I'm writing a story but I have no clue what to do about this part. Someone catches something on video, a penalty maybe, from the oposing team and it changes the course of the game. HELP?

ah shoot. i didn't mean to post this question twice! oh well. yall will live!

Here's the play...down by six with 5 seconds to play...quarterback drops...bombs it into the hands of a waiting defender in the endzone...home crowd cheers until they realize one of their d-line is caught for off-sides. Ensuing play, QB hits his receiver in the end zone...crowd groans and pelt the refs with plastic beer bottles.

All penalties could potentially change the course of a game. It is more about when and where they happen as opposed to what actually happened. In some cases, it is possible that the realization of just how much a penalty affected the outcome won't come until the game is over.

Even the smallest 5 yard motion penalty has cost games before! It all depends on the situation. If it is 4th and goal from the 1ft. line and you have a big fullback that never gets stopped without making a yard or two - a five yard penalty will cost you the game.

A penalty against the team during a play that scores a touch down is an example of a penalty that could change the course of the game.

Pass interference is def. a big deal!
use that one

They don't change penalty calls from video or replay with exception to maybe throwing a player out from a fight, a large fight.

A penalty that can change a game is for example, when a player returns a punt for a touchdown 90 yards and have the whole thing called back because someone illeaglly blocked.

It takes the points (Touchdown) away and backs them up a few yards near their own goalline. That can change a whole game.

I will give you one that is obvious and that is a bogus pass interference call. It can absolutely change the reflection of a game in an instant. Very frustrating when that happens.
The other thing that can change the course is a 15 yard roughing the passer, especially the way it is written in todays game. I mean if a guy tries to bring the QB down and hits the knees or falls into his legs he is liable to get a penalty.

holding on the point of attack on a run and the run goes for a TD,,,, thats pertty BIG

taking your helmet off while on the field. i still cant believe it happened to the browns a couple of years ago. i think it was rudd. the other team got to re-kick a field goal 15 yards closer, and of course they made it. only in cleveland can this happen.

Actually in football, penalties are not reviewable by video. It is a judgment call made on the field by the ref. Good or Bad we are stuck with it. What are reviewable are where the ball is spotted, first downs, whether a ball was caught or not, whether a player was in bounds or out of bounds, whether the ball crossed the goal line and was a touchdown or not, whether a player was tackled to the ground or was able to keep his knees and elbows off the ground, etc.

To answer you other question though, what is a penalty that most can change the course of a game. In my opinion it is a roughing the kicker penalty. In a situation where you are about to get the ball back and have a chance to score points, you let them keep the ball, use more of the clock (detrimental if late in the game) and potentially score points on you. Absolutely crushing.

The obvious answer you will see most though is pass interference, where the ball can move longer then 30, 40 or 50 yards from the initial line of scrimmage. Those are bad, but I don't think that is game changing. The thought on those is it should have been a ball they would have caught anyway. Plus, they could have moved the ball on future downs. With roughing the kicker its like fumbling or throwing an interception. It can really change the flow of the game.

An illegal block in the back on a Punt return or Kick return b/c you can run it all the way back for a touchdown or get really good field position off a return, but it can all be taken away if u hit someone from behind.

Pass interfearance is the biggest and easiest penalty to use. They can be 50 yard penaltys or 2 yard penaltys. If you throw the ball in the endzone and the ref throws a penalty, you get the ball on the one yard line. Thats huge. Or you could flip the situation and make it a bad call on the field with no penalty called. Refer to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs St. Louis Rams 1999. The Bert Emanuel rule. The ref said he dropped the ball when he hit the ground. That was the worst call in Tampa's history and that changed the outcome of that game and kept the Bucs from reaching the super bowl. There are a lot of things you could use.

Def. delay of game is a killer at the end of the game cause there is a run off on the clock

I'd say honestly, like a roughing the kicker, offsides, or clipping on a missed game winning field goal attempt. This will then give the team another shot at the field goal but now they're 5 yards closer. Or for the offense a holding, or offsides call on a successful game winning field goal. This will cause the team to have to attempt the field goal again but they will be 5 yards back.

PASS INTERFERENCE