The retired MLB umpire is the 2024 recipient of officiating’s highest honor.
32 WE ARE BEING WATCHED Sports betting watchdog keeps an eye on coaches, players and officials.
44 INSIDE OUT
A crew of volleyball officials had a once-in-a-lifetime experience last August.
72 START ME UP
How did you first become involved in officiating?
Our 2023 survey provides insights.
ON THE COVER
Phil Cuzzi Nutley, N.J.
Age: 68
Occupation: MLB umpire
Officiating experience: Joined the MLB staff in 1999. Umpired seven Division Series, three Championship Series, one World Series (2017) and two All-Star games (2008, 2019).
SPORTS
12 FOOTBALL
Contact Lens: Why Some Things Are Fouls and Some Aren’t; There’s No Substitute for Knowing These Rules; Five Will Get You One
26 BASEBALL
That’s An Order: DH Provides Biggest Wrinkle in Lineup Management; Balancing Act; Work the Working Area
38 SOCCER
DOGSO, SPA and Cards: IFAB Law Changes for 2024-25; Timing and Substitutions Lead NCAA Rule Changes
48 VOLLEYBALL
Rotation Analysis Paralysis: A Basic Breakdown of the 5-1 Offense; Touch?; Are You Any Good?; A Helping Hand
58 SOFTBALL
Swing and a Myth: Softball’s Most Misinterpreted Rules; Plate Play Positioning Possibilities
64 BASKETBALL
No Fakers Allowed: NFHS Creates New ‘Flopping’ Definition, Penalty; All Done Here, Now Move Along
74 ALL SPORTS
Attention Grabber: The Zone You Should Own; A Strike You Don’t Want to Deal With; Are You On a Pleasure Crews?
COLUMNS
4 PUBLISHER’S MEMO
The 23 Most Powerful Lessons
6 THE GAG RULE
Snap Shot: Likable Neighbors!; Survey Says
8 THE NEWS
MLB Umpire Angel Hernandez Retires; Fine in Referee Attack in Texas; NFL Names VP of Officiating; Former Referee Hired by Bills
56 GETTING IT RIGHT
Crème de la Crème; Breaking Barriers; Learning From the Best
70 PROFILES
Unbreakable Glass; Miss Ma’am Referee; Tomah Tribute
78 FOR THE RECORD
NCAA D-II and D-III Basketball Tournament Officials; WNBA Officiating Roster
80 LAW Concussion Calls; Concussion Enforcement
81 CLASSIFIEDS Camps/Clinics/Schools; Equipment/Apparel; Leadership Resources; Training Resources
82 LAST CALL On Fire About Officiating: “The last game of the season was bittersweet as I felt I was just hitting my stride and I didn’t want the season to end.”
VOLLEYBALL HIGHLIGHT THIS MONTH
Marivic Hokanson, Long Beach, Calif., takes a moment to scan her side of the court as she authorizes service to make sure all of the players are in the proper position.
PUBLISHER’S MEMO
The 23 Most Powerful Lessons
Four decades ago, I authored a standup presentation called The 23 Most Powerful Lessons of Officiating. I and members of our team have given that presentation in just about every corner of this country and in Canada and Australia. I was re-reading it earlier this morning. I came away amazed how those brief words continue to have special relevance to this day. Take a look. See what you think.
1. For most, officiating is an avocation. Keep your personal life and your officiating in balance
2. This business is seldom fair. Work on the things you can control. Gracefully accept the rest.
3. Officiating demands the highest ethical standard. Your actions must be above reproach.
4. Each assignment you work is an audition. Look the part You are the medium — the message.
5. Impersonations don’t work. You referee who you are (By the way, who are you?)
6. What’s expected is facilitation — players play, you give permission. Off stage-center. Orchestrate.
7. 80% of the job is managing people Being superior at the remaining 20% won’t cut it.
8. Criticism comes with the territory. Learn to love it when they boo!
9. The hallmark of great officiating is not neutrality. It is impartiality
10. Participant safety is a primary responsibility. Always err on the side of safety.
11. The rules are the foundation of the game. You need a reverence for the rules
12. Yes, there are the rules, but then there’s the spirit of those rules. Common sense often applies.
13. A solid pregame conference makes a difference. Make yours timely, tactical and tactful. Lead!
14. There’s no score at the start of the game. A memory can dig you a hole faster than a shovel.
15. Bad body language silences good words — especially when they won’t like what you have to say.
16. I heard you twice the first time! Be clear, be concise, be coherent. Minimize misinterpretation
17. It takes extraordinary restraint. Use your emotions and your focus to foster calm out of chaos.
18. Don’t call ’em the way you see ’em. Call ’em the way they are The world now gets to replay!
19. Mistakes are made every game. If you make one, make it for a right reason Own it.
20. A wrong call gets more attention than a right one. No premium is paid for your best call ever.
21. Wrong action/wrong time = disaster. Wrong action/right time = mistake Right action/wrong time = resistance. Right action/right time = success
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Editorial Contributors
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23. It takes a support team to reach higher elevations. Remember where you came from. .
22. Pour no gasoline. You are prohibited from making things worse.
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THE GAG RULE
SAY WHAT?
“I can promise you that we’re going to submit these [plays] tonight. New York can get ready. They’ll see ’em too. I’m always talking to our guys about not making it about the officials, but we deserve a fair shot.”
— Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, after receiving two technical fouls and being ejected from Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the New York Knicks.
SNAP SHOT
LIKABLE NEIGHBORS!
Positive messaging lines the ribbon video boards at St. Louis’ Busch Stadium as part of the Campaign of He Gets Us, LLC. Similar messaging has been seen at professional stadiums across the country recently.
SURVEY SAYS
THEY GET IT
“If you are unhappy with the refs, well, too bad, so sad, Charlie. Because, as I repeatedly remind my spouse and will now say loudly for everyone in the back row, yelling at the refs never, ever, helps anything.”
Mary McNamara, culture columnist and critic for the Los Angeles Times, in an article titled, “Why youth sports drive parents crazy and 10 more lessons from a mom who’s been through it”
THEY ALSO GET IT
“No public apology for his gross misconduct towards the defenseless line umpire. Walking up screaming, poking his racket near the line umpire’s face. Unconscionable misconduct and zero remorse. I would have thrown your appeal in the bin and backed the on court officials.”
— Post on X, formerly known as Twitter, from retired international chair umpire Richard Ings in response to Andrey Rublev’s statements about his appeal of disqualification during the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships
THE NEWS
Veteran MLB Umpire Angel Hernandez Retires
Veteran MLB umpire Angel Hernandez abruptly retired in May. In a May 20 statement, Hernandez confirmed media reports of his midseason departure.
Hernandez had been off the field since May 9, when he worked the plate in a game between the Cleveland Guardians and the Chicago White Sox at Chicago’s Guaranteed Rate Field.
The game was Hernandez’s eighth plate assignment of the season. Later in May, Hernandez went on vacation and his lawyer Kevin Murphy began finalizing a financial package by which Hernandez would retire. Hernandez missed a large part of last season because of a back injury — which required surgery — and he was off the field until July 31, 2023.
In recent years, Hernandez, 62, has been a lighting rod in the media and among some players and managers, but during his 33-year MLB career he umpired more than 3,800 games, 12 Division Series, eight League Championship Series and two World Series. Hernandez last umpired a World Series game in 2005 and a League Championship Series in 2016.
“Starting with my first major league game in 1991, I have had the very good experience of living out my childhood dream of umpiring in the major leagues,” the Cuban-born Hernandez said in a statement. “There
THE WIRE
Former Coordinator of Umpires Strahm Dies
Kathy Strahm, former national coordinator of NCAA women’s softball umpires, died May 23 after battling brain cancer. She was 64. Strahm attained her international umpire certifi cation and went on to umpire the 1990 Women’s World Championship, the 1992 NCAA Women’s
is nothing better than working at a profession that you enjoy. I treasured the camaraderie of my colleagues and the friendships I have made along the way, including our locker room attendants in all the various cities. I have decided that I want to spend more time with my family.”
“Angel has been thinking about this for a while and he thought about it during the offseason,” Murphy said. “He is a very strong family man. He prayed about it and now he is going to enjoy the benefits of his hard work. He is content.”
In 2017, Hernandez sued MLB accusing the league of racial discrimination after he was not promoted to a coveted crew chief position. The case took six years to ultimately work its way through the federal court system, first in Ohio and then in New York.
The lawsuit was dismissed in U.S. District Court in 2021, granting MLB a summary judgment. The
See “Hernandez” p.11
College World Series, the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and many ASA tournaments and NCAA championships. She served as umpire-in-chief for NCAA women’s softball from 2007-11 and was inducted into the Indianapolis Softball Hall of Fame in 1996.
Man Arrested for Attacking Umpire
A softball player who was caught on video punching an
Probation, $200 Fine in Referee Attack in Texas
EDINBURG, Texas — A former Edinburg (Texas) High School football player who assaulted a referee during a 2020 game was sentenced May 14 in Hildalgo County District Court to one year of probation and ordered to pay a $200 fine.
Emmanuel Duron pleaded no contest to a charge of assault causing bodily injury. As part of a judgment of deferred adjudication, Duron, now 22, was also ordered to remain employed, avoid places and people of “harmful character” and not possess a firearm.
During the Dec. 3, 2020, high school playoff game, Duron charged back on the field after being ejected for unsporting conduct and blindsided the referee, Alfredo Gracia. Gracia, who was on the ground for several minutes, was evaluated for a possible concussion and a shoulder injury.
Edinburg won the game but did not advance in the playoffs. In the wake of the attack, the school district removed the team from the postseason. Duron was banned from participation in high school athletics.
See “Attack” p.10
umpire was arrested nearly 13 months after being charged with assault. On May 22, Columbus (Ohio) police took Gregory Roudabush, 39, into custody. A camera captured the assault of the umpire April 19, 2023, during an adult league game at Berliner Park. An investigation by the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department and Columbus police led to charges of fi rst-degree misdemeanor assault and fourth-degree
misdemeanor disorderly conduct. A judge issued Roudabush a $25,000 bond and granted a temporary protection order for the victim. Roudabush also received a lifetime ban from future leagues.
UEFA: Only Captains to
Speak With Referees
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) told teams playing at the Euro Football Championship in June that only
NFL Names VP of Officiating and VP of Replay
NEW YORK — Ramon George, who spent the last eight seasons onfield as an NFL umpire, has been named the league’s vice president of officiating training and development.
George will fill the vacancy left by former senior vice president of officiating Walt Anderson, who has transitioned to his new role as rules analyst and club communications liaison. George will lead the training and development efforts of the NFL officiating staff, which will include a focus on game officials transitioning into the league and programming for recruiting new officials.
“I am excited to join the leadership team of Troy Vincent and Perry Fewell,” George said. “They have worked hard building a solid foundation that will continue to show our officials are the best in the world. It is an honor to lead the men and women in the National Football League.”
Mark Butterworth has been named vice president of replay training and development after working 25 seasons in NFL replay, including the last seven as a replay official. Prior to that, Butterworth served as a replay assistant and a replay communicator. He will oversee training and development of all replay personnel, with a focus on consistency of communication and pipeline development for
identification of future replay officials.
Both George and Butterworth will report to Fewell, senior vice president of officiating administration. In a statement released by NFL Communications, Fewell said, “As part of our ongoing Officiating Improvement Plan, we have added these veteran officials who understand the game from the field up and what it takes to improve and sustain officiating long-term as a center of excellence. When we improve training and development, we aim for better consistency, game efficiency, accuracy, accountability and communication across all levels of game administration.”
In addition to the changes made at the vice president level, the officiating department has added recently retired onfield officials Gary Arthur, Fred Bryan and Tom Hill to the staff. The three combined have more than 60 years of NFL officiating experience. Arthur and Bryan have been assigned as coordinator coaches and will be responsible for working with game officials in the areas of communication, mechanics, playing rules and position training. Hill will focus on furthering relationships with college officiating coordinators in order to increase collaboration in training and development.
Attack
continued from p.8
On Dec. 5, 2022, Gracia filed a lawsuit against Duron, Rio Grande Texas Association of Sports Officials (TASO) and the TASO-affiliated Southwest Officials Association.
That lawsuit, which seeks more than $1 million for embarrassment, pain and psychological and physical damage from the assault, is pending. It argues TASO failed to provide a safe environment for Gracia and his crew, claiming his injuries were caused by their “negligent, careless and reckless disregard of said duty.”
TASO has asked the judge to remove their organization from the lawsuit arguing Gracia “nonsensically” brought claims against them. TASO’s motion for summary judgment states it did not have any authority over Duron and his actions; he was under the control and direction of Edinburg High School. Further, Gracia was an independent contractor and not an employee.
Duron is facing two additional charges in two separate criminal cases. One is a felony drug charge and a misdemeanor assault charge filed in 2023 and 2024, respectively.
SOURCES: KSAT.COM, MYRGV.COM, MYSANANTONIO.COM
captains would be allowed to approach referees to speak about decisions made during games. Other players who do so would risk being penalized. If the captain is a goalkeeper, the goalkeeper can nominate a teammate to approach officials. The move is an attempt to stop groups of players from “mobbing” referees in scenes which are “bad for the image of football,” according to the UEFA.
Former NHL Referee
Bill Friday Dies
Bill Friday, who remains the only person to ever referee both a Stanley Cup Final and World Hockey Association (WHA) Avco Cup Final, died May 13 after a battle with cancer. He was 91.
The founder and first president of the NHL Officials Association, Friday worked a total of 1,425 games between the NHL and WHA. He was a part of 44 Stanley Cup Playoff games,
including six consecutive Cup Final series between 1967-72, and NHL All-Star Games in 1968 and 1971. Friday worked the first game in WHA history in 1973 as well as the fledgling league’s last game in 1979.
Nevada Officials to Get Pay Raise
High school officials in Nevada are set to receive a pay raise. The Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association (NIAA) has
agreed to a new deal for game officials for this fall. Football officials will see the biggest raise, although all referees will get some level of an increase. Officials will now be paid $85 for varsity games and $65 for JV games, while football officials will get $95 for varsity and $75 for JV. At press time, the agreement was pending the NIAA’s approval at their June board meeting.
Two-Time NBA Finals Official Mihalak Dies
ERIE, Pa. — Paul Mihalak Jr., whose long career as an NBA referee included officiating two NBA Finals, died May 1. He was 84. According to an obituary, Mihalak experienced complications following successful lung surgery.
Mihalak was drafted by the Detroit Tigers out of college, but his pitching
career was cut short due to injury, which started him down the path to officiating. The Erie, Pa., native officiated both basketball and football for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association from 1958-69 before getting his big break at an NBA referee tryout camp in Buffalo.
In 1969, Mihalak began his 28-year career as an NBA official. He would officiate more than 2,000 regular season games, as well as 123 playoff
games, four All-Star games and two NBA Finals (1980 and 1984). Mihalak left the court in 1997 due to severe knee problems, but later rejoined the NBA as an observer/mentor of young NBA officials.
Mihalak is survived by his wife, Judy, five children, 10 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. His son-in-law is retired NBA referee Bill Spooner.
SOURCE: ERIE TIMES-NEWS
Parry, Former Referee, Hired by Bills
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Former NFL referee John Parry has been hired by the Buffalo Bills to serve as their officiating liaison. Multiple sources reported the May 14 hiring.
Parry had served as a rules analyst for ESPN and ABC Monday Night Football telecasts since 2019. He was an NFL official for 19 years, the last 12 as a referee. His last assignment was Super Bowl LIII. He worked two other Super Bowls (XLI and XLVI), two Wild Card playoff games, seven Divisional playoff games and one Conference Championship game.
Parry will be the first to serve in the advisor role for the Bills. He can assist the coaching staff regarding replay challenges during games and provide rule interpretations. During the 2023 NFL season, Bills coach Sean McDermott won half of his challenges (three out of six). But according to Pro Football Reference, since 2017 Buffalo has only had 10 calls overturned and 23 upheld.
