What are the kicking rules in Texas high school football — where do they kick off from, are tees legal, how wide are the goal posts, and is there a rule against rushing the kicker?

Kicking Rules in Texas High School Football

Short answer

In a Texas high school (UIL) game: kickoffs come from the kicking team’s 35-yard line, a kicking tee is legal on free kicks only and may lift the ball no more than one inch, goal posts are 18 feet 6 inches wide, and roughing the kicker is a 15-yard NCAA penalty — not a Texas-only rule.

Texas is the state whose high schools play under the NCAA rulebook rather than the NFHS code used almost everywhere else, as modified by an annual list of UIL exceptions. Every answer above is the NCAA rule. The UIL exceptions we track do modify some kicking-adjacent details — the play clock after a kick down, and the fair catch rule — and those are covered below.

First, which rulebook is this?

Most published “high school football rules” content on the internet describes the NFHS code, because most states play it. Texas UIL football does not. UIL games are played under the NCAA football rules, as modified by a short document the UIL publishes each year — for this season, the 2026 UIL Exceptions to NCAA Football Rules (Eleven Man), revised May 26, 2026. So the right way to answer any Texas kicking question is: find the NCAA rule, then check whether a current-year UIL exception changes it.

Where do they kick off from in Texas high school football?

The kicking team’s 35-yard line. That comes straight from the NCAA free kick rule:

“Unless relocated by a penalty, the kicking team’s restraining line on a kickoff shall be its 35-yard line, and for a free kick after a safety, its 20-yard line.”
NCAA Football Rule 6-1-1

A few practical details that ride along with that rule:

After a safety, the free kick comes from the kicking team’s 20-yard line (same rule, quoted above).
The ball must be kicked from the restraining line, on or between the hash marks (NCAA 6-1-2). Kicking from the wrong spot is a dead-ball foul.
Fair-catching a deep kickoff is rewarded. Under NCAA 6-5-1, a fair catch of a free kick behind the receiving team’s 25-yard line brings the ball out: “If a Team B player makes a fair catch of a free kick behind Team B’s 25-yard line, the ball belongs to Team B at its own 25-yard line.” Texas caveat: the 2026–27 UIL exceptions document contains an exception written against this fair catch rule (2026–27 UIL Exceptions item 45). We don’t reproduce its text here, so before relying on the plain NCAA fair-catch mechanics in a UIL game, check the current-year document.

Heard “the 40-yard line” somewhere? That answer comes from a different rulebook. The NFHS code that governs high school football in most other states sets its own kickoff spot, and a lot of generic “high school football” content quotes it. In a Texas UIL game, the NCAA rule governs, and the NCAA kickoff spot is the 35. We track the UIL exceptions document rule by rule, and we carry no exception moving the kickoff spot — but the list changes every year, so if it matters, verify against the current document itself.

Are kicking tees legal?

Yes on kickoffs and other free kicks. No on field goals and extra points. This is one of the most misquoted areas in football, and the NCAA book is specific:

“A tee is a device that elevates the ball for kicking purposes. It may not elevate the ball’s lowest point more than one inch above the ground … If utilized, a tee must be in contact with the ball for the kick to be legal.”
NCAA Football Rule 2-16-4-b

So on a kickoff, a one-inch tee is fine — NCAA 2-16-4-c defines a free kick place kick as one made “while the ball is positioned on a tee or the ground.” Field goals and tries are a different story. A field goal place kick is, by definition, “a kick by a player of the team in possession while the ball is controlled on the ground by a teammate” (NCAA 2-16-4-a) — ball on the ground, holder’s hand on it, no tee. And the book closes the loophole explicitly:

“No device or material may be used to mark the spot of a scrimmage place kick or to elevate the ball.”
NCAA Football Rule 2-16-4-d; the penalty (five yards) is at Rule 6-3-10-d

What about a two-inch tee? Taller tees are a feature of other codes and of youth football, and the claim that Texas allows one circulates every fall. We track the current UIL exceptions document and carry no exception raising the NCAA one-inch limit or permitting a tee on scrimmage kicks. We won’t assert what the document doesn’t say in our map — if your league or level has told you otherwise, the current-year UIL exceptions document is the place to confirm it.

How wide are the goal posts in Texas high school football?

Under the NCAA rule Texas plays by, 18 feet 6 inches:

“Above the crossbar, the uprights shall be white or yellow and 18 feet, six inches apart inside to inside.”
NCAA Football Rule 1-2-5-b

The same rule puts the top of the crossbar 10 feet above the ground and requires uprights extending at least 30 feet above the ground (NCAA 1-2-5-a).

You may have seen wider posts at a Texas stadium — the NFHS code used in other states specifies a wider goal, and shared or multi-use facilities exist. Our map of the current UIL exceptions carries no exception to the NCAA goal dimensions. Field-marking requirements are a different matter: the UIL does modify parts of NCAA Rule 1-2-1 (2026–27 UIL Exceptions items 4 and 5), making the solid white border and certain field markings recommended rather than mandatory. That’s markings, not goal posts. If goal width matters for your facility, verify against the current-year UIL document rather than this page.

