the defense gains possession, an interception or fumble recovery simply ends the offense’s series. There is no runback. The procedure does say a defensive safety or touchdown ends the game, but with the ball dead on a change of possession, that is rare. (For more on what can and cannot be advanced in regulation, see can you advance a fumble in high school football.)

Penalties

A defensive foul can move the ball closer, a roughing foul can give the offense a fresh series, and a penalty on the last play of regulation can carry over to the first overtime spot. With every snap near the goal line, it helps to know how pass interference works in high school football.

An Example Overtime, Play by Play

This is a made-up example. The Hawks (home) and the Rams (visitors) finish regulation tied 21-21.

1. Coin toss. The Rams call it and win. They choose defense, so they will know what they need.
2. Hawks, first overtime. First and goal at the 10. On third down, they score on a short pass. The kick is good. Hawks 28, Rams 21.
3. Rams, first overtime. First and goal at the 10. They score on second down. They kick to tie instead of going for two to win. 28-28.
4. Second overtime. The Hawks lost the original toss, so they choose first now. They choose defense.
5. Rams, second overtime. A sack and two incompletions bring up fourth down. They kick a field goal. Rams 31, Hawks 28.
6. Hawks, second overtime. On third down, the Hawks throw an interception at the 2. The ball is dead right there, the Hawks’ series is over, and the Rams win 31-28.

Under Wisconsin’s procedure, below, that interception could have been returned for a game-ending touchdown.

How Some States Change It

Wisconsin (WIAA)

The WIAA’s fall 2026 football season regulations say its own adaptation of the 25-yard line tiebreaker must be used for all senior high games tied after regulation, from varsity down to freshman-sophomore games. The WIAA’s tiebreaker document describes:

• First and 10 from the opponent’s 25-yard line, so a team can earn new first downs.
• One timeout per overtime and one coin toss for the whole game.
• A required two-point try after a touchdown starting in the third overtime.
• Starting in the fifth overtime, each possession is a single two-point play from the 3-yard line.
• The defense can score a touchdown or safety, and if it does, the game ends.

Games for teams made up only of ninth graders have no overtime in Wisconsin.

Texas (UIL)

The UIL’s handbook makes an NCAA tiebreaker mandatory for tied varsity games. Each team starts at the 25-yard line, gets one timeout per extra period, and must go for two after a touchdown beginning with the third extra period. A one-point kick does not count from then on.

Utah (UHSAA)

Utah’s 2023 overtime procedures also start at the 25-yard line with one timeout per period, then require two-point tries and move to two-point plays from the 3-yard line in later overtimes. If the defense takes the ball away and scores a touchdown, the game ends.

Rules change, so open your state association’s current football page before you explain overtime to your team.

High School vs. College vs. NFL Overtime

College and NFL details come only from NCAA and NFL pages. Where those pages did not confirm a detail, the table says to check the rule book.

Common Questions

What yard line does high school football overtime start on?

Under the NFHS procedure, each team starts first and goal at the defense’s 10-yard line, anywhere between the hash marks. Some states move it: Wisconsin, Texas and Utah start at the 25-yard line with first and 10. Check with your state association or conference to know which version your games use.

Can a high school football game end in a tie?

When a state uses the tiebreaker, overtime periods continue until one team is ahead after both teams have had the ball, so the game does not end tied. There are exceptions: Wisconsin has no overtime for teams made up only of ninth graders. Check your state’s rules for lower levels.

Do you have to go for two in high school overtime?

Not under the NFHS procedure. A team can kick the one-point try in any overtime. Some states change this. Wisconsin requires a two-point try starting in the third overtime, and Texas requires it starting in the third extra period, where a kick no longer counts. Your state association’s football page will say which rule you play under.

How many timeouts does each team get in overtime?

One per overtime period under the NFHS procedure, and the same in Wisconsin, Texas and Utah. Under the NFHS rules, timeouts left over from regulation cannot be used in overtime, so a coach who saves timeouts late in the fourth quarter does not get to keep them.

What happens if the defense intercepts a pass in overtime?

Under the NFHS procedure, the ball is dead as soon as the defense has it, and the offense’s series is over. There is no return. In Wisconsin’s 25-yard line system, the defense can return it, and a defensive touchdown ends the game.

Who gets the ball first in high school overtime?

The visiting captain calls the coin toss. The winner chooses offense, defense or which end of the field to use, and the loser gets the remaining choice. Choosing defense first lets a team know what it needs. In later overtimes, the choice alternates without a new toss.

Can you kick a field goal in high school overtime?

Yes. Under the NFHS procedure, the offense can try a field goal on any down, and it counts the same as in regulation. Because the ball starts at the 10, an overtime field goal is usually a short kick, so it is often the safe choice on fourth down when a touchdown is not needed.

Do overtime points count in the final score?

Yes. The final score adds regulation points and overtime points together. For example, a 21-21 game that ends after one team kicks a field goal in overtime goes in the books as 24-21. Record it that way in your stats and standings so season totals and point differentials match the official result.

Overtime is one more thing a stat keeper has to get right, especially the final score and the overtime plays. If you would rather keep box scores and season totals in one place, see how game stats work in MCM360 Sports, and how scores feed league schedules and standings.