Parry is not the first NFL official to take on such a role. In 2019, 27-year veteran and three-time Super Bowl referee Gerald Austin was hired as a
staff consultant by Oakland Raiders coach Jon Gruden. Like Parry, Austin had been the ESPN rules analyst. During his years in the booth, Gruden had been a color commentator.
Hiring former officials isn’t something new in other sports as well. In 2001, former NBA referee Woody Mayfield joined the Dallas Mavericks and was charged with educating players on how to communicate with officials. Mayfield, who officiated in the NBA from 1988-98, was hired by controversial Mavericks owner Mark Cuban as a consultant.
Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld the decision last year.
“Hernandez has failed to establish a statistically significant disparity between the promotion rates of white and minority umpires,” the Second Circuit said in an 11-page decision. “MLB has provided persuasive expert evidence demonstrating that, during the years at issue, the difference in crew chief promotion rates between white and minority umpires was not statistically significant. Hernandez offers no explanation as to why MLB’s statistical evidence is unreliable.”
However, since that time, MLB has hired numerous African American and Latino umpires, and several have
been promoted to crew chief. In his statement, Hernandez said while he did not win his case, more minorities are now in high-profile positions than they were 10 years ago, and he views that as a long-term victory.
Murphy said Hernandez unfairly became a target in the media by reporters who seemed intent on pointing out every missed or questionable call.
“Nobody wants to believe that Angel Hernandez was a very good umpire, and there were a couple of instances that were not portrayed correctly by the media, that started the snowball going downhill,” Murphy said. “You take a look now at the amount of minority crew chiefs there are, compared to 2017. In 2017, no African American was ever promoted
to crew chief and there was only one Hispanic. Now, after that lawsuit there is a minority in every playoff and every World Series, and they promoted a number of minority crew chiefs and there are more minority umpires. And you have to ask yourself, would that have happened without the lawsuit?”
Hernandez began umpiring professionally in the Florida State League at the age of 20.
“Needless to say, there have been many positive changes in the game of baseball since I first entered the profession,” he said in a statement. “This includes the expansion and promotion of minorities. I am proud that I was able to be an active participant in that goal while being a major league umpire.”
Hernandez continued from p.8
CONTACT LENS
Why Some Things Are Fouls and Some Aren’t
By George Demetriou
Bang-bang refers to an act executed or happening so quickly as to make judgment difficult. It does not appear in any rulebook, but it’s difficult to go to a camp or clinic in any sport without that phrase coming up.
In football, the term is used as a synonym for simultaneous or near
simultaneous contact. In a possible pass interference situation, bang-bang is not a foul, but for kick-catching interference it is illegal contact and a foul. Far from being an inconsistent philosophy, there is logic behind that difference. The simple explanation is for the purpose of catching a pass, both receiver and defender have equal rights to the ball (NFHS 7-5-
11a; NCAA 7-3-8b-2), while on kick plays the receiver must be given an unimpeded opportunity to catch the ball (NFHS 6.5.6D; NCAA 6-4-1a). Pass interference. Because eligible players of both teams have equal territorial rights, when two or more such players are making a simultaneous and bona fide effort to reach, catch or bat the pass, incidental
Steve Landro, Everett, Wash., has a flag for kick-catching interference. While college rules have specific criteria for that foul, high school officials must use their judgment. In this case, it would seem the kicking team members made contact with the receiver before the ball’s arrival, which would be a fairly obvious foul in both codes.
contact may be ruled. Examples include arm, hand, shoulder or hip contact, and other acts related to jostling for position. However, when intent to impede the opponent is obvious, it is a foul.
One of the key factors for calling a foul is there must be an “obvious intent to impede” as opposed to “playing the ball.” In other words, if a player is “playing the ball” by attempting to catch or block the pass, any resulting contact should be excused. The lack of intent to impede also applies when the feet of opposing players become entangled as they pursue the ball. If both or neither is looking at the ball, calling it a draw is easy, but if one player is not playing the ball, a foul is undoubtedly the best call.
Kick-catching interference. A kick receiver who is in position to catch any type of kick must be given an unimpeded opportunity to catch the ball. It does not matter whether or not a fair catch signal is given. That means neither the receiver nor the ball can be touched, nor the receiver’s path to the ball be obstructed.
Under NFHS rules, there is no specific amount of room that must be given to the receiver. In non-contact situations, it is a judgment call as to whether or not the receiver has been obstructed. For non-contact interference to occur, there must be a team R player in the vicinity of the kick who could have caught the ball. Other forms of non-contact interference are distracting the receiver or getting so close to him so as to intimidate him. There does not have to be physical contact (6-5-6). On free kicks, it does not matter if a receiver is in position to make a catch; it is a foul if the kicking team is first to touch a kick in flight.
In NCAA play, if a team R player is attempting to catch a kick and is located such that he could catch the ball, it is interference if, before the receiver touches the ball, a team K player enters the area defined by the width of the receiver’s shoulders and extending one yard in front of him (6-4-1b). In either code, when there is question regarding interference it is a foul.
False start vs. encroachment. There probably won’t be any contact involved, but when opposing linemen move at about the same time it can be a challenge to determine which player fouled first. Because the codes have different rules on neutral zone infractions, explanations appear separately.
In NCAA, it is not a foul if a defensive lineman lurches forward or otherwise moves as long as no body part is in the neutral zone when the ball is snapped (7-1-5b-1). If the defensive player enters the neutral zone and threatens an opponent by causing the opponent to react immediately, he is guilty of offside (7-1-5a-2).
On the offensive side of the line, if a restricted lineman moves his hand(s) or makes any quick movement (unless he immediately reacts when threatened by a team B player in the neutral zone), he has committed a false start (7-1-2b).
Thus, if opposing players move at what appears to be the same time, the foul is on the defense provided the defensive player entered the neutral zone and the offensive player was “protected.” If a defender enters the neutral zone in a gap between two offensive linemen, both linemen are protected. If the defender enters the neutral zone directly opposite (“straight up”) an offensive lineman, that lineman and the lineman on each side of him are protected. If a defender moves forward but does not break the plane of the neutral zone or he breaks the plane clearly after the offensive player moved, it is a false start.
In NFHS, it is a foul for encroachment if a defensive player enters the neutral zone after the snapper has touched the ball and before the snap. The acts that result in a false start are essentially the same as described above for NCAA.
Thus, if opposing players move at what appears to be the same time and the defensive movement caused the player to immediately enter the neutral zone, and the officials are unable to determine which player fouled first, the fouls offset and no yardage penalty is enforced (2001 interps., Sit. 16). It must be recognized
In NCAA, “illegal touching” can mean different things. It is illegal touching if:
• Team K touches a kick when it could not retain possession if it had the ball at the end of the down, or bats a scrimmage kick in team R’s end zone that was untouched by team R beyond the neutral zone.
• A team A eligible receiver goes out of bounds, returns inbounds and touches a legal forward pass while in the field of play or end zones or while airborne. (Exception: The receiver went out of bounds due to contact by an opponent.) The originally ineligible player while inbounds cannot intentionally touch a legal forward pass until it has touched an opponent or an official. DID YOU KNOW?
QUICKTIP
Newer and experienced officials attend one or more camps with an eye toward bettering themselves and moving up the ladder. The problem occurs when networking is the main, or even most prominent, goal of attending a camp. Your primary goal should be to get better. If you attend with the goal of enhancing your skills, the advancement part may automatically take care of itself.
TOOLS
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TEST YOURSELF
In each of the following you are given a situation and at least two possible answers. You are to decide which answer or answers are correct for NFHS and NCAA rules, which might vary. Note: In kicking situations, K is the kicking team, R the receiving team. Solutions: p. 81.
1. Fourth and 20 at team K’s 30 yardline. Team K’s punt is blocked behind the neutral zone. While the kick is loose, R1 holds at team K’s 40 yardline. The ball, which never crosses the neutral zone, is recovered by R2 at team K’s 15 yardline. The next play will be:
a. Team K’s ball, fourth and 35 at its own 15 yardline.
b. Team K’s ball, fourth and 10 at its own 40 yardline.
c. Team K’s ball, first and 10 at its own 40 yardline.
d. Team R’s ball, first and 10 at the 50 yardline.
2. First and 10 at team A’s 20 yardline. A1 eludes defensive pressure, then passes to A2, who makes the catch at team A’s 30 yardline. A2 runs to team A’s 43 yardline, where he is downed. When A1 released the pass, his left foot was behind the neutral zone but only his right heel was in the neutral zone.
a. Legal play.
b. Illegal forward pass.
3. A1’s legal forward pass is intercepted in team B’s end zone by B2. B2 advances to his own 30 yardline, where he is downed. During B2’s advance, B3 clips in team B’s end zone.
a. If the play were a try, team A would score a safety.
b. If the play were a try, the penalty would be declined by rule.
c. If the play were a try, the ball would be declared dead when B2 intercepted it.
d. If the play were from scrimmage, team A would score a safety.
4. A1 catches a touchdown pass despite interference by B2. After scoring, A1 spikes the ball in the end zone.
a. The penalties cancel. Replay the down.
b. Those penalties may only be enforced on the try.
c. None of the above.
5. A player who receives two unsportsmanlike fouls in a game is disqualified (NFHS) or ejected (NCAA) and is required to leave the playing enclosure under team supervision.
a. True.
b. False.
the offensive foul occurs when the movement begins, but the defensive foul does not occur until the player enters the neutral zone.
Delay of game. The most common reason for a delay-of-game foul is the play clock expiring before the ball is snapped. Bang-bang is not usually applied to this situation, but it can happen so quickly as to make judgment difficult. The accepted technique is to watch the play clock go to zero and then look at the ball. If the ball is moving, there is no foul. If the snap has not yet begun, the whistle is blown and the flag thrown.
Miscellaneous. There are a variety of other situations when the sequence of events must be judged and a split second makes a difference. In those cases either no foul should be called e.g., a substitute leaving the field before the snap, or the player should be judged to have done what he intended to do e.g., incomplete pass vs. fumble for a passer. The availability of replay may influence and penalize a team in some scenarios.
George Demetriou has been a football official since 1968. He lives in Colorado Springs, Colo.
There’s No Substitute for Knowing These Rules
By Judson Howard
My father played football at North Carolina A&T in the 1930s. He said back then players went both ways, participating on offense and defense. He rarely came out of the game. When substitutes wanted to enter the contest, they had to first report to an official. Substitution rules have evolved over the years, becoming more liberal than when my father played with a leather helmet and no facemask. However, there are specific rules for players coming in and out of the game.
Before a play, any number of offensive or defensive players may enter the field from their team area to replace a teammate. A replaced player must leave the field and go directly to his team area. He also must begin exiting the field when his substitute comes in. All substitutes must be on their team’s side of the neutral zone before the snap (NFHS 3-7-1 and 2; NCAA 3-51, 3-5-2c-2).
It is a dead-ball five-yard penalty for illegal substitution if a player withdraws and then re-enters, and for a player to become a substitute and then go back to the sideline.
That means subs must participate in at least one play and replaced players must stay out of the game for at least one play (NFHS 3-7-3; NCAA 3-5-2d).
Play 1: Team A sends in substitutes A12 and A13, replacing A1 and A2. The period ends or there is an officials or team timeout. Ruling 1: A1 and A2 may return to the game and A12 and A13 may leave the field before the next play.
After the snap no one can enter the field during a live play. It is a 15-yard penalty for illegal participation in NFHS and a fiveyard illegal substitution foul in NCAA (NFHS 3-7-6; NCAA 3-5-2a).
Play 2: Team B realizes it only has 10 players on the field and sends in B11. As he is running to get on his side of the neutral zone, the ball is snapped when he is on team A’s side of the neutral zone. Ruling 2: It is illegal substitution.
Play 3: Three team A subs come in but only two leave. One departing player remains inbounds just in front of his team area. The defense does not notice him. He goes downfield and catches a pass. Ruling 3: That is a 15-yard penalty for illegal participation in NFHS and an unsportsmanlike conduct
foul in NCAA. The substitution process may not be used to deceive or confuse opponents (NFHS 9-6-4d; NCAA 9-2-2b).
Play 4: B1 is late to recognize B2 came in to replace him. He makes a mad dash to get off the field. But the snap occurs when B1 is five yards from the sideline. Ruling 4: Live-ball foul for illegal substitution (NFHS 3-7-4; NCAA 3-5-2b).
In NCAA, team A may not break the huddle with more than 11 players nor keep more than 11 players in the huddle or formation for more than three seconds. That is a dead-ball foul, five yards from the succeeding spot (3-5-3a). Team B may briefly keep more than 11 players on the field to assess team A’s formation before making possible changes (3-5-3b). Team B player(s), in excess of 11, must leave the field before the snap.
When team A substitutes in NCAA, officials will prevent the snap until team B has an
opportunity to substitute to match up. As seen in the MechaniGram, team A may not rush to the line to create an advantage. In that case, officials will prevent a snap and team B may match up (3-5-2e).
A sub can request a timeout as soon as he steps on the field
in NFHS. For NCAA, a sub can only request a timeout when he is between the nine-yard marks (NFHS 3-5-2a; NCAA 3-3-4b).
Judson Howard, Los Angeles, is a replay official in the Pac-12 Conference. He officiated more than 20 years, many at the NCAA Division I level.
While in the process of substitution or simulated substitution, NCAA rules prohibit team A from rushing quickly to the line of scrimmage with the obvious attempt of creating a defensive disadvantage. The first offense results in a five-yard penalty.
Five Will Get You One
By Jason Nickleby
Every play in a football game is important and we should be working our pre-snap routine regardless of the circumstances of the moment. It is imperative to stick with your routine so when the heart starts pumping faster at critical points of the game, your consistency will (hopefully) prevent mistakes that could impact the crew’s credibility or effectiveness. We make mistakes when we have different mechanics in the middle of the first quarter versus a tight situation at the end of a half.
Coordination with your crew through outstanding communication and commitment to demonstrating the correct mechanics will serve as a foundation to making correct judgment calls when the spotlight burns the brightest. In particular, officiating short-yardage situations on third or fourth down requires exceptional focus and discipline as a line of scrimmage official to ensure the proper spot of forward progress is being awarded.
It all starts with focusing on the pre-snap reads and checklist.
The process begins with ensuring the formation is legal and there aren’t any pre-snap fouls that would cause the ball to remain dead. On occasion, officials get so caught up in worrying about the line-to-gain they forget about other responsibilities.
For instance, it is very important to know the line-to-gain prior to the snap so we know if we need to stop the clock to award a first down without having to turn around and look at the chains. If the line of scrimmage is five yards or less from the line-to-gain, we should communicate with the referee, “Five will get you one.” Do that by placing a hand flat on the chest as seen in PlayPic B on page 18, indicating a five-yard penalty on the defense would result in a first down. Referees do not look smooth and professional if they have to turn and look at the chains during the middle of an announcement to determine if a first down should be awarded.
Once the ball is snapped, wing officials should shift their vision to the tackle to read what kind of play is being run. If the tackle stands up, it is likely a pass play. If the tackle
blocks down or pulls, it’s likely a running play. Once the type of play is established, attention shifts to officiate blocks and forward progress.
When reading run on a shortyardage play, the wings side shuffle along with the runner as he disappears into the pile. Pick up sight of the football as it enters the scrum and get a read on the runner’s body movements to determine if progress has stopped. Remember it is important to withhold the whistle until certain the runner is down by rule. That occurs when the runner has control of the football while a body part, other than the hand or foot, makes contact with the ground.
It’s OK if several plays throughout the game will have a very late whistle or no whistle at all. There’s nothing worse than being at the edge of the pile with whistles blowing and the runner is running down the sideline with the ball. When the line-to-gain is threatened and it’s determined progress has stopped, pinch hard toward the pile. Come in until reaching the pile.
