Final answer:
To make a legal free pass in sports like American football, the ball must be passed laterally or backward. The actual pass does not require conscious physics calculations, but an intuitive understanding of the physical laws that govern motion is developed by players through experience.
Step-by-step explanation:
In order to make a legal free pass, the pass must be lateral or backwards. This means that for the pass to be legal, the ball must move parallel to the field of play or toward the passing player's own end-line and not forward. In sports like American football, a legal pass requires an understanding of game rules. While the actual execution of a pass may not involve conscious physics calculations, the principles of physics still underly the actions that skilled players perform on the field. As they practice, they develop an intuitive sense of how to throw and catch that aligns with the physical laws governing motion and gravity. Accurate passing is achieved through skillful practice and understanding the trajectory of the ball which must arc, rise, and then fall due to gravity's influence.