Big 12 Coordinator of Officials: ‘It’s Almost Impossible to Take a Legal Charge Anymore’

Big 12 coordinator of officials Curtis Shaw met with the media to discuss the new block/charge rule that will be implemented during the 2023-24 season. Shaw went into detail about how the rule will change the game of basketball.

“It’s going to be drastically different. What I’ve told our coaches is, and what I want the media to understand, we watched 100 plays from last year that were called charges. 96 are now blocks under the new rule,” Shaw said. “It’s almost impossible to take a legal charge anymore. Not impossible but almost.”

Shaw went on to show the media examples of what would be called blocks this upcoming season.

Big 12 coordinator of officials Curtis Shaw up here discussing the block/charge rules changes, which he has described as having changed "drastically".

Says he watched 100 charges last year on film. 96 of those would now be blocks. It will be "nearly impossible" to take a charge.

— Kevin Sweeney (@CBB_Central) October 18, 2023

In May, the NCAA released a modification of the rule:

“Under the recommendation, a defender would have to be in position to draw a charge at the time an offensive player plants his foot to go airborne to attempt a field goal. If the defender arrives after the offensive player plants a foot to launch toward the basket, officials would be instructed to call a block when contact occurs between the two players. 

A secondary defender still would have to be outside the restricted-area arc to legally draw a charge.

Currently, defenders must be in position to draw a charge before the offensive player goes airborne.”

Shaw, who is the coordinator of officials for the Big 12, Conference USA, Ohio Valley and Southland conferences, has officiated in seven Final Fours and 19 seasons.