The covering official should receive the ball from the umpire (or center judge if applicable) and place it at that official’s feet, even if the play ends in the side zone. If the ball has made the line-to-gain, make sure the clock has stopped (always in NFHS, and NCAA inside two minutes of either half). If a measurement is required, stop the clock, clear the players and bring in the chains. If it is short and the ball is in the side zone, the referee should pinch the correct chain link, pick up the football and bring it to the inbounds spot.
If the goalline is threatened, pinch hard to the pile in the field of play. An official who determines the ball has penetrated the goalline plane steps to the goalline and signals touchdown from there. If the ball is short, remain in the field of play and mark the forward progress spot. That is preferable to coming into the end zone or onto the
for 2024
Full Color Photos & Diagrams
HandPicked Articles learn
This is the comprehensive guide you need to be ready to work High School football this season. All new and recent rule changes broken down, Points of Emphasis clarified, and tough situations made simple – all in a full-color, magazine-sized annual guide. Includes hundreds of caseplays and quiz questions!
Rules & Mechanics Changes
CASEPLAYS
Ground Ball
Play: As the teams are preparing for a free kick, K1 places the ball on the ground without a tee on the free-kick line. K1 kicks the ball, which rolls along the ground 11 yards and is untouched until it is recovered by K2. Ruling: Legal play. There is no requirement to use a tee for a free kick. Since the ball hit the ground and traveled more than 10 yards untouched, it may be legally recovered by team K (NFHS 2-247, 6-1-6; NCAA 2-16-4c, 6-1-3a-2 and 3).
Pull and Shoot
Play: Fourth and eight from team K’s 22 yardline. Immediately after the snap, R1 grabs tackle K2 and pulls him to the side so R3 can shoot. R3 is not successful in blocking the punt and the kick is downed at team R’s 45 yardline. Ruling: That maneuver is called the pull and shoot and it is considered defensive holding, which results in a 10-yard penalty. In NFHS, because the foul did not occur beyond the expanded neutral zone, PSK does not apply. The 10-yard penalty is enforced from the previous spot. It will be first and 10 for team K from its own 32 yardline. In NCAA, because the foul occurred before the kick, PSK does not apply. The 10-yard penalty, which includes a first down, is enforced from the previous spot. It will be first and 10 for team K from its own 32 yardline (NFHS 2-16-2h; NCAA 3-3-2d-8, 10-2-3b).
Grounding Exception
Play: First and 10 at team A’s 35 yardline. A1 takes the snap, drops back to pass but has to scramble outside the lateral boundary of the free-blocking zone (NFHS) or tackle box (NCAA). He fumbles at team A’s 30 yardline. After the ball bounces directly into his hands, A1 passes the ball, which lands into an open area at team A’s 45 yardline where there are no eligible receivers. Ruling: Legal play. Since A1 did not relinquish possession to another player, the pass was from outside the respective zones and landed beyond the neutral zone, there is no foul for intentional grounding (NFHS 7-5-2 Exc. 2; NCAA 7-3-2h Exc.).
DOWN BOX
TAPE MARKING HALFWAY POINT OF CHAIN
TEAM A GOING THIS WAY
goalline, which appears to indicate a touchdown was scored.
Another area of focus for the referee, umpire and wing officials during short-yardage situations is being aware of strategies the offense may use to get a head start or draw the defense into a foul. Some of these include the quarterback head bob, rolling starts and abrupt shifts. Any action prior to a legal snap that simulates the start of a play should result in a false start foul and penalty yardage. Before the snap, be on the lookout for exaggerated movements by offensive players, particularly the quarterback. Again, any action that simulates the start of the play should be penalized as a false start. This includes offensive linemen quickly going from a two-point stance to a three-point stance with the sole intention of drawing the defense into the neutral zone. Regardless of how many times a team employs that strategy, the offense should be penalized.
The head linesman’s pregame inspection of the chains should include ensuring there is tape at the midway point of the chain. As depicted in PlayPic A above, seeing
the down marker inside that tape (meaning there is less than five yards to go for a first down) is an easy reference. Note the chains and marker will be farther off the sideline; the graphic is drawn to make it easier to illustrate the point. Jason Nickleby is assistant director and coordinator of officiating services for the Minnesota State High School League. He is also a center judge in the Big Ten Conference.
A Football Pregame For Every Situation
One pregame does not fit all. Whether you have a rookie crew, seasoned veterans, are working a mismatch or a title game, keep this handy guide in your bag to be game-ready every assignment. Easy outlines and quick discussion starters will guide you to the best pregame choice every time.
Match Your Pregame To the Game You’ve Got
EAward
TED BARRETT
UMPIRE, FATHER, MINISTER
BY MARCEL KERR
very big-league umpire has to take his figurative lumps working in the minors before getting his first game in the majors. Ted Barrett took his literal lumps before working in the minors on his way to the majors. And if his father had not intervened in 1988 with an offer for what Barrett thought would be a sponsored working vacation, Barrett might be among a heap of sports lesser-knowns or no-names.
“When I graduated from college, I moved to Las Vegas to pursue boxing,” Barrett said. “I was sparring and working out with some heavyweight pros. My dad had been a big supporter of mine in any sport I played, but he never was crazy about me boxing.
“He said, ‘I’ll pay for you to go to umpire school.’ I saw that as an opportunity to spend five weeks in Florida. I was getting whupped in the ring, so that would have been a nice break. I fully expected to return and get into umpiring college baseball, but I got hired and was set to start my adventure through the minor leagues.”
So after swapping practice jabs and hooks with icons such as George
Foreman, Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield, Barrett embarked on an umpiring career that spanned nearly 30 years in the major leagues and saw him work five World Series. Those laurels garnered him the 2024 NASO Gold Whistle Award.
“It’s an extremely high honor,” Barrett said about the award, “particularly with some of the past recipients. To be mentioned in those circles is very humbling. I appreciate the fact people looked at my body of work and saw value in it. This recognition coming from a community that highlights officiating speaks volumes about the work God is doing through me.”
God’s work in Barrett began when he was 8 years old living in North Tonawanda, N.Y., when his family went to Lighthouse Baptist Church on Easter. Barrett responded to the gospel that Sunday, and his parents and three brothers later confirmed their Christian faith. The young sports junkie then had two emphases that captured his interest.
“Our household was all about playing sports, and we were a football family,” Barrett said. “My brothers
and I played football, and my dad coached. Then we started going to church regularly and I kind of became a Sunday school superstar.”
Barrett would add a third passion to his teenage portfolio after a buddy invited him to umpire a Little League game together.
“I was 14 years old and had no training,” said Barrett about his debut in the officiating realm. “Umpiring is one of those things you either love or hate. And I loved it.”
Life presented Barrett with little to complain about until his parents decided to relocate to the West Coast during the summer before his junior year of high school. The move across the country sparked a bit of shortsighted anger that also was shortlived.
“I didn’t want to leave home because that’s where my friends were,” he said. “I’d just finished playing JV football, basketball and baseball, and my two older brothers were staying in New York. I was mad at my dad the whole way to California because I thought it was a dirty trick for him to pull me out of there.”
GOLD WHISTLE AWARD
About four months passed before his first winter in the Bay Area city of Mountain View cemented his change of attitude toward his change of address.
“We were outside playing football and baseball, and I thought, ‘This ain’t bad.’ If I were still in New York, I would have been stuck in the gym.”
Barrett played and umpired baseball while he finished high school, but the fire of his faith tapered to a smolder.
“Before we moved from North Tonawanda, I felt God calling me toward ministry, and I had people speaking that into my life,” Barrett said. “When I got to Mountain View, I stopped going to church. None of my friends went to church, and nobody invited me to youth group.
“I was this kid who had been learning and growing as a follower of Christ, then got stunted. I wasn’t reading the Bible. I still called myself a Christian, but without praying and studying Scripture, I was going backward.”
Upon his graduation from Los Altos High School, Barrett enrolled at Foothill Junior College, where he played football and basketball. He dropped basketball after those two years and finished his degree in physical education at Cal State-Hayward, which is now called Cal State-East Bay. Barrett maintained his umpiring schedule while in college. Some of those games partnered him with umpires who were working in the minors. A few of them encouraged Barrett to attend umpiring school, but he didn’t give it significant consideration.
Top left, in his youth, Barrett played football. He is seen with his mother and father, his brother Glynn and his future wife Tina. During his boxing days, he sparred with some of the biggest names in the sport. Bottom left, he and Tina; have three children: Andrew, Amanda and Adam. His children are now grown, and he has several grandchildren, who occasionally got some special behind-thescenes moments at ballparks (center). At right, Barrett and his wife Tina pose for an onfield picture before a game.
in the mid-1980s, schools paid $57 a game for varsity baseball. I worked two or three games a week and had plenty of car money.”
During Cal State-Hayward’s football season, Barrett, a tight end on the team, would attend chapel before games for what he says was “more or less as a good-luck charm.” The chaplain leading those chapel services participated in Campus Crusade for Christ, and he inspired Barrett to memorize some verses and study Scripture.
“That reignited what had been lying dormant in me,” Barrett said. “I started getting hungry for Scripture again, and it was great for me because I was exposed to a lot of things that weren’t good. When I started getting back into the Word on a regular basis, I began to feel again that call into ministry.”
The resurgence in his faith did not scratch the boxing itch Barrett felt. His interlude in
he was no slouch in the ring. He may have been in Las Vegas chasing a boxing championship, but God was conditioning him to carry his Christianity into the sports world.
“I’m proud to say I got my butt kicked by some of boxing’s best,” Barrett said about the seven world champions with whom he sparred. “George and Evander would do Bible study in camp. When George and I would run in the morning, we’d talk about Scripture … he’d already been preaching at that point. I admired the way they leaned into their faith.”
The interval between amateur boxing and minor league baseball was brief, but it was long enough for Barrett to marry Tina Muhlebach. The two met as teens after Barrett moved to California, and their wedding took place on New Year’s Eve 1988. The first week of 1989 was eventful for the newlyweds.
‘IF I GET TO THE BIG LEAGUES, THEN I’LL KNOW WE’RE COOL. WHEN I’M DONE, I’LL GET INTO MINISTRY.’”
“(Umpiring) was a way for me to keep from working at a fast food joint or somewhere else like that where college kids work,” Barrett said. “Back then
the squared circle was another milepost on Barrett’s roadmap to ministry. Standing 6-foot-4 and weighing close to 250 pounds,
“My wife and I were married the day before we left for umpire school,” said Barrett, who shares three children — Andrew, Amanda and Adam — and seven grandchildren with Tina. “School started on the fourth of January, so we did a few days for a honeymoon before she went home, and I went to the Joe Brinkman School
of Professional Umpiring in Cocoa, Fla.”
Barrett had stopped boxing with legends, only to begin “wrestling with God” trying to discern how he should activate ministry while umpiring professional baseball.
“I thought I had it all figured out, so I made a deal with God, which He laughed at,” Barrett said. “I knew the odds of me making it to the big leagues were slim, so I said to Him, ‘If I get to the big leagues, then I’ll know we’re cool. When I’m done, I’ll get into ministry.’”
He completed the Brinkman School, then spent five years in the minor leagues before getting his first call to work a major league game in 1994. He went back and forth between the majors and minors until 1999, when he became a fulltime umpire in the AL. His addition to the staff afforded him games with each of that league’s eight crew chiefs.
When Major League Baseball merged the NL and AL umpiring staffs before the 2000 season, Barrett got the chance to circulate among the staff’s crew chiefs over the
next 13 seasons, which molded him for the same role, which he accepted in 2013. Men like Don Denkinger, Jim Evans, Jim McKean, Tim McClelland and Steve Rippley are some of the leaders to whom Barrett feels indebted.
“I was fortunate to get that mix of styles and personalities,” he said. “They all were great crew chiefs, and they showed me there’s more than one way to run a crew. I took the best of each of them and tried to utilize it when I became a crew chief. It was similar to being a father. You wonder when you are a kid why the heck your dad does some of the things he does. Then when you become a dad, you realize why he did them and find yourself doing the same things.”
Barrett made certain to pick the brains of his crew chiefs so he could connect with baseball’s past through its ranks of umpires.
“The Denkingers, the McKeans, the Evanses … they were my connection to the past,” he said. “They started with men who had been in the major leagues since the 1940s
Clockwise from left, Barrett umpired two All-Star Games during his career, along with 12 Division Series, 10 League Championship Series and five World Series. He umpired a 2019 spring training game with his son, Andrew (second from left), along with MLB umpires Pat Hoberg (left) and Tony Randazzo (right). Barrett joined the fulltime MLB staff in 1999 and retired after the 2022 season. Barrett’s time in the Arizona Fall League included working with fellow future MLB umpires Mike Everitt (left) and Laz Díaz (right).
and ’50s, so I’d ask them about their mentors.
“I love the history of umpiring, and a lot of umpires were military veterans who served in the Korean War and the Vietnam War. So they told real war stories. When you look at the service times of the guys in the ’40s, there is that two- or three-year lapse when they served. I am fascinated by stuff like that.”
Reaching the apex of the umpiring profession, however, did nothing to relieve the lingering lure to ministry. With a combined umpiring staff in place for 2000, Barrett decided the time was prime for him — an umpire with one season of full-time service — to take a bold step, one that would prove either fruitful or foolish.
“God was calling me to be more vocal about my faith and not hide my light under a basket,” Barrett said. “Each crew chief put in a list of guys with whom they wanted to work, and the (supervisor) tried to accommodate them. I had some cards made up and passed them out at the umpires’ union meeting. It was just a picture of
GOLD WHISTLE AWARD
me with a brief testimony on the back.
“I went home and told Tina, ‘I may have just committed career suicide because nobody wants to work with the Jesus freak.’”
Barrett landed on Ed Montague’s crew for that season. Near the middle of the year, Ralph Nelson, who then was the supervisor of MLB’s umpires, told Barrett he was the most requested umpire among the crew chiefs.
“I had no idea he would tell me that,” Barrett said. “It was confirmation I was doing the right thing. I had to stick with it and turn it up.”
Barrett realized at that point he no longer could avoid the divine appointment, but engaging in full-time ministry while working a major league umpiring schedule seemed mutually exclusive. According to Barrett, it was then that God revealed His plan to integrate the two.
“I started taking classes at Trinity Theological Seminary with full-time pastors, and I really sensed the call into ministry,” said Barrett, who completed master’s and doctoral degrees at Trinity. “The Lord wanted me to stay where He planted me as an umpire. I kind of became the staff pastor for the umpires. That’s the flock God gave me.”
Over the years, Barrett has officiated umpires’ weddings, baptisms and funerals. Along with fellow MLB umpire Rob Drake, he founded Calling for Christ as an ongoing spiritual
Clockwise from top, Barrett leads crewmates in prayer. Barrett officiated the wedding of MLB umpire Alfonso Márquez (pictured with his daughter). A cofounder of Calling for Christ, Barrett, fellow umpires and pastors attended an annual retreat in Texas.
resource geared toward professional baseball umpires. It provides Barrett a platform to give Christian fellowship to his peers and potential protégés in much the same way he received it at pivotal points in his life. One of those protégés is Nestor Ceja. He was a student at Arizona State University when he met Barrett at an umpire clinic in 2009. Now he is a second-year major league umpire who leaned on Barrett’s wisdom and insight during his
Barrett is a longtime supporter of UmpsCare, including participating in hospital visits and special onfield events. At right, Barrett is joined by fellow MLB umpires Lance Barksdale (center) and John Tumpane (right).
Below, a Build-a-Bear hospital visit included (from left) then-MLB umpire Tim Timmons, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, thenMLB umpire Jim Reynolds and Barrett.
ascension through the minor leagues. He took good notes on his mentor when they worked on the same crew in Barrett’s final season.
