​1.     Annual Quiz Bowl:  The East Husker Conference shall conduct a Quiz Bowl contest for its member schools to be held Monday of the 39th week of the NSAA standardized calendar for Senior High (Grades 9-12).  The Quiz Bowl shall begin at 5 p.m.  The site of the Quiz Bowl shall be rotated per the master schedule.
 
A Host Committee shall be formed annually to assist the host quiz bowl coach in organizing and hosting the conference quiz bowl.  This committee will consist of the previous host school quiz bowl coach, current host school quiz bowl coach, and the next host school quiz bowl coach.  If necessary, an extra person can be added to the committee if the committee lacks experience in directing the quiz bowl.  The Host Committee is charged with addressing issues that arise from the quiz bowl and drafting & communicating any potential changes in quiz bowl by-laws to the superintendents.
 
2.     Team Entries:  Each conference school may enter one Varsity team.  Each team shall consist of at least four players.  A team roster shall be submitted before the start of the first match of competition.  This roster shall include the name, grade and team students will be competing for.  Alternates must be delineated for each team.   No other names may be added or subtracted to the team roster once it is submitted to the Quiz Bowl Director.
 
2.1       The four team members who start the match must be the same four members that end the match. The alternates may be substituted in a later match or later round of play, but must complete the entire game. 
NO SUBSTITUTIONS ARE ALLOWED DURING A GAME.
 
2.2       A Team Captain is to be identified at the beginning of each match. ONLY the Team Captain can answer the bonus questions and ONLY the Team Captain can contest a question or an answer.  The Team Captain shall be the same person throughout the contest unless excused by the contest director.
 
2.3       Entry Deadline:  The host school shall determine a time deadline for entries and communicate the time to all conference schools.  Cancellations should never be made the day of the meet, except in the rarest of emergencies.
 
3.     Pools:  Refer to Quiz Bowl Pool Play Bracket
 
4.     Play:  Only four students from each team shall participate in a match. The names of the participants are to be submitted to the match moderator before the match begins.  The fifth and sixth members shall be alternates and may not be seated with the four representing a team in a match.  The four participating individuals may vary from match to match but must always be listed among the six pre-designated members of the team.  No substitutions may be made to a team during a match.
 
4.1       Matches:  Each match will 1ast 15 minutes or 40 questions (Toss-Up plus Bonus = 40), whichever comes first.
 
4.2       Rounds of Competition:  The competition shall consist of two rounds: First round is Pool Play and the second round is Tournament Play.
 
4.2.1        During pool play, each team will play the other teams in their pool.  At the end of pool play, all the teams from the pools shall be ranked together per win-loss percentage.
 
4.2.2        If teams are tied, the team with the higher ‘per match average’ score (total score from all matches divided by number of matches) from the first-round play shall receive the higher ranking for seeding purposes in Tournament Play matches.
 
4.2.3        If after the ‘per match average’ there is still a tie, a coin toss shall determine the rank order and placement of teams for the second round of competition.
 
4.3       The second round (Tournament Play) shall consist of bracketed competition.  (See Tournament Bracket)
 
4.4       The bracketed tournament play shall follow the schedule to be found in the Rules of Play of this East Husker Quiz Bowl By-law.
 
5.     Championship Match: The championship matches shall be played after all other matches are concluded (including consolation matches) in a venue that allows all participants at the Quiz bowl to be present and a spectator.
 
6.     Procedure & Protocol:  All rules of procedure and protocol governing play shall be published by the host school and sent to all conference schools before the date of competition.  These rules shall be reviewed briefly for all participants before the first match in the first round on the day of competition.
 
7.     Questions:  The host school shall order and purchase questions sufficient in number for all the matches and rounds of the Quiz Bowl.  The host school will be the sole owner of the questions ordered and purchased in any given year.
 
8.     Lights:  Each school shall furnish competition lights consisting of two sets of four lights of different colors.  (Meet directors are reminded to remind schools to bring the competition lights to the Quiz Bowl site the day of the meet.)
 
9.     Food & Beverages:  A meal is not required but may be served at option of host school.  Concessions or beverage and snack machines should be made available.
 
10.   Room Monitors/Moderators:  Competition will necessitate 10 rooms and 10 sets of lights.  Each school shall provide one worker to help run the competition if the host school requests.  Each room will have a moderator and a timer/score keeper.  No school, other than the host school, may provide personnel for more than one of these roles in any given room.  No school should moderate or time their school’s team.  They should switch rooms with another set of workers for that match.

OFFICIALS & STAFF
1. Contest Director
2. Moderators
3. Timer/Scorekeeper
4. Personnel needed to tabulate results
 
ADMISSION  
​Adults--$5, Students--$4
Passes Accepted:  EHC Official, NSAA, and NSAA Media
 
PROGRAMS
Programs are NOT required for the EHC Quiz Bowl Competition
 
AWARDS
Plaque Inserts: If more than ten schools registered, the first, second, and third place teams will receive plaque inserts for their accomplishment. If 10 or fewer schools participate, a first and second place plaque is provided.
Individual Awards: If more than ten schools are registered, the members for the first, second, and third place teams receive medals and certificates.  When fewer than ten schools are registered the members of the first and second place teams receive medals and certificates.
 