Is there a Texas rule against rushing the field goal kicker?

There is a rule — but it isn’t a Texas rule. It’s the NCAA roughing-the-kicker rule, and it applies in UIL games because the NCAA book applies:

“When it is obvious that a scrimmage kick will be made, no opponent shall run into or rough the kicker or the holder of a place kick.”
NCAA Football Rule 9-1-16-a

The rule draws a line between two fouls. Roughing — contact that endangers the kicker or holder — costs “15 yards from the previous spot, plus automatic first down if not in conflict with other rules.” Running into the kicker or holder — displacing them without endangering them — costs five yards. When in question, the foul is roughing. Incidental contact is not a foul, and a defender blocked into the kicker, or one who touches the kick first, is not charged.

Two neighboring NCAA rules also protect the kicking game, and both apply in Texas:

Leaping the shield on a field goal block. NCAA 9-1-11-b makes it a foul for a defender to move forward and try to block a field goal or try “by leaving their feet and leaping into the plane directly above the frame of the body of an opponent” — 15 yards and an automatic first down. It is not a foul if the defender was aligned in a stationary position within one yard of the line of scrimmage when the ball was snapped.
The free-kick kicker is protected too. NCAA 6-1-9: “The kicker of a free kick may not be blocked until they have advanced five yards beyond the restraining line or the kick has touched a player, an official or the ground.” Fifteen yards.

We carry no Texas-specific version of any of these fouls in our map of the UIL exceptions. If someone tells you Texas has its own rushing-the-kicker rule, ask them for the item number and the school year — and check the current document.

What the UIL exceptions actually change about the kicking game

From the current document we track (2026–27 school year), two entries touch kicking situations:

Play clock after a kick down. The NCAA rule (3-2-4-c) lists the situations where the play clock is set to 25 seconds instead of 40 — a kick down other than a free kick is item 8 on that NCAA list. The UIL modifies this rule (2026–27 UIL Exceptions item 37): per our map, after a kick down, when the clock is stopped for one of the listed reasons, the referee signals the play clock set at 25 seconds; on other listed stoppages the play clock is set at 40 seconds and the game clock starts on the snap.
Fair catch. The 2026–27 document contains an exception to NCAA Rule 6-5-1 (2026–27 UIL Exceptions item 45). Our map records that the exception exists but does not carry its substance, so we won’t characterize it here. Officials: do not apply the plain NCAA fair-catch text in a UIL game without reading 2026–27 UIL Exceptions item 45 in the current document.

Quick reference

Question	NCAA rule	Texas (UIL) answer
Where is the kickoff from?	6-1-1	The kicking team’s 35-yard line; the 20 after a safety. No exception in our map of the current UIL document.
Is a tee legal on a kickoff?	2-16-4	Yes — it may not raise the ball’s lowest point more than one inch, and it must stay in contact with the ball.
Is a tee legal on a field goal or extra point?	2-16-4, 6-3-10	No. The ball must be controlled on the ground by the holder; using a device to elevate it is a five-yard foul.
How wide are the goal posts?	1-2-5	18′6″ inside to inside above a 10-foot crossbar. No exception in our map; verify locally if it matters.
Rushing / roughing the kicker	9-1-16	Roughing: 15 yards + automatic first down. Running into: 5 yards. NCAA rule, not a Texas-only foul.
Leaping over the line to block a kick	9-1-11	Foul on field goals and tries: 15 yards, automatic first down.
Play clock after a kick down	3-2-4	The UIL modifies this rule (2026–27 UIL Exceptions item 37): 25 seconds after a kick down when the clock is stopped for a listed reason.
Fair catch mechanics	6-5-1	A 2026–27 UIL exception to this rule exists (2026–27 UIL Exceptions item 45). Check the current document before applying the plain NCAA text.

A note on citing this. Cite the NCAA rule numbers above and describe the UIL exception where one applies. UIL renumbers its exception items every year to stay in sequence with the NCAA rulebook, so an item number from an older document can point somewhere else entirely. If you quote an item number, name the school year with it — “2026–27 UIL Exceptions item 37,” never a bare “#37.”

Sources

2026 UIL Exceptions to NCAA Football Rules, eleven-man (PDF) — the 2026–27 edition, revised May 26, 2026.
uiltexas.org/football/manual — the UIL football rules page, which links the current exceptions document.
The NCAA football rulebook, for the base text of Rules 1-2-5, 2-16-4, 3-2-4, 6-1-1, 6-1-2, 6-1-9, 6-3-10, 6-5-1, 9-1-11 and 9-1-16.

UIL revises its exceptions document annually, and mid-year revisions happen. Verify anything consequential against the current official rulebook and the current-year UIL exceptions before you act on it — including anything on this page.

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Booth Challenge is an independent product. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by the University Interscholastic League (UIL), the Texas Association of Sports Officials (TASO), the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), or the NCAA. Rule references are provided for discussion and study. The official published rulebooks and the current-year UIL exceptions are the only authority.