HS Football Rules

The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) establishes the rules of High School Football.

Two states, Texas[1][2] and Massachusetts,[3] use NCAA playing rules except as shown below.

With their common ancestry, the NFHS rules of high school football are largely similar to the college game, though with some important differences:

The four quarters are each 12 minutes in length, as opposed to 15 minutes in all other forms of the game. (Texas uses the NFHS 12-minute quarter; Massachusetts uses the NCAA 15-minute quarter.)
Kickoffs take place at the kicking team's 40 yd line, as opposed to the 30 in the college and the NFL ranks. (Both Texas and Massachusetts have adopted the NFHS rule.)
If a ball crosses the plane of the goal line on a missed field goal, it would be a touchback and the opposing team will start at the 20 yd line.
Any kick crossing the goal line is automatically a touchback; kicks cannot be returned out of the end zone.
Pass interference by the defense results in a 15-yard penalty (and automatic first down), regardless of where the foul occurred (unlike the pro ranks where the ball is placed at the spot of the foul).
The defense cannot return an extra-point attempt for a score.
The use of overtime, and the type of overtime used, is up to the individual state association.
At least one unique high school rule has been adopted by college football. In 1996, the overtime rules originally utilized by Kansas high school teams were adopted by the NCAA.