“He didn’t stray away from the fundamentals,” Ceja said about one trait that epitomizes Barrett’s longevity. “He did a lot of things his last year I know he was taught in umpire school.
“Home plate umpires learn to go up the first-base line on ground balls to help if necessary. With every ground
ball, he was hustling up the line. That’s something that can be taken for granted. On those so-called routine ground balls when you might think nothing’s going to happen, Ted hustled up the line just in case something did happen. He controlled his controllables.”
Halfway through his first full season in 1999, Barrett worked the plate in New York when Yankees pitcher David Cone faced and retired 27 consecutive Montreal Expos. As the game progressed, he could sense something special was brewing inside Yankee Stadium, but he couldn’t pinpoint it fully in the moment.
“I remember looking at the scoreboard and there were zero hits,” Barrett said, “but I did not know he had a perfect game going.”
Barrett had a replicate experience 13 years later in San Francisco when the Giants’ Matt Cain pitched nine perfect innings against the Houston Astros. The anxiety in games like those is not restricted to the hitters trying to get on base or the defense trying to avoid errors. The man behind the plate bears an added burden.
“The pressure was for me to be consistent,” said Barrett, who also called Ervin Santana’s no-hitter for the Los Angeles Angels in 2011. “Whatever I’d been calling a strike, I needed to continue calling it a strike, and whatever was a ball needed to continue to be called a ball. Missing a pitch may cost the pitcher a perfect game, but there’s also the thought of giving him so much off the corners that it seems like I helped the pitcher, so he didn’t deserve it.”
Traveling the nation from one major league city to the next permitted Barrett ample opportunities to meet likeminded people. While in San Francisco nearly 20 years ago, he attended a chapel service led by Jeff Iorg, who was the
chaplain for the Giants at the time. The two struck up a friendship and ministry alliance that has borne fruit in academia.
“Ted is one of the finest Christians I’ve met,” said Iorg, who in May completed a 20-year tenure as president of Gateway Seminary in Ontario, Calif. “He came to our campus and I interviewed him. It is one of our most downloaded chapels. We didn’t talk about baseball; we talked about how to build a ministry from nothing to viability.
“Calling for Christ is an example of that. How do you create vision? How do you shape and develop good leaders so you can hand it over to the next generation? How do you expand and change your organization as the needs change? Ted models all of those things beautifully, and he’s a great encouragement to me as a leader.”
Besides their commitment to Christ, Iorg also shares officiating acumen with Barrett. His 25 years as a youth baseball umpire gives him some semblance of awareness of Barrett’s spiritual obligation while on the diamond.
“Ted is a great example of taking the gospel into the workplace. He’s done that with integrity, honor and respect, and he’s done it in such a way that umpires who are not Christians are not antagonistic toward him. They may not share or agree with his beliefs, but because of the way he carries himself, they respect him for the work he does.”
Umpire Lance Barksdale shares that respect for Barrett. He became a major league crew chief after Barrett retired from the field in 2022.
“I learned from Teddy how to deal with the pressures of this job and to handle situations that come up on the field,” said Barksdale, who has been in the majors since 2006. “I also learned how to be a Godly
The Gold Whistle Award
was created by the NASO board of directors to honor an individual or organization that has gone above and beyond in overall integrity and has made significant contributions to the betterment of o ciating. The Gold Whistle is among the most coveted awards in the world of sports o ciating. To be selected as the award recipient by the NASO board of directors, consideration is given for:
• Significant contributions to the betterment of o ciating.
• A high degree of integrity and ethics.
• Qualities that are held in high regard by the industry.
• Consistent record of presenting o ciating in a positive light.
• Exhibiting a “service above self” attitude. Public service to o ciating, having a motivating e ect on others and/or strong community involvement are considered.
The award can be made posthumously.
man, a good husband and a good father while being away from my family as much as I am. Some people get caught up in the job we do, but Teddy always had his priorities in order.”
In his retirement days, Barrett’s baseball business finds him working for MLB TV and Apple TV as a rules analyst. He also attends minor league games to observe and evaluate umpires.
“If I can be an encouragement to the younger guys, I’m all in on that,” he said. “I’m glad my opinion is still valid.”
The Gold Whistle Award seems a fitting finishing touch for a superb career, and Barrett’s entry as the latest recipient likely surprises no one who knows him.
“It is one of the highest accolades in the athletic officiating community because it is given by one’s peers,” said Larry Young, a former major league umpire who received the award in 2002 and now serves as a supervisor of major league umpires. “We don’t hire people for their umpiring ability alone. It obviously has a high level of importance, but we want good people. We want good citizens on and off the field, and there simply is none better than Ted.”
Barrett appreciates the honor and the sentiment behind it. The tribute will be a tangible reminder of what gives him the most gratification.
“What I’m proudest of is leaving the umpiring profession better than it was when I came in,” Barrett said. “I was able to show it’s OK to practice my faith on the job and to speak about it. Major League Baseball never said I couldn’t do that. People knew I was respectful and not being phony about my faith.”
Marcel Kerr officiates high school and college football, basketball, volleyball and softball. He lives in Chicago.
THAT’S AN ORDER DH Provides Biggest Wrinkle in Lineup Management
By George Demetriou
If you are particular about the type of paper calendar you have in your office, you have your work cut out finding what you want. There are a variety of formats available and stores tend to carry only one style. Lineup cards have multiple formats and the real problem is umpires have very little choice; they have to accept and
sometimes decipher what the coach hands them.
One of these days, there will be a lineup app and the coach will send the lineup electronically to the opponent and all umpires, but we are not yet there. Consequently, it is important umpires understand what must be on the lineup card and what may be there. The biggest challenge is figuring out where the DH, if any, is
batting and for whom. Except where noted, the material applies equally to NFHS, NCAA and pro rules.
The lineup cards are presented to the home plate umpire at the pregame meeting at home plate, which takes place five minutes prior to the game in NFHS and pro, and 10 minutes before in NCAA (NFHS 2-102; NCAA 4-4; pro 4.03). The batting orders become official when they are
It’s important for umpires who work NFHS games to understand substitutions to the lineup do not go into effect until the ball becomes live. At the NCAA and pro levels, once the umpire announces the change, as Dale Ducheny, Orange, Calif., does here, the substitution has taken effect.
exchanged, verified and accepted by the umpire-in-chief in NFHS. In NCAA and pro, that occurs when the umpire hands copies to each coach, which won’t happen until what NFHS requires takes place (NFHS 1-1-2; NCAA 4-4a; pro 4.03d).
Typical Mistakes
Umpires are expected to call attention to obvious errors and allow correction without penalty. Typical errors include two players with the same surname and no distinguishing initial, nine players not listed, and the pitcher omitted or 10 players listed when there is no DH indicated. Errors on jersey numbers are of no consequence and erroneous fielding positions do not have an impact except for the pitcher, and in NFHS only, the catcher (because of eligibility for a courtesy runner). The one slipup that is virtually impossible for an umpire to catch is when the coach gives the plate umpire a different
lineup than what he posts in the dugout. That’s a sure-fire way to have a batting-out-of-order infraction. Not listing a DH when nine players are listed is not an obvious error, but it certainly makes sense for an umpire to ascertain the coach’s intent regarding a DH. In pro, it is straight forward because there is only one option — DH for the pitcher or not. In NCAA, it is not mandatory that a team designate a hitter for the pitcher. If the starting pitcher is listed in the batting order, the pitcher automatically becomes the DH (7-2b3). The pitcher’s spot may be filled by one person or by two and then revert back to one. Umpires should always treat the lineup as 10 slots, even though there may only be nine players. As long as the substitution rule is adhered to, a team may alternate between nine and 10 players. The 10th slot remains until one of the acts that terminates the DH takes place.
THEY SAID IT
“We need to rank the umpires. Let the electronic strike zone rank the umpires. We need to have a conversation about the bottom — let’s call it 10% — whatever you want to declare the bottom is, and talk about relegating those umpires to the minor leagues.”
— Max Scherzer, Texas Rangers pitcher, on how he would like to see the ABS system implemented in MLB
SOURCE: @MCFARLAND_SHAWN FEED ON X
SIDELINE
Teen Finds Success With Umpire Channel
Soon after beginning his own umpiring career at 16 years old, Noah Katz created a social media channel that highlights why being an umpire is the “best part-time job” in response to the welldocumented shortage of high school umpires throughout the country.
It’s called The Umpire Channel. Katz posted his first video on social media on June 12, 2022. Dressed in a black belt and shoes, gray pants and a blue shirt and hat (his umpire outfit), Katz listed the top reasons for becoming an umpire in 39 seconds.
PlayPic A shows a 10-player lineup where the designated hitter is batting for the first baseman. PlayPic B shows a nine-player lineup featuring a player/DH. Both are legal options in NFHS. The designated hitter may only bat for the starting pitcher and all subsequent pitchers in NCAA and pro.
Now two years later, The Umpire Channel has over 300 videos, and 104.1K followers on TikTok, 41.1K followers on Instagram and 28.2K subscribers on YouTube.
“The majority of my content is about umpiring and refereeing, and I’ll also do some general baseball content,” Katz said.
“My real goal with The Umpire Channel is to get people interested in umpiring.”
SOURCE: THETELEGRAM.COM
TEST YOURSELF
In each question, decide which answer is correct for NFHS, NCAA or pro rules. Solutions: p. 81.
1. The home team’s head coach makes a trip to the mound and signals to the base umpire to bring in a relief pitcher. The umpire notices there is no one warming up in the bullpen. The relief pitcher comes jogging out of a building adjacent to the bullpen where he was warming up.
a. There is nothing wrong with this practice; it is simply one of the advantages of playing at home.
b. Remind the head coach relief pitchers should be warmed up in the designated bullpen area.
c. Do not allow that relief pitcher to enter the game.
2. With a runner on second and no one out, B2 attempts a sacrifice bunt. As B2 runs to first, he is outside the runner’s lane. F2 fields the bunt and looks toward first but doesn’t throw due to B2’s position.
a. B2 is safe at first base, R2 remains at third base.
b. B2 is safe at first base, R2 returns to second base.
c. B2 is out for interference, but R2 remains at third base.
d. B2 is out for interference and R2 returns to second base.
3. A fielder will be considered to have caught a ball in flight when:
a. He has secured the ball in his cap.
b. He has the ball in his glove for two steps before accidentally dropping the ball.
c. He has secured possession in foul ground and then steps with both feet into his dugout.
d. The batted ball in flight caromed off a runner and was secured by the fielder before touching the ground.
4. The catcher comes to his position wearing a skull cap (no ear flaps) and an unattached mask. Both pieces of gear are in good condition.
a. As long as the opposing coach doesn’t express concern, the catcher will be permitted to wear this combination.
b. This combination of equipment is legal as it is.
c. This combination of equipment is illegal. The catcher must wear a helmet-mask combination that meets NOCSAE standards.
In NFHS, the situation is complicated because there are two unique DH rules. A prep coach has the choice of a traditional DH, a player/DH or no DH; the version being used must be indicated when the lineup card is submitted and that cannot be later changed (3-1-4). The traditional rule is the same as the pro rule except the DH may bat for any player in the lineup, not just the pitcher. The DH is not associated with any defensive position but is associated with a spot in the batting order and is the 10th starting player, so he has re-entry eligibility. There are only two ways the DH can be terminated. The first is if the DH plays defense. The second is if the player for whom the DH is batting for bats for himself.
The player/DH rule allows the starting designated hitter to also be a starting defensive player. Utilizing the player/DH option, the player has two positions: defensive player (any position) and designated hitter. The team begins the game with nine starters — nine defensive players — one of whom also assumes the role of the designated hitter, in a nine-player lineup. In effect, there are 10 positions occupied by nine players. The team can ultimately go to 10 players and then also return to nine.
The defensive role may be substituted by any legal substitute, but only the starting DH can ever occupy the DH role. An offensive substitution (pinch hitter or pinch runner) for the DH terminates that role; the player in the defensive role for the DH cannot become the DH; however, the original player/DH may re-enter defensively one time and resume as the player/DH. The player/DH and any substitutes in the defensive role are locked in that spot in the batting order. Also, the starting player/DH and any substitutes can never be in the game defensively at the same time. Umpires must ascertain which type of DH is being used and should annotate their lineup card accordingly.
Changes
Once the umpire has a full understanding of both lineups, the
umpire must be wary of changes. Theoretically, all substitutions will be clearly announced, but it doesn’t always happen. The coach’s excuse will be he forgot or he told the player to inform the umpire and the player didn’t do what he was told. Not to worry, the rules account for lack of communication.
When a substitute enters the game without being announced, as long as the substitute is legal, there is no penalty. The substitute is considered to have entered the game when a batter takes his place in the batter’s box, a runner takes the place on base of the runner he has replaced, a pitcher takes his place on the rubber, or a fielder reaches the position usually occupied by the fielder he has replaced, and play commences. If a player goes to the mound and takes a warmup toss, he is legally in the game as a pitcher. In NFHS only, the substitute is not in the game until the ball becomes live following each of the preceding acts. Any play made by, or on, such unannounced substitute is legal (NFHS 3-1-1; NCAA 5-5g; pro 5.10j). The umpire must not neglect to annotate the lineup card.
Play 1: Jones is listed in the starting lineup as the second batter. In the top of first, Smith, who is not in the lineup, bats in the second spot and no notification is made to the umpire. Ruling 1: In NCAA and pro, Smith is an unannounced pinch hitter and is a legal substitute. It does not matter “Play” had not been called. The act of stepping into the box is equivalent to the coach properly notifying the umpire of a change. In NFHS, Smith is not a pinch hitter until the ball becomes live.
A pitfall for prep umpires is projected substitutions; they are not allowed (3-1-1). The only impact is on courtesy runners, so it is not an issue in NCAA and pro.
Play 2: In the top of the seventh, Brown is sent in to pinch hit for the catcher and walks. The coach sends in a courtesy runner for Brown. Ruling 2: Not allowed; Brown is not the catcher and cannot be the catcher until his team goes on defense.
George Demetriou, Colorado Springs, Colo., is the state’s rules interpreter.
Balancing Act
By Jon Bible
This column is dedicated to balance — two very different kinds. One is an integral part of being able to get in a position that optimizes our ability to make correct calls. The other is essential to getting the most out of our personal and umpiring lives.
Anyone who has played sports knows an athlete’s performance will suffer if that athlete doesn’t have good balance. It’s sufficiently important to batters, pitchers, quarterbacks, golfers and so on that, especially at higher levels, lots of time is devoted to it in coordination and other drills. Experts are often called in to help when performers are having difficulties in this area.
Balance is no less important in umpiring. Countless commentators have observed the steadier and more erect we are, and the more we operate in a relaxed, cruise-control manner, the better the odds of our seeing and processing action and translating that into correct ball/ strike, safe/out, fair/foul calls. Good balance is a vital part of being able to do this.
Throughout my career I saw many umpires with poor balance. Some plate umpires leaned over when calling pitches, with their weight on the balls of their feet. If you touched them on the back, they might have fallen forward. Those who worked with one leg behind the other (as in a scissors stance) sometimes put more pressure on their lead leg. Some leaned back when they assumed their stance, while others put most of their weight to one side or the other.
This can have many adverse effects. It can distort our perspective of the strike zone. It can also increase tension in some parts of our body, which can be exacerbated as the game moves on, and can cause us to come out of our stance too quickly or be jittery or moving around when the pitch comes in. It’s tough enough to have a consistent strike zone if we’re
steady and relaxed; it’s harder if we do things that cause us to be tense or unsteady.
If you watch MLB and other top-notch plate umpires, their heads are up, backs are straight and weight is evenly distributed on their feet. When they settle into their stance, they simply drop down as if preparing to sit on a box. They don’t lean forward, sideways or backward. No more weight is on one leg than the other. Earlier this year I watched an MLB spring training game on TV and the plate umpire smoothly dropped down, raised up, dropped down, etc., pitch after pitch, as if in a cylinder. That’s a good goal to strive for.
Balance is also important on the bases. We may have to move, maybe
a lot, to get in proper position to make a call, but once there we need to set up in a way that’s steady, upright and sufficiently balanced that we could stand on one leg without falling over. Don’t hunch over or crouch down; remember the old axiom, “Stand tall and see all.” Balance that’s out of whack can impair our ability to call plays on the bases as much as it can our ability to call pitches.
If you haven’t thought of this before, take stock of whether you have good balance behind the plate and on the bases. Maybe examine your stances in front of a mirror or ask someone how you look. It will improve your work.
As for the second type of balance, here’s a chapter out of my book. In
Finding a balanced position from which to consistently call pitches is an important attribute in umpiring. Travis Cannon, Ruston, La.
CASEPLAYS
Steps Matter
Play: F3 moves toward the dugout while tracking a foul fly ball. He secures the ball in his glove with one foot in live-ball territory and the other foot in the air above the first step into the dugout. Then he steps with his right foot on that first step of the dugout and his left foot remains in live-ball territory. Ruling: In NFHS, the catch is legal and the ball remains live because at least part of the fielder remained in contact with live-ball territory. In NCAA and pro, the catch is legal because the ball was secured prior to making contact with dead-ball territory. But once the fielder enters dead-ball territory, the ball is dead and any runners are awarded one base (NFHS 2-9-1, 2.9.1C Cmt., 5.1.1P; NCAA 6-1d1; pro 5.06b3C, 5.09a1, 5.12b6).
Improper Joy
Play: With R3 on third, B2 hits a double to center field that stays in play. After R3 scores, a teammate from the dugout comes out to celebrate with R3. There have been no previous instances of this nature in the game. Ruling: In NFHS and NCAA, the coach of the player’s team shall be warned the next offender on that team will be ejected (NFHS 3-3-1a Pen.; NCAA 5-2d). In pro, play continues (pro interp.).
Legal Flub
Play: At the beginning of the third inning, the head coach tells the plate umpire that Baker will bat for the fourth batter in the inning, Davis, if the inning lasts that long. Wilson comes to bat instead of Baker and does not tell the plate umpire. With no outs, he hits into a run-scoring double play. Ruling: Wilson is an unreported substitute. Upon discovery, the plate umpire will make the needed changes in the lineup (NFHS 3-11; NCAA 5-5g; pro 5.10j2).
Not so Fast
Play: Prior to the start of the game, Carter is listed as the P/DH for the game. In the third inning, the coach wants to bring in Jones as the pitcher but leave Carter in the DH role. Ruling: In NFHS and NCAA, a P/DH is allowed and this change is permissible (NFHS 3-14; NCAA 7-2b). In pro, a P/DH is not allowed (5.11a1).
1973, I was in the fourth year of a minor league umpiring career with a good shot at reaching the major leagues. I got married and decided to quit and go into college umpiring because I figured I’d be a prime candidate for divorce if I was gone several months of the year. I’d seen this happen in the big leagues, where some umpires were on their third or fourth wives.
What did I do? My college baseball career took off, meaning more games, and I did high school as well as Little League, high school football, and small college and high school basketball. I was working virtually six nights a week. After chapter meetings I went to a local watering hole and hung out with the guys. In short, I ended up being gone about as much as I would have been if I had stayed in pro ball. After a few years my wife asked if it would always be this way, with us hardly seeing any friends, or each other for that matter, or doing anything that didn’t involve sports. Wake-up call! I realized how selfish I had been, focusing only on working every game I could get and, hopefully, climbing the ladder while giving no thought to her needs and leaving her alone night after night. I quit basketball and high school baseball and later I gave up high school football as well.
I was lucky. My wife is independent, likes her privacy and is OK being alone (some of the time) so she hung in there; in fact, we recently celebrated our 50th anniversary. We also chose not to have kids; if we had, she would have been saddled with them, and that may have been a dealbreaker. I have friends who weren’t as fortunate. Three, now on their third marriages, will tell you officiating cost them their first two.
Especially if we’re starting out, it’s tempting to overload ourselves with games, particularly if we see signs of advancing. This is even truer now, with assigners all over the country begging for officials to work all sports. I implore those of you who are in relationships, and possibly have kids, and may be in this boat, to cut down on the number of games you work so you can strike a good balance between your personal and umpiring lives. You’ll enjoy umpiring more because you won’t be as inclined to suffer burnout, your spouse/partner/ kids will appreciate it and you won’t be as likely to become another divorce statistic.
Jon Bible, Austin, Texas, worked seven NCAA Division I College World Series. In 2019, he was inducted into the National College Baseball Hall of Fame in Lubbock, Texas.
Work the Working Area
One of the realities of the twoperson umpiring system is there will be situations in which the base umpire must sacrifice finding the optimal position for one play in order to leave open the possibility of creating the best look at two different situations.
A perfect example, as seen in the MechaniGram on the next page, is when there are runners on first and second, the base umpire is in the C position, and both runners break for the next base after the pitcher throws a pitch in the dirt (i.e., the dirt-ball read).
Because the throw from the
catcher at home plate to third base is the much shorter of his two options, and because this is the lead runner, our initial reaction as the base umpire in this scenario is often to take a couple hard steps toward the imaginary 45-foot line along the third-base foul line in order to set up the best possible look for a tag play at third base.
The problem with this occurs when the catcher decides to attempt to throw out the trail runner. It happens more than we might think. Despite the longer throw, R1 is not going to attempt to advance until he knows R2 is doing so. That delayed
reaction means there is often a better chance for the defense to throw out that runner at second base. And whose call is that to make? The one-and-only base umpire who is on the field.
As such, it is important for the base umpire in two-person mechanics to remember to stay in the working area and be prepared to make a ruling at either base — or, to be completely accurate, at any of the three bases, as a back pick into first base against R1 who hesitates and gets caught in no-man’s land may also come into play.
While you won’t be able to achieve the proximity you would like on any of these subsequent plays, staying in the working area and keeping your head on a swivel should help you at least find a suitable angle to be in position for making a ruling at whichever base the next action develops.
we are being watched
By Dan Ronan
Sports Betting Watchdog Keeps an Eye on Coaches, Players and Officials
In a Las Vegas office building, 75 employees of a relatively new company now called Integrity Compliance 360 or IC 360 (also doing business as U.S. Integrity) are closely watching sporting events worldwide. The company is growing rapidly because it believes the threat to the integrity of sports is expanding.
The public and sports officials need to learn more about IC 360. But to more than 200 clients — including all of the major sports leagues, the NCAA, college conferences, individual schools and 102 licensed sports book operators, including all of the major companies — this organization has become an essential partner in just five years of operation.
“Our mission is to identify abnormalities within the regulated sports betting space,” IC 360 CEO Matt Holt said. “We ensure that those abnormalities are then processed out to all the appropriate stakeholders and that we’re able to hand over robust reporting to the appropriate investigative agencies so that they can prosecute these issues. And we can have deterrence in that space.”
The industry has exploded since a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalized sports betting. The American Gaming Association said legal sports betting hit $120 billion in 2023, up 27.5% year-toyear, generating $10.9 billion in revenue. Thirtyeight states now allow sports wagering and 30 permit some form of online/mobile wagering.
During the 2024 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Final Fours, gamblers wagered an estimated $2.7 billion on the basketball tournaments through legal sportsbooks.
As legalized gambling grows, IC 360 stands to become one of the most important companies when it comes to ensuring the outcome of games or what takes place during them is not tainted by what is being bet.
These ex-law enforcement, cyber, artificial intelligence and betting industry experts are first to be aware of the betting line on the event, whether it be an obscure televised cornhole competition or major events such as the NCAA Final Four or the Super Bowl. If someone is betting on the event, IC 360 monitors the bets for suspicious activity to ensure there is no chance the event will be rigged.
For referees, umpires and anyone who can impact the outcome, their performance and the calls they do or do not make are subject to review, not just by the conference supervisor for officials or an unhappy coach or manager.
“As an official, you are the person of influence over that sport directly. And if you wager on that sport that you are officiating, even if it is not the same games, if you are a college basketball official wagering on college basketball, you are violating state laws,” Holt emphasized. “You’re not only subject to NCAA policy but also subject to state criminal prosecution. So that is the first thing that is important to know. No. 2 is that everyone is watching nowadays.”
The legalization of nationwide sports betting in 2018 has put increased focus on all parties involved in sporting events — including game officials — to make sure outcomes are not being influenced by wagering.
It is not only internet sleuths watching on their 82-inch televisions at home, or umpires and referees in the league’s New York City replay centers.
IC 360 focuses much of its attention on what is taking place with bettors. Do they have insider information about who officiates the game and how a call or no-call could move millions?
On its website, IC 360 says it focuses on four areas.
• Integrity monitoring detects and discourages fraud, match-fixing, game manipulation and other illegal and unethical behavior.
• PlayBook A.I. is a comprehensive online repository of gaming statutes, regulations and guidelines.
• ProhiBet is a comprehensive prohibited bettor platform with information security, realtime alerting and widespread industry engagement.
• Education. IC 360 employees routinely meet face-to-face and online with coaches, athletes, administrators and sports officials.
Making sure officials avoid associating with gamblers starts well before the season’s first game. Several leagues and conferences now have incorporated webinars and in-person presentations by IC 360 and law enforcement at preseason rules clinics.
Plus, reminders about being involved with gambling are sent out during the season. In arenas and stadiums, there are constant visible reminders in the officials’ dressing room that betting on games they officiate is illegal. Posters of MLB’s Rule 21 specifically outlining the penalties for gambling are prominent in every clubhouse and umpire dressing room.
The Pac-12 is one of IC 360’s partners. The conference’s vice president of officiating, David Coleman, served as the NFL’s director of officiating
“As an official, you are the person of influence over that sport directly.”
Matt Holt IC 360 CEO
and was the instant replay assistant for Super Bowl XL. He said ensuring his officials are always honest starts with the hiring process. Once hired, Coleman reinforces every week the need for officials to vigorously protect their reputations and avoid any appearance of bias or impropriety. Background, criminal and credit checks are routine and ongoing.
“You have to have people with integrity. We do check on them and we engage with our officials,” Coleman said, pointing out he receives reports weekly from IC 360 on an officiating crew’s overall performance and if anything appears questionable. “They review the game and analyze in terms of penalties and with their models determine if anything seemed out of line.”
Even with the deterrent factor and increased surveillance of officials, athletes’ and coaches’ concerns are growing about the increased influence gambling is having on sports.
“We have an annual clinic. U.S. Integrity comes in via Zoom and updates them on what they are looking for. So they are very aware and understand their responsibility to maintain their work within the rules and fair play and to avoid personally getting involved in any sort of betting activity on sports,” Coleman said.
Holt emphasized his organization is not watching every game or event being played, but they are aggregating real-time data from all states and 240 tribal jurisdictions where gambling is taking place.
He believes there are safeguards in place to protect officials from unproven allegations that somehow they are influencing a game with a call or no-call at a critical moment.
“When people lose money on their bets, they may blame a referee because they missed a call because of human error or
they had an abnormal game,” Holt said. “We can point to data and analytics showing that we do not think it was that abnormal. Maybe this referee missed a call, but the entirety of his season and the game don’t have any abnormalities, and by the way there is no correlated abnormal wagering activities on this event allows us to dismiss a lot of those reports we get from people who complain a referee is fixing things. We are sure 99.9% they are not.”
But that is not to say occasionally a series of calls doesn’t appear abnormal and there is an unusual amount of betting associated with that game.
NCAA President Charlie Baker recently called for a complete ban on so-called college sports prop bets, which are wagers unrelated to the contest’s final score. An example would be a side bet on an over/under on how many three-pointers a player might make in a game or how many singles an athlete might hit in a college baseball game.
“Sports betting issues are on the rise across the country with prop bets continuing to threaten integrity and competition and leading to student-athletes and professional athletes getting harassed,” Baker said.
“Being an official now with gambling entrenched in sports is a pretty challenging job,” Holt said. “We do not grade officials. That is not our job. We are looking for abnormal activity that is correlated with abnormal wagering activity.
“Here is an example. Sometimes you will get a prop bet, and it will be the first penalty in a football game will be a penalty on the offense or the defense. And on the first play, they call offsides, and it is one that is normally not called. And then we review the data, and right before the game there was a lot of wagering on the defense. That is a case where we will take a second look. The penalty did not look right and
the wagering was unusual, it was very abnormal.”
Since the 2007 scandal involving disgraced former NBA referee Tim Donaghy, who served time in federal prison for taking money from a professional gambler in exchange for inside tips on games, there has not been a verified case of a game official influencing the outcome of a game because of gambling.
But IC 360’s Holt says there has been at least one close call involving an unnamed NCAA D-I basketball referee, whom IC 360 suspected engaged in illegal activity.
“We had a college basketball official where we were able to identify the abnormal wagering activity of him and what we believed to be a co-conspirator who they were neighbors. They lived next to each other,” Holt said. “The betting activity was pretty abnormal. The neighbor had a previous felony conviction for insider trading. We had everything except the actual transaction of the bettor giving the money back to the official. We had suspicious activity.”
The official was never prosecuted and continues to work games. Still, now every time that official works a D-I game, IC 360 says it is closely monitoring every call he makes.
In another case, a highly respected NCAA official had games where there was abnormal betting activity and there were calls made that attracted the attention of IC 360, which in turn flagged the games and made the conference supervisor of officials aware of what may have taken place.
“We had some really abnormal betting on this game and the calls in the game correlated with the way the betting went,” Holt said. “We literally get hundreds of flags a month and we send out 15 to 20 alerts a month; 5% of all games come out with an alert and need further investigations. But we are not a law enforcement agency. It is not our job to arrest
people or issue subpoenas. It is our job to identify abnormal or suspicious wagering activities and report. We are the frontend alerting system. We collect the surface level information from licensed sports betting operators, teams, etc., and then hand it over to the state or tribal gaming commission, law enforcement or the FBI. We give them the information and then it is up to them.”
“In IC 360’s weekly summary of our games, and I watch it most closely, they report on notable items,” Coleman said. “Which is an analysis of the contest. And they let us know if the contest met or exceeded internal thresholds related to total number of penalty calls. Total number of penalty yards. And if there is anything that pops up at any of our games, we have a conversation about that when we meet with them on a weekly basis. The football operations staff, which I am a part of, we meet with them on a weekly basis.”
Still, there are unmistakable signs that gambling can and will impact games, and already, some are paying the price for their illegal involvement.
The NBA recently suspended for life former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter after an investigation found the 24-year-old had violated betting rules.
In 2023, University of
One of the biggest areas of interest for sports leagues and gambling watchdogs are “prop” bets, in which wagers are placed on specific actions during a contest and not just the final outcome.
Alabama head baseball coach Brad Bohannon was fired from his high-profile Southeastern Conference job. He is subject to a 15-year “show cause” hearing, making him unemployable in college sports until 2038. His co-conspirator, Bert Eugene Neff, recently pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice charges.
The NCAA said Bohannon violated specific wagering and ethical conduct rules by knowingly providing insider information to an individual he knew to be engaged in betting on an Alabama baseball game.
In both cases, IC 360 investigators found the betting abnormalities and tipped the NBA and NCAA about what appeared to be illegal activity.
“One of the things people always say when we say, ‘suspicious bets’ — how much does someone have to bet for it to be suspicious?” Holt said. “To be honest, there is no dollar amount. The biggest misnomer in sports betting is that we are looking at actual dollar amounts. We’re looking at a guy who normally bets $100 a game on football, wants to bet $25,000 on the first set of a tennis match, or a guy who normally bets a couple hundred bucks a game on baseball and basketball and wants to bet $100,000 on the first half of a softball game or a player prop.”
Earlier this year, several student-athletes at Iowa State University — including quarterback Hunter Dekkers, defensive lineman Isaiah Lee and wrestler Paniro Johnson — were implicated in a betting investigation conducted by the Iowa State Police. According to The Washington Post, the investigation resulted in some of the athletes taking plea deals while others had their cases dismissed. But in all of these instances, being associated with a gambling investigation derailed their promising sports careers. Nine athletes whose bets involved their own teams face a permanent loss of eligibility and the others were suspended for all or part of the season.
In the end, roughly 40 athletes received some sort of NCAA sanctions, based on the evidence that surfaced during the investigation.
Attorneys for the athletes and others say the state’s investigation was mishandled and that law enforcement was overzealous in pursuing the case.
Holt says his organization and others that are now entering this space are filling a much-needed gap, but more federal and state government oversight is needed, laws need to be on the books to serve as a deterrent, and there needs to be much more education about the threat.
The company says as it expands, plans are in the works to add more employees with specific expertise, including former officials who understand the nuance of the games that are being monitored.
“This is something we are looking to add as we expand,” he said. “We want to add ex-officials who worked at the highest levels. We are looking to add those that can help us when we have those rare instances where something happens and we say, ‘Hmm, let’s take a second look at it.’ It
U.S. Legal Sports Betting
Some form of legalized sports betting is now available in 38 U.S. states.
would be wonderful to have that domain expertise that a high-level official could bring.”
Holt also believes similar laws that were put in place in the late 1920s and early 1930s, with the creation of the Securities and Exchange Commission to regulate Wall Street and the wild stock speculation that was in part responsible for the Great Depression, may be needed when it comes to sports betting.
“Recent history has told us that nobody is immune,” Holt said. “It’s the players, coaches, officials, people with access to inside information, like trainers and equipment managers; with that money, there is always a temptation, not to mention the obvious thing, like extortion. You get some who are jammed up in a particular area, and they are financially compromised. No sport is immune. We need the right regulatory framework in place to get the right data, and you need a deterrent to try and prevent illegal things from happening.”
Coleman and Holt acknowledge officials have never been better trained
and are under more scrutiny than ever. Still, they say the possibility of a major scandal involving a referee or umpire fixing or influencing a sporting event is increasing.
“I would think (that’s true), and that goes back to when it became visible and known, with the NBA situation some years ago,” Coleman said.
“But with the proliferation of gambling on sports throughout the country, as we have seen it increase significantly over the last four or five years, you know, it is always a threat to, and it is something that has to be watched very closely.”
“We do not have enough deterrence in place yet,” Holt said. “I do not think we are going to catch them all. With what we have, we are doing the best we can, and the results are showing the system is working. But the one in place now is not perfect, and we have to evolve it to be better and face new, more sophisticated threats.”
Dan Ronan is an award-winning Washington, D.C.-based journalist. He is a retired NCAA baseball umpire and small college and high school basketball referee.
MORE PAGES MORE MECHANICS MORE INSTRUCTION
The official NFHS Football Game Officials Manual produced jointly by the editors of both Referee and the NFHS! Loaded with dozens of mechanics scenarios and featuring Referee’s exclusive PlayPic® and MechaniGram® graphics, this new resource is a must have for high school football officials. Mechanics are broken down for crews of 4, 5 and 7 as well as providing detailed coverage for all situations.
YOU’VE NEVER SEEN A GAME OFFICIALS MANUAL LIKE THIS ONE!
COORDINATOR: JOHN VAN DE VAARST
DOGSO, SPA AND CARDS IFAB Law Changes for 2024-25
By John Van de Vaarst
The IFAB approved several changes to or clarifications of the Laws of the Game at its 138th Annual General Meeting, hosted March 2 by the Scottish Football Association at Loch Lomond, Scotland. The changes are presented here in approximate order of importance.
Fouls and Misconduct (Law 12)
Handball offenses that are not deliberate, and for which penalties
are awarded, are to be treated the same way as other fouls that are an attempt to play the ball or challenge on the ball.
The IFAB explained, “Nondeliberate handball offenses are usually the result of a player attempting to play fairly, so when a penalty kick is awarded for such offenses, the same philosophy should apply as for offenses (fouls) which are an attempt to play the ball or a challenge for the ball, i.e., DOGSO offenses result in a yellow card and SPA offenses result in no card.
“Deliberate handball remains a red-card offense when a penalty kick is awarded, as it is similar to holding, pulling, pushing, no possibility to play the ball, etc.”
Play 1: A1 is on the attack and attempts to pass the ball to A2, who has only two defenders in the vicinity. The ball strikes B3’s arm, whose back is to A1, but the arm is not in a natural position. Ruling 1: The referee stops play for the handball. The referee must still consider whether to caution B3 for stopping a promising attack
Under new IFAB rules for 2024-25, handball offenses that are not deliberate, and for which penalties are awarded, are to be treated in the same way as other fouls. If the situation warrants a caution (yellow card), the card should still be administered.
even though the handball was not deliberate.
The Player’s Equipment (Law 4)
The shinguard requirement has been modified so players are responsible for the size and suitability of their shinguards, which remain a compulsory part of their equipment.
Despite the update to the Law, referees must ensure player safety. Also, referees should determine if there are any local league requirements on the appropriate size or manufacture of shinguards prior to the match. Manufacturers are currently developing mini shinguards that, while legal under the updated Laws of the Game, may not satisfy local requirements. These types of shinguards provide only a minimum of protection. Again, especially at the youth level, safety is always No. 1 on the priority list.
The Players (Law 3)
There were two changes involving players and substitutions.
The first change deals with concussions. Additional permanent concussion substitutions will be permitted to ensure player safety. A player with symptoms of a concussion may be replaced by one of the permanent concussion substitutes. This will permit additional substitutions if a team has used its designated number of substitutes. This only applies to leagues that limit the number of substitutes during the match.
The second change requires each team to have a designated captain who wears an arm band to clearly indicate their status as the captain. Note: This change also impacts requirements for player equipment outlined in Law 3.
This will be especially useful in the areas where trials are being conducted that only the captain may approach the referee. It is also beneficial for the referee to easily identify the captain and seek assistance on match control matters. If the captain is replaced, the arm band is to be given to another field player.
The Penalty Kick (Law 14)
Part of the ball must touch or overhang the center of the penalty mark, and encroachment by outfield players will be penalized only if it has an impact. The first portion of this change ensures the ball is on the penalty spot. The ball should not be placed on the edge of the penalty spot with the majority of the ball in front of the spot.
The second portion deals with encroachment by players other than the kicker. If an offender steps over the penalty line before the kick is taken and the ball enters the goal directly, the kick should not be retaken and the player is not cautioned. If a defender steps over the penalty line before the kick is taken and the ball is shot directly over the crossbar, the kick is not retaken and the defender is not penalized. In both cases, the
SURVEY SAYS …
The 2023 National Officiating Survey powered by Referee.com asked soccer officials how they received their instruction.
QUICKTIP
After the game, take some time to ask yourself these questions: Did I enforce the rules? Did I protect the players? Did I correctly deal with reckless and careless tackles? Did I punish any cheating? Did I correctly deal with dissent? If you can answer them all with an unqualified yes, feel good about doing a professional and competent job. However, most games have at least one situation you wish you could take back or do over again. In these cases, take time to reflect on what went wrong in each situation and create a strategy to learn and improve. We are often our own harshest critic.
TOOLS
the official awards a penalty kick and a yellow card.
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Because the defender did not attempt to play the ball in the penalty area, this is a foul that stops a promising attack and
TEST YOURSELF
In each of the following, decide which answer or answers are correct for NFHS, NCAA or IFAB rules/Laws. Solutions: p. 81.
1. A1 runs with the ball into the opponent’s penalty area (one-on-one situation). B2 catches up with A1 but has no possibility to play the ball so B2 pushes A1 to deny an obvious goal-scoring opportunity.
a. Penalty kick.
b. Penalty kick and caution B2 since it was in the penalty area.
c. Penalty kick and eject B2 since there was no attempt to play the ball.
2. Team A is awarded a direct free kick close to the opponent’s penalty area. The referee informs the attacking players to wait for the whistle before restarting play to ensure the opponents are 10 yards from the kick. A1 takes a free kick before the referee blows the whistle.
a. Re-kick and possible caution to A1.
b. Allow play to continue.
c. Indirect free kick for team B.
3. While competing for the ball, A1 pretends to have been fouled, falls to the ground in the middle of the field and grabs the ball with a hand.
a. Handball and award a direct free kick for team B.
b. Handball and caution A1 for unsporting behavior.
c. Handball, caution A1 for a deliberate handball and issue a second caution for unsporting behavior.
4. A1 is a substitute ready to enter the field of play. During a stop in play, the substitution is allowed. Prior to the referee beckoning A1 onto the field, A1 uses profane language directed at the assistant referee.
a. Caution A1 and allow the substitution.
b. Eject A1 and team A removes a player from the field.
c. Eject A1 but team A does not play short.
offending player did not have any impact on the result of the penalty kick.
Play 2: Team A is awarded a penalty kick. B1 encroaches just before the kick is taken. A2 takes the kick and the ball goes over the crossbar. Ruling 2: The match is restarted with a goal kick and there is no punishment to B1.
Play 3: A1 is about to take a penalty kick. As A1 is moving forward both B2 and A3 encroach. A1 shoots and scores. Ruling 3: Since there was no impact on the penalty kick, the goal is awarded and the match is restarted with a kickoff for team B.
The Field of Play (Law 1)
This change deals with goalline technology (GLT). An indication a goal has been scored can be communicated via the referee’s earpiece/headset.
Other Changes
In addition to the Law changes, IFAB also approved several trials that may be incorporated below the top two tiers. As noted, the captain must wear a proper arm band. In one of the trials, only the captain will be able to approach the referee in certain situations.
The introduction of coolingoff periods to allow the referee to require teams to go to their own penalty area. This could be used if both teams are about to have a significant altercation. The referee would be permitted to have the players separated for a period of time.
Another trial increases the length the goalkeeper may possess the ball from six to eight seconds. This allows for the goalkeeper to better position themselves when releasing the ball.
The last trial deals with video review. The IFAB decided to extend FIFA’s trial where the referee publicly announces the final decisions and the reasoning after a video assistant referee (VAR) review or lengthy VAR check to other competitions. Participating competitions will require permission from the IFAB and will have to commit to following FIFA’s refereeing and technology guidelines.
John Van de Vaarst, Ellicott City, Md., is a NISOA National Clinician, National Assessor and former State Level USSF Referee and Assessor. He is Referee’s soccer coordinator.
Timing and Substitutions Lead NCAA Rule Changes
By John Van de Vaarst
The NCAA Soccer Rules Committee met in late January 2024 and recommended several rules changes that were subsequently approved by the Playing Rules Oversight Panel. The changes are presented in approximate order of importance.
Stopping the Clock
(3.8.8 and 6.3.5.4)
In all three divisions of men’s and women’s soccer, the clock will be stopped on all substitutions
made by the team leading the game or if the score is tied in the last 15 minutes of the second half and in overtime periods.
Previously the clock was stopped during the final five minutes of the game. This change will allow for more playing time and diminish the opportunities for manipulation of the clock.
Play 1: The horn sounds for a substitution. There is 15:03 remaining in the game and the referee signals for the substitute(s) to enter. Ruling 1: The clock does not stop since the substitution
began with more than 15 minutes remaining in the game. However, if the horn sounds at the 15-minute mark and the referee does not approve the substitution until 14:55 remaining in the game, the clock is stopped.
Ball Pressure (2.1.3)
The requirements for the proper pressure of a ball have been changed to indicate the ball must be inflated to the pressure as indicated by the manufacturer. This eliminates potential for over inflation and possible injuries. The previous rule allowed for a range of pressures. The referee team should verify the pressure of the game balls prior to the game and eliminate any potential problems before the game begins. Should the ball become deflated or defective during the game, a drop ball to the team who had last possession will restart the game after the ball has been replaced. If the drop ball is awarded to the defense and in the penalty area, the ball will be dropped to the goalkeeper. Remember all players must be five yards away when the ball is dropped.
Postseason Overtime (7.2.1)
During the postseason, when overtime rules apply, the sudden victory (golden goal) is now reinstated. During the past season, there were very few instances when the team scored upon in overtime came back to win the game. Therefore, requiring teams to play more minutes, especially in instances when there is a game the next day, is not in the best interest of the student-athlete.
Game Roster (3.2.1
and 6.3.4)
Rosters must now be presented with the starting players designated to the opposing coach, referee and scorer 15 minutes before game time. The copy given to the referee will not have card information included. Previously the requirement was 30 minutes. Not listing card information on the referee’s copy eliminates any possibility of the referee reacting differently to a
5 MINUTES WITH STEVE TAYLOR
Resides: Charlottesville, Va.
Experience: Onfield MLS official for 17 seasons, from the inaugural season of 1996 through the end of 2012. Served Professional Soccer Referees Association (PSRA) as a member, vice president, president and in 2020 hired to be the firstever executive director. Stepped down at the end of 2022 in order to focus more on family and the real estate business he owns and operates.
REFEREE: When was PRO formed and what was the rationale for creating it?
TAYLOR: The Professional Referee Organization (PRO) was created around 2012 in a joint venture between Major League Soccer (MLS), the United States Soccer Federation (USSF, U.S. Soccer), and the Canadian Soccer Association (CSA). PRO was formed initially to hire, train and manage officials working in MLS. The role has expanded now to include those officials working in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), the United Soccer League (USL) and potentially others.
The rationale was MLS wanted to be able to publicly have a separate entity “in charge of” the MLS officials in terms of assignments, evaluations, training, development. Prior to the formation of PRO, officials were assigned to work games very much on an ad-hoc basis, were independent contractors with very little in the way of organized, league-specific training, and had very little in the way of expectations about how often they’d work, what the path for advancement was, or if/when the next game assignment would come.
REFEREE: What was your role in the creation and expansion of PSRA?
TAYLOR: I’ve been a member since Day One. As I became more involved first as vice president, then president, and ultimately as executive director, my role has been significant. I was the lead negotiator for the first-ever CBA ahead of the 2014 MLS season, and involved in negotiating the renewal CBA that took effect ahead of the 2019 MLS season.
REFEREE: How many members does PSRA have and what leagues does it cover?
TAYLOR: PSRA has over 200
members working in all of the professional leagues — MLS, NWSL, USL (various levels), and MLS Next Pro.
REFEREE: What are the requirements to join PSRA? Does someone have to join in order to officiate within the leagues covered?
TAYLOR: PSRA has a membership committee that actively recruits new members, and periodically puts forth names of officials who are interested in joining, along with a recommendation for approval to the PSRA Board of Directors. It is not a requirement to join PSRA in order to officiate in these leagues, but nearly all who do are members of PSRA. Labor unions have “bargaining units” and PSRA is sort of the umbrella over the two bargaining units we have today — one for the MLS officials and the other for the PRO2 group who work in NWSL, USL and MLS Next Pro.
REFEREE: What types of training does PRO provide for its employees?
TAYLOR: PRO, at PRO’s sole discretion, is responsible for training all of their employees within the framework of the collective bargaining agreement.
REFEREE: Where do you view the future of officiating as it relates to PRO?
TAYLOR: Today all of these things and so many more are specifically defined in the CBA. We have a solid number of officials who are able to do this job as their primary or sole source of income for their families. There are benefits such as health insurance, 401k, vacation time, etc.
The bottom line is that being a professional soccer referee in North America today is exponentially more professional than prior to the formation of PRO and unionization of our PSRA officials.
Former PSRA executive director discusses the relationship between PRO and PSRA.
CASEPLAYS
Substitute Timing
Play: The ball goes into touch and team A is awarded a throw-in. The score is 2-1 in favor of team A and there is 5:02 left in the game. A properly reported substitute for team A is waiting to enter the game. After the horn sounds and the player is beckoned onto the field, the clock is now showing 4:56 so the referee stops the clock for the substitution. Ruling: For games played under NCAA or NFHS rules this is an improper decision. The horn sounded for the substitution when there were more than five minutes to play. The clock is only stopped during the last five minutes if a substitute is made for the team in the lead. For IFAB the clock would continue and the referee would have the option to add time if it was felt there was time wasting involved (NFHS 7-4-3; NCAA 3.7.2; IFAB 7.3).
SPA or Advantage
Play: B1 pulls A2’s shirt to stop a promising attack (SPA). The referee applies the advantage because A2 gets free of B1 and runs with the ball into the penalty area. B1 catches up to the attacker, challenges for the ball in a reckless manner, and fouls the attacker. This did not deny an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. Ruling: The referee awards a penalty kick for team A. B1 is cautioned for the reckless challenge in the penalty area. There is no yellow card for SPA because advantage was applied and the promising attack continued (NFHS 12-9-2d4; NCAA 12.4.2.8; IFAB 12.3).
Fair Charge
Play: B1 and A2 physically challenge each other simultaneously for the ball, using shoulders and upper arms that are kept close to the body (sideto-side contact, but not careless, reckless or excessively forceful). The ball is close to both players where both can touch it by stretching out their legs. Neither player uses the elbows to create excessive force. Ruling: The referee allows play to continue. This incident satisfies all the requirements of a fair charge (NFHS 12-5-1; NCAA 12.1.10.1; IFAB 12.1).
situation if the number of cards the player has already received is known.
Video Review (5.7.3)
The 2023 experimental video review rule was used by eight Division I conferences. Out of 80 reviews, 17 decisions were changed based on the review. The panel approved expanding video review.
If video review equipment is available, referees can initiate reviews on the following plays:
• Potential penalty kick situations.
• Potential straight red card situations. (An ejection for two yellow cards is not reviewable.)
• Any potential offside violation involving goal-scoring opportunities.
• Denial of obvious goal-scoring opportunities.
Play 2: A player is tripped very close to the edge of the penalty area and falls into the penalty area. The referee and assistant referee are not clear as to whether the foul occurred outside the penalty area or on the penalty area line. Ruling 2: A video review of this situation would be permissible.
Play 3: A1 is on the attack just outside the penalty area. B2 is running on a diagonal to get back into a defensive position. B3, the goalkeeper, comes out of the goal and pushes A1 off of the ball. The referee is unclear if B2 could assist with defense or if this was a DOGSO situation created by B1. Ruling 3: This would be appropriate for video review.
Play 4: A1 is on the attack and B2, who already has a yellow card, makes a reckless slide tackle attempt and fouls A1. The referee is unclear if the tackle warrants a second yellow card and ejection. The referee stops the game for a video review. Ruling 4: This would be an improper use of the video review options.
Substitutions — D-I only (3.4.3 and 3.5.1 exception) This rule change only applies to Division I men’s soccer. No
re-entry is allowed in either half once a player leaves the game via substitution in Division I men’s soccer. Additionally, teams will have six moments at which they can make substitutions in a game, and substitutions can occur during any stoppage of play. Teams will be awarded an additional moment to make substitutions in overtime during the postseason.
Current substitute exceptions for goalkeepers, injury caused by an opposing player who was cautioned or ejected, bleeding injury, blood on the uniform, concussion evaluation and a permanent medical condition will not count as a moment as long as no other substitutions are made at the same time by that team. If a coach has used all their moments and there is an injury not covered by the current exceptions, the team will play short. An official NCAA substitution card will be created to assist with substitution moments. Coaches will hand the card to an official before the substitution(s) will be beckoned on the field. The committee felt this change will eliminate players being cycled in and out of the game and the flow of the game being disrupted and playing time being lost.
Substitution rules remain the same in all other levels of men’s and women’s soccer, where players can re-enter the game once in the second half and can substitute only on goal kicks, their own team’s throw-in, their own team’s corner kick, after a goal has been scored or when a player has received a caution.
The referee team must be thoroughly aware of the re-entry procedures. Only in the second half is a player allowed to re-enter.
Play 5: During the second overtime period, A1 leaves the game for substitute A2. Approximately three minutes later, A1 goes to the scorer’s table to re-enter the game. Ruling 5: Not allowed. There is no re-entry during overtime periods for field players. Goalkeepers are permitted to re-enter during the second half of play and both the first and second overtime periods.
VISIONINACTION
Fighting to Keep You Protected
As sports officials, we are in positions of authority to provide enforcement during emotion-filled athletic competitions. That’s why NASO embraces legislation that specifically identifies the men and women who referee, umpire and judge those contests as a special class – similar to laws that are often passed providing special protections for teachers or police officers.
NASO collaborates directly with officials and state legislatures around the country to enact such laws. While the scope of state legislation varies, sports officials should be able to perform their duties without the threat of personal injury, administrative hearings or litigation because of their game calls. State legislators can show support for those who officiate by passing laws to protect them.
“We must always strive to improve safety for sports officials, as well as address the major source of the problem, which is bad fan behavior,” says NASO President Bill Topp. “Legislation establishing a special protected status for sports officials is an important and significant step toward improving working conditions for officials and keeping the pipeline open for new officials to enter this field.”
In addition to the grassroots work with state legislatures, NASO publishes a “Legislative Scorecard” every year. This online map displays the states that have passed laws dealing with liability issues, independent contractor status, and assault protection. Officiating
assault and harassment laws are currently in 22 states including 20 with criminal laws and two with civil statutes. Seventeen states have limited liability legislation, and 15 states have independent contractor laws. In addition, three states – Idaho, Washington, and Missouri – have passed resolutions that support officials.
Since 1984 when NASO first submitted model legislation regarding assaults against officials, and legislators have used such models to construct their own legislative bills. Each state handles legislation differently, and it is up to the local constituency to manage the process effectively, but in a nutshell, it generally goes something like this:
Discuss the issue at your local officials association and get buy-in from your group.
Circulate a petition advocating for such legislation within your association and also with other officials associations throughout your state.
Gather and present information about incidents in your state that apply, such as officiating assaults.
Contact and meet with your state legislators to present information that may help pass legislation.
Maintain focus on the topic and follow up. Take time to gather more support and pursue legislation at the next opportunity.
Research where your state stands with NASO’s Legislative scorecard. Go to naso.org/scorecard to view your state's current legislation status.
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INSIDE OUT
A CREW OF VOLLEYBALL OFFICIALS HAD A ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME EXPERIENCE LAST AUGUST.
On a warm, late August 2023 evening, 92,003
rabid fans filled Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Neb., as the homestanding Huskers faced off against visiting Omaha. Selling out Memorial Stadium is nothing new for the University of Nebraska. It holds a streak of 396 consecutive sold out football games, dating back to 1962. But this particular evening was something unique. You see, it wasn’t the Nebraska football team taking the field in front of a record-breaking crowd. It was the women’s volleyball team,
BY BRAD TITTRINGTON
a team accustomed to playing inside in front of a packed house of 8,309 fans at the Devaney Center. In order to pull off something like this, it would take a massive amount of work and coordination, as well as a lot of luck from Mother Nature.
For Big Ten coordinator of volleyball officials Marcia Alterman, accomplishing something of this magnitude could be summed up with one word.
“Fear,” she said. “Unadulterated fear.”
For Alterman, all she could initially think about were all the things that could potentially go wrong from an officiating perspective. Nebraska had put a lot of money and effort into advertising this event and 92,000 fans would be on hand to set a world record for the largest crowd ever to attend
an outdoor women’s sporting event, and Alterman didn’t want to have to be the reason the event was ultimately canceled. Rain, lightning and humidity are generally not things with which indoor volleyball officials have to contend. But on this night, all three of those things could be catastrophic and would lead to the event being pushed into the Devaney Center, leaving roughly 84,000 fans unable to see the match.
The weather that particular Wednesday evening ended up not being an issue, and the sellout crowd got the chance to make history.
SELECTING A CREW
The first order of business to make this event a success involved putting together a crew of officials. There certainly wasn’t a shortage of officials willing to work the prestigious event, but
INSIDE OUT
Alterman knew she needed a crew that could handle the responsibility of such an event.
“I knew I needed a very strong crew to say the least,” she said. “I knew I needed to be there to help them with any difficult decisions that came up that evening. Who do I have my utmost faith in that can carry this off? And not just be strong, but the other factor I pondered, I needed people who could be flexible and go with the flow because there were so many unknowns. I needed people who could handle that and not get flustered and frustrated.”
Alterman selected Suzanne Lowry as the first referee for the match and to lead the crew. Lowry has a long career of refereeing volleyball outdoors. She is the head referee for AVP (the premier U.S. pro beach volleyball league) and has
refereed beach volleyball on six of the seven continents. Lowry was actually refereeing in Brazil when Alterman initially reached out to talk about the match. When Alterman asked Lowry via text (the cost to talk internationally via cell was too expensive) if she would be interested in working the match, Lowry couldn’t believe she was selected.
“I literally had to retype my response three times and not put any expletives in it,” she said. “I was so excited. It was a dream. I think I said, ‘Yes, yes, 1,000 times yes.’ I would be absolutely honored and thrilled to be R1 in this match, be any role in this match. But to be R1 in particular, it was unbelievable.”
For the second referee position, Alterman selected Bill Stanley, who along with his NCAA officiating accolades also serves as the USAV indoor
volleyball rules interpreter. Stanley had worked Nebraska many times in the Devaney Center, but this opportunity would be much different.
Being from Nebraska, Stanley thought there might be a chance to be selected, but he was prepared in case he didn’t get the call.
“I was already planning on going to the match if I wasn’t assigned another match that day,” he said. “I was going to try to get tickets just to be in the stands for that match. Just to say I was going to be there was going to be fun. Getting to work the match was an honor and I was definitely excited.”
Stanley had been inside Memorial Stadium before, but only as a runner crossing the finish line for the Lincoln half-marathon. This time, he would be center stage with the world watching.
For the line judges, Alterman selected Nathan Wagner and Sarah Myers. The assignment came as a complete surprise to both of them. Wagner, who grew up in the state, cut his teeth working many Nebraska matches, but never thought he would get this chance to be a part of history.
“I was in disbelief, to be honest,” Wagner said. “When I heard that the match was announced, you kind of hold out hope you can get that assignment but I didn’t think I would have that opportunity. For me, it was extra special. As a kid growing up in Nebraska, Memorial Stadium is something special to begin with.”
For Myers, the invitation came as a complete shock. She had hoped that being from nearby Iowa and in close proximity to Nebraska might give her an opportunity to be selected, but never anticipated the call would come.
From left, Nathan Wagner, Bill Stanley, Suzanne Lowry, Marcia Alterman, Sarah Myers and Brett Myers pose prior to the match at Memorial Stadium.
“It was kind of a shock,” she said. “I had to go back and realize, ‘Oh yeah, that is the stadium match,’ because it wasn’t marked that way (on the assigning site). I was pleasantly surprised and excited.”
It was also extra special for Myers as her husband, Brett, was selected as the R3 for the match. That assignment meant Brett would be at the scorer’s table handling all video review challenges and serve as a backup in case any of the officials happened to go down because of heat or humidity.
“I was courtside. I was involved in the match,” Brett said. “But being able to see the match as a spectator as well as an official, I got to take in a little more than the officials on the court. It was wild. I got to watch my wife work. It was an extra special moment for me. Nothing but pride.”
MATCH BEFORE THE MATCH
Working an indoor match outside was new for everyone involved. It required multiple logistical meetings between event staff and Alterman as well as Alterman with the officiating crew. Those meetings made it possible for everyone involved to ask questions and answer the “what ifs” so everyone would be prepared on match day. One thing that also helped the crew was the ability to work a match before the Nebraska/ Omaha match. Earlier that day, there was an exhibition match between Nebraska-Kearney and Wayne State College played on the same court, which gave the crew an opportunity to work through some nerves as well as adjust to the outside playing conditions.
THE FLYOVER AND ANTHEM
“Getting to work an outside match, which had never been done in that capacity, it’s hard to describe in words,” Sarah Myers said. “We are getting ready for
the match, national anthem singer is going, they do the flyover, I kind of get a glimpse of the crowd and I looked over at Suzanne and we both had tears in our eyes. I knew the flyover was coming — Nathan, being a police officer, knew about it — but it kind of caught me off guard. That was probably the coolest moment for me. Kind of set the tone for the match.”
THE RECORD SETTING MATCH
Nebraska ultimately won easily, 3-0 (25-14, 25-14, 25-13). For Alterman, she was thrilled the day went off without any hitches and the fear she felt when the event was officially announced turned to relief when it was over.
“We were not a factor in any way, shape or form,” she said. “We got to just go out there and do our jobs and enjoy the moment. I kept saying to myself and anyone who would listen, ‘If we can just get someone to serve the dang volleyball. Once someone serves the ball, everything will be OK because everyone will fall into their roles.’”
For Lowry, one moment during the match stood out that she will always remember. It was not just being a part of a record-breaking event, but what that event meant to the players and to the sport of volleyball and its future.
“Lexi Rodriguez from Nebraska was on my right side in the second set,” Lowry said. “I do a good scan between rallies. Lexi is down and she is ready to play defense. She is down in her defensive position and she is looking up toward the crowd and just has this look of awe and a huge smile on her face. Even in the middle of the second set, she is taking in the moment. That is what that match was about. It was about volleyball, the women on the court, this incredible sport that we are able to be a part of and Nebraska administration and fans proving to the world what this sport can be.”
Brad Tittrington is an associate editor for Referee. He referees college and high school volleyball, umpires D-I softball and officiates women’s college and high school basketball and high school football.
Suzanne Lowry was selected as R1 for the landmark matchup at Memorial Stadium.
ROTATION ANALYSIS PARALYSIS A Basic Breakdown of the 5-1 Offense
By Rick Brown
Charting rotations is a hard-earned skill, not something newer officials have had time to develop. High school officials who don’t also referee college or USAV — and/or have not played organized volleyball — tend to have had fewer matches to develop this ability.
If the goal is to offer quality officiating to the teams, referees have to devote the time to developing a comfort zone for knowing whether players are legally positioned on the court and to know which are front and back row for each rally.
In all rule codes, the second referee (R2) checks lineups for both teams before each set using a lineup card (NFHS only) or the lineups submitted by the head coach. The first referee (R1) gets to see lineups for the first set only. How do both referees best fulfill their responsibilities for awareness of whether players are legally positioned before each rally? It takes a lot of study aided by techniques like memorizing player numbers and observing hitting drills during warmups to get a feel for who will be setting for each team, their pin hitters, middle blockers and right-side hitters. When warmup tops reveal numbers, referees can try to link player numbers to their respective roles along with other clues such as player height and build, color of hair or shoes and memorable number combinations in each lineup, all to lock in useful information for charting positions.
Experienced referees tend to develop approaches that work for them, often using a combination of techniques. There is no one right way. A referee may feel a bit overwhelmed with liberos and substitutes coming and going, perhaps preferring to be the R1 since the R2 has more to worry about in terms of receiving team alignments. Why do we care? Well, the rules tell us to care. Every rule code includes the requirement that players be in proper
Referees must track player alignments and know that all players are in the proper position at the time of the serve. Marivic Hokanson, Long Beach, Calif., takes a moment to scan her side of the court as she authorizes service to make sure all of the players are in the proper position.
positions relative to each other at the moment of service contact. If only they would wear neon signs to reveal what position they are supposed to be in.
Coaches are not interested in making it easy as the receiving team in where they choose to position their talent on the court. They want their players in a variety of positions for both defensive and offensive purposes, and it’s the job of the referees to ensure players are not clearly out of position in relationship to their teammates in adjacent zones.
This article assumes a grasp of the rules governing player positioning and an awareness that both referees are responsible for tracking team alignments. This article will focus on a 5-1 offense (as explained later) to show how rotation analysis can help referees track alignments, including understanding how player roles (setters, pin and right-side hitters, middles/MBs, liberos, etc.) connect to positioning. Recollection of player numbers is a key to remembering which players are front/back row.
