What Is Targeting? College Football’s Most Controversial Rule, Explained

Despite some tweaks this year, college football’s most controversial rule — targeting — is still in the rulebook, and that means it’s surely going to create some confusion and frustration among teams and their fan bases this season. 

The rules around targeting are rooted in concern for players’ safety — both the player making the tackle and on the receiving end. But that doesn’t mean everyone fully understands the rules. 

So as targeting calls seem to evolve in turn with the college football landscape, what do this year’s targeting penalties look like? And what is targeting? We’re here to break it...