What is the impact of a legal or illegal forward pass that is incomplete on the clock?

When an incomplete forward pass occurs, the play is ruled dead immediately. According to NFHS football rules, the clock stops anytime the play is ruled dead, which happens with an incomplete pass. This allows teams an opportunity to regroup, strategize, and reset before the next play. The clock will remain stopped until the next snap occurs, at which point it will start again.

Other events, such as a legal forward pass being caught in-bounds or a completed pass being tackled in-bounds, would lead the clock to continue running until the ball is declared dead. Additionally, plays that are paused for review are not directly related to the timing of an incomplete pass. This context helps illustrate why the clock stops as a matter of procedure governing the flow of the game.