Regardless of other techniques, rotation awareness can assist in knowing where everyone should be leading up to service contact. Things start with identifying where each setter is and should be positioned for each rally when that team is serving or receiving. Before a serve is authorized, in the short time referees have to scan both teams, it starts with nailing setter positions, first front or back row. “Setter awareness” is key to where teammates should be positioned for the next rally when the receiving team rotates clockwise.
Happily, there tend to be fewer
challenges when a team is serving since serving teams are not typically trying to hide where players are positioned in terms of front or back row. Teams may push the envelope, however, in attempting to get the setter to the optimal setting position to run the offense and to get attackers to their hitting positions upon service contact.
While R2s are responsible for position faults by the receiving team, they also scan the serving team to identify setter position and anomalies. The R2 then focuses on the receiving team, which is more challenging in charting where everyone is positioned unless a team is in a “vanilla” receive formation.
Coaches position their primary passers to maximize skills and coverage with consideration to getting attackers into hitting positions and setters efficiently to the target position between zones two and three without interfering with their passers. Liberos, outside hitters, defensive specialists or opposites are typically primary passers, and they position themselves for maximum court coverage. This may push other players into tight positions on the court to accommodate the coach’s defensive and offensive schemes.
In a traditional 5-1 offense, there is one setter/S, two outside hitters/OH, two middle blockers/MB, an opposite/ OPP and a libero/L. In the back row, some teams sub in a defensive specialist/DS for the OPP. Rotations are numbered based on setter position/ zone to start each rally. In Rotation 1, the setter is right back (zone 1) as the current or last server. When rotation moves the setter to center back/zone
QUICKTIP
After conducting the coin flip at the beginning of the match or before the deciding set, place the coin in your front pants pocket of the side that will be serving first. This practice will help you remember which team will serve first in the set.
DID YOU KNOW?
In May, the International Volleyball Hall of Fame (IVHF) announced its 2024 inductees. Included in the nine-member class is Sue Lemaire, who became the first female International Volleyball Referee certified by the FIVB (1983). Lemaire also became an International Beach Referee and officiated at the 1996 and 2000 Olympics in beach volleyball. Lemaire also has been awarded the USAV George J. Fisher Leader in Volleyball Award (1985), the USAV Golden Whistle Award (1985) and the PAVO Officials Honor Award (1987). Lemaire and the other eight inductees will be honored on Oct. 19 in Holyoke, Mass., the home of the IVHF. She is one of only six people inducted into the IVHF in the “Official” category and is the only female.
“I can say, after 32 years, I’ve never called a perfect match and I probably never will. You know you’ll never get them all right. The number one thing we stress with younger officials is to be consistent, because kids will adjust, as will coaches.”
— Kathy HamerSmith, volleyball official newly inducted into the Wyoming High School Athletic Association’s Sports Officials Hall of Fame, on the difficulty of officiating volleyball, even for the most seasoned official.
TEST YOURSELF
In each of the following you are given a situation and possible answer(s). You are to decide which answer(s) are correct for NFHS, NCAA or USAV rules, which might vary. Solutions: p. 81.
1. A ball in the plane of the net is legally contacted simultaneously by A1 and B2 and falls out of bounds on team A’s side.
a. Team A wins the rally.
b. Team B wins the rally.
c. Replay.
2. Team A is assessed a delay warning in the first set. During the third set, team A’s head coach requests to withdraw a substitution after it was recognized by the second referee.
a. Unnecessary delay/delay warning.
b. Unnecessary delay/delay penalty.
c. No infraction.
3. Which of the following may be worn by players on the court?
a. Small studded earrings.
b. Large hoop rings in the ears.
c. String bracelets tightly tied.
d. Watches.
4. What is the default length of timeouts?
a. 30 seconds.
b. 60 seconds.
c. 75 seconds.
d. 90 seconds.
5. Which of the following is permitted after play is stopped and a replay indicated, not related to an injury?
a. A substitution request.
b. A timeout request.
c. A request for a lineup check.
d. All of the above.
e. None of the above.
6. A1 has a small towel tucked into her uniform shorts. During a rally, the towel falls to the floor and presents a safety hazard.
a. Whistle to stop play and award the point to team B due to A1’s unnecessary equipment.
b. Whistle to stop play, indicate a replay and allow A1 to retrieve the towel with no further repercussion.
c. Whistle to stop play, indicate a replay and assess a delay sanction to team A.
d. Allow play to continue, hoping the towel is not an issue for the remainder of that play.
6, we call this Rotation 2. In Rotation 3, the setter is left-back/zone 5. In Rotation 4, the setter is left front/zone 4. In Rotation 5, the setter is center front/zone 3, and finally in Rotation 6, the setter is right front/zone 2 (as shown in the above corresponding MechaniGrams).
Each rotation has positioning options to facilitate effective serve receive and getting hitters into desired attacking positions, and each has typical overlaps the R2 has to watch for. Understanding the rotation a team is in nails the position of the setter, which then translates into where other players should be positioned to be legally aligned.
A 5-1 offense has the single setter in the back zone for three of the six rotations. Knowing what position the setter should be in during the scan of both teams helps the referees assess possible alignment issues and be aware of possible back-row faults during a rally.
Referees partner more effectively (headset or no headset) if both have back-row awareness, which is needed
to determine the legality of plays at the net involving the setter and those plays near the attack line. Study, observation and experience help referees identify whether players are legally positioned prior to each serve. While they may never get to 100% in terms of awareness of every overlap and position switch, it’s a worthy goal.
One contributor to effectiveness is charting who the libero/L replaces for each team to start a set. This is a valuable tracking tool. When this exchange occurs, did the L replace the back-row MB? Knowing the libero leads the setter across the back row helps cement everyone’s legal position with the referees knowing which players should be opposite each other (OHs, S and OPP/DS, MB and L).
A good starting point is observing warmups when teams are setting hitters to connect players with roles. When lineups are available and numbers are viewable, we use whatever techniques we use at the stage of development we’ve reached to connect number combinations that resonate combined with charting
At the higher levels, one of the most difficult decisions for referees is deciphering if the ball solely touches the net or if there was also contact with an opposing player’s arm or hands, as shown on this play. It can be difficult to determine a touch with the naked eye when the ball moves at incredible speed, especially at the higher levels. Even in a still photo, it can be incredibly hard to decipher if this ball is touching one of the blocking team’s players.
The first referee, who is looking straight down the net, may struggle to see if the ball is touched, which is why it is important for second referees to assist
TOUCH?
on this play (either by giving a visible touch sign or verbally stating a touch through the headset if wearing one). When deciding these plays, it is important to work together to get the call right and it is also important to understand the rules of play at the net to avoid making the wrong decision on whatever happens next on this play (NFHS 9-6, NCAA 15.1; USAV 10).
1 If the ball only contacts the net and does not contact an opposing player, the attacking team will be guilty of four contacts (assuming this is the third contact that hit the net) if it touches the ball again. If the attacking team still has one of its three contacts left, it may legally contact the ball again.
2 1 3
2 If the ball does contact an opposing player and comes back over to the attacking team’s side, that team has three more team contacts to get the ball over the net.
3 If the blocking team contacts the net because a hard-driven ball pushed the net (or an antenna) into the player, this is not a fault and play shall continue.
On these types of plays, if there is any doubt, err on the side the ball was touched by an opposing player. In NCAA matches involving the Challenge Review System, whether or not the ball was contacted and whether or not there was a net violation are reviewable. If the first referee inadvertently rules incorrectly and is given additional information by the second referee, the first referee can change the call or issue a replay, whichever would be correct in that situation.
VOLLEYBALL
CASEPLAYS
Conduct
Play: During a rally, team A’s setter sets a ball that spins out of her hands. Team B’s assistant coach stands up from the bench, yells “double” and places two fingers into the air. At the end of the rally, the second referee approaches team B’s head coach and states the assistant coach’s actions are not allowed and the team could be assessed a sanction if the actions continue. Later in the same set, a ball that is set close to the net is saved in the plane by team A’s setter. The same assistant coach for team B stands up from the bench, yells “lift” and gives the signal for prolonged contact while staring at the first referee. At the end of the rally, the first referee issues a yellow card to team B’s head coach.
Ruling: Correct procedure in all codes. Attempting to influence the decision of the referees is disruptive coaching and can be sanctioned in all rules codes. Both the verbal yelling at the referees and the signaling are considered an attempt to influence the call. While an assistant coach may be off the bench in NCAA and USAV, in NFHS, assistant coaches must remain seated during live play and only one assistant may be off the bench during a dead ball to offer instruction (NFHS 12-2-6 Note 1, 12-2-8c, e and Pen.; NCAA 5.2.4.1, 6.1.4.6; USAV 5.3.1, 20.1.2, 20.1.3, 21.1).
Court Markings
Play: As the first and second referee are doing their prematch inspections, they notice the endlines are not a solid, continuous line. The lines are interrupted at the midway point with a one-inch gap. The first referee contacts host administration, but no solution can be found. The first referee declares the game a double forfeit. Ruling: Incorrect procedure in all codes. For NFHS, the boundary lines do not have to be continuous (2-3). In NCAA, if the problem cannot be fixed for the current match, the match should still be played, but the problem reported to the conference and NCAA secretary/rules editor (1.2.2.1). USAV only requires the lines to be of a contrasting color to the court (1.3.1, 1.3.2).
opposites and other techniques. Some referees incorporate oncourt observations to add identifiable characteristics of setters, pin hitters, and middles if warmup tops cover numbers. Then, with teams on the endlines with numbers visible, the awareness is added to the mix in recalling where players are positioned in the lineup in relationship to each other. It’s easier, of course, when numbers are visible to use lineups to identify positions by where players are hitting.
Numbers become linked to player roles, allowing a scan for setter positions to help identify where every position by player number is legally
aligned for each rotation. This can help referees piece together something close to a personal comfort zone, helping to identify positional issues and being cognizant when a back-row player is involved in a playing action that requires a referee response (whistle, perhaps a wave-off, or knowing a close attack take-off was legal or if the player involved was front row).
Rick Brown, Westerville, Ohio, is a longtime girls’ and boys’ high school volleyball referee, working 22 state tournaments. He is a state and local rules interpreter, USAV Regional Referee and formerly a PAVO National Line Judge, working multiple D-I postseason matches.
Are You Any Good?
By Tonya Houston
Whether the initial point of entry to volleyball officiating stems from previous experience as a player or a coach, or from no prior experience and starting as a newbie, irrefutably, the goal is to earn a reputation as a “good” official. Without metrics, the designation of “good” is subjective, and it varies by audience.
Non-officials (parents and some coaches) might consider an official “good” when the official demonstrates these traits:
• Punctuality and professional engagement.
• A smiling, positive demeanor.
• Kindness and concern for players.
• Knowledge of basic rules, despite omitting certain infractions.
• Fairness.
Officials and raters, on the other hand, would consider a “good ” official to demonstrate these traits:
Camps and clinics are a great way to improve on your skills and test yourself against other officials. Shana Todd, San Diego, attends a sand volleyball instructional clinic in order to work on her growth as an official.
• Professional disposition Personal appearance that is wellgroomed, clean and squared away. Preparedness in terms of equipment and supplies. Punctuality in reporting to the event facility.
• Game administration and control. Punctuality in starting matches on schedule. Discipline in time management during timeouts and between changes of sets.
• Communication and signals . Clear, concise communication with coaches using proper terminology from the rulebook. Accurate mechanics and signaling techniques Consistency of calls. Accuracy of calls. Sound judgment. Situational decision-making beyond the rulebook. Ability to apply the critical principle of time and circumstance.
Overlapping similarities exist between both audiences; however,
the depth and scope of development is starkly different. Ideally, by years four and five, an official striving to advance from “getting by” (beginner), to “good” (consistent knowledge, understanding, and application of rules and professionalism) begins to feel a professional responsibility toward continuous refinement of skills and growth.
One way to do this is to identify one or two specific areas of development and refinement central to one’s continuous growth. In other words, identify an area of officiating for improvement. Recognizing back-row players and rotational faults were my targeted areas of refinement for the last two seasons. Having a laser-focus upon my goals clarified how seldom backrow attacks and rotational faults are called despite many officials having more than 15 years of experience officiating volleyball.
When fellow officials were asked why back-row attacks and rotational faults are not called, the responses spanned a wide range, as follows:
“I watch the point of contact to make sure the ball is above the height of the net, not the player’s feet.”
“I don’t worry about where the setter is until the coach yells at me.”
“I don’t understand different alignments, so I don’t ever call out of rotation.”
“I thought the libero can attack the ball (above the height of the net) as long as the player is behind the 10-foot line.”
The definitions of contentment and complacency are often conflated; however, they do not have the same meaning. In other words, a difference exists between being happy where one is, and settling for where one is. Continuous growth requires a desire and willingness to make headway through various
WEAR YOUR PRIDE WITH SHIRTS
“rough patches” along the journey of development. In so doing, an official does not settle for “getting by” or being “good enough.” Don’t settle.
In his best-selling book Good to Great , author Jim Collins sums it up best by saying, “Great is the enemy of good.” Though the designation of being categorized as a “great” official might seem lofty, one should actively pursue that status through continuous, patient refinement while still in the “good” mode.
Here are some resources and tips for continuous growth toward
advancing from good to great:
• Use online videos about areas you are working on.
• Watch films of high school volleyball matches to practice.
• Work scrimmages to practice and enhance professional development.
• Use online videos and resources for understanding rules regarding liberos.
• Use tiles or paper squares to learn positional rotations.
• Find a mentor.
• Ask for help.
In the end, we volleyball officials
A Helping Hand
Referees need to be mindful of the rules anytime a player is near the bench in an effort to play a ball. All three codes agree on the rules when it comes to an assisted hit — it is a fault if coaches, teammates or other bench personnel aid a player in playing the ball, as shown in the PlayPic (NFHS 2-4-1b; NCAA 14.4.2; USAV 9.1.3, 9.3.2).
It is common during a match to have many plays near a team bench. Generally, the second referee is going to have the best view of these plays as they happen on the second referee’s side of the court. It is important for second referees to get an angle to see if there is assistance from a fellow player or bench personnel when a player heads in that direction to play a ball.
The thing to remember on these types of plays is that the restriction for aiding a player ends once the player plays the ball. After the player plays the ball, then bench personnel, coaches or fellow players can prevent the player from entering the bench. Team personnel may also assist the player getting back up or onto the court after making the play as well. The restriction only pertains to the act of playing the ball, not the action afterward.
It is legal in all codes for a teammate to grab a player after that player has made a play on the ball
in order to prevent the player from contacting the net or committing a centerline violation. However, it would be a fault if that teammate grabs the player while the player is trying to play the ball.
It is also a fault to move a curtain or netting out of the way in order to play a ball. This is generally only an issue when multiple courts are
have a responsibility to pursue advancement from good to great.
When we do, everyone wins — the players through better-officiated matches, the fans who can see the subsequent improvement in their players, and the coaches who are not distracted by mediocre officiating.
Let’s not overlook you, the volleyball official. You owe it to you to be the best you can be.
Tonya Houston, Goose Creek, S.C., is a high school and USAV referee. She is an associate professor in the College of Education at Charleston Southern University.
being used and netting or curtains are down in order to separate the courts. Although it does occur in single-court matches, generally in large venues where the host administration lowers nets to enclose the playable area.
A player or a teammate may not push the curtain or netting out of the way to create more playable area. However, if a player makes a play and then crashes into the netting or curtain, this is legal and play continues.
When it comes to the bench area or bleachers, it is important to remember players may legally contact a ball in those areas, but must keep in contact with playable area while making contact with a ball over nonplayable area. For example, a player may contact the ball with one foot on the floor and one foot on the bleacher and then