QUIZ BOWL RULES OF PLAY 
1.     The game begins with the reading of the first question.   Matches will last 15 minutes or 40 questions, whichever comes first.   If the reader is reading a toss-up question when the timer signals the end of the game, the reader will stop reading immediately and no answer will be allowed.  If the reader is reading a bonus question, they will finish the bonus question and give the team answering 20 seconds to answer the bonus question; then the game is over.  If the timer signals “time is up” after a toss-up question has been correctly answered, but before a bonus question has begun, the team that correctly answered the toss-up question shall have the opportunity to answer a bonus question.
 
2.     The reader is the judge of the match and his/her decision is final.  There may be a dispute over an answer, but the reader must do what he/she feels is the best possible solution at the time.  A dispute over a question or answer can only be made by the Team Captain.  A question may be contested if it is felt the answer is totally inaccurate, but if the reader decides to throw out the question or to accept an answer, HIS/HER DECISION IS FINAL.
 
3.     The competition will start with a toss-up question worth 10 points. The reader will determine who buzzed in first.  The team member who presses the buzzer first (as determined by the reader) must answer the question within 3 seconds and without consultation with teammates.  Players may buzz in before the reader has finished reading the question, but in that case the reader will stop reading and ask the player for an answer within 3 seconds.  If a player offers an answer without being acknowledged, his/her team may be disqualified from answering that question at the discretion of the reader.  Any attempt to provide an answer to the player who buzzed in by others on the team or by members of the audience will result in disqualification of that team for that question.  Sponsors and supporters must not attempt to mouth the answer to a competitor.
 
3.1       After the question is read 10 seconds will be allowed for an answer with the clock stopping when he/she buzzes in unless the question is a math question.  After a math question is read, 20 seconds will be allowed for an answer with the clock stopping when he/she buzzes in.  After being recognized the person buzzing in will then have 3 seconds to answer or it will be considered an incorrect answer.  If the first team’s answer is wrong, the other team will have 5 seconds to provide an answer.  If no one from the second team buzzes in within 5 seconds, the reader will give the answer and move on to another toss-up question.
 
3.2       When a team buzzes in to the toss-up question, only the person who buzzed in (the person whose light is on) may provide the answer.  One team member cannot buzz in and another answer.  If a team member other than the one who buzzed in answers the question the moderator shall so state, “I am sorry. You answered out of turn. The game shall continue as if it were a missed question.”  The other team will then have 5 seconds to answer the question.
 
3.3       If the person who buzzes in answers the toss-up question correctly the team will be given an opportunity to answer a bonus question worth (5) points, if answered correctly.  The reader will ask the bonus question and the receiving team may discuss the answer.  ONLY THE CAPTAIN MAY ANSWER THE BONUS QUESTION.  The Captain must answer within 20 seconds.  The timer will give a warning when 5 seconds remain.  The timer will signal; “time is up” at the end of twenty 20 seconds and no answer will then be accepted.  If the bonus question is answered correctly within the 20 seconds, the team is awarded five (5) points.  Play then continues with another toss-up question.
 
3.4       If a team answers a toss-up question incorrectly, the reader will turn to the other team and ask for an answer to the toss-up question.  Any member of the other team may answer at that time, but he/she must first buzz in as not to confuse the reader with multiple answers.  Again, only the team member that buzzed in (with light turned on) may answer the question.  5 seconds will be allowed for someone from the second team to buzz in. No discussion is allowed because it is still a toss-up question.  The reader may repeat the toss-up question for the second team only if the first team buzzed in before the question
was completely read.  The timer will begin the ten (10) second timer when the reader completes the question.  If the question was completed before the first team buzzed in and answered incorrectly, it will not be reread.  In this case the 10 second timer will begin when the reader pronounces the answer from the first team as ‘incorrect’ and acknowledges the second team.
 
3.5       If the moderator inadvertently reveals the answer to a question after one team has given an incorrect answer, but before the other team has had a chance to answer, the moderator will read another toss-up question for the second team only.
 
3.6       The moderator will accept only the first answer given by a player.  Harmless or inadvertent embellishment of responses will not be penalized, so long as the embellishment does not make the response wrong.
 
3.7       Last names are acceptable as answers unless a first name is needed for clarification (i.e. “Roosevelt” would require either Theodore or Franklin, whereas Grant would suffice for Ulysses S. Grant).  Also, nicknames or pseudonyms that are universally known are acceptable (i.e. LBJ for Lyndon B. Johnson, or Mark Twain for Samuel Clemens), unless an exact answer is called for.
 
4.     The scorekeeper will keep score on the official score sheet.  The score sheets will be turned in by the official scorer to the Quiz Bowl Director.  The team with the most points at the end of 40 questions or 15 minutes is the winner of the game.  If at the end of 40 questions or 15 minutes, and the game is tied, the tie will be broken with sudden death questions. The first team to answer a question correctly will be determined the winner.

DUTIES OF MATCH OFFICIALS
Moderator:  The moderator shall read the questions, recognize the contestant who buzzes in on a question, and determine whether the question is correctly answered. The moderator shall be the final judge on a contested question or answer, but may choose to confer with the timer and scorekeeper.

Scorer:  The scorekeeper shall keep a running score on the official score sheet (provided by the tournament host).


Timer:  The timer shall operate the buzzer system and keep the elapsed time for answers to be provided.
See Tournament Brackets, Tournament Procedures, Admissions, Finances and Awards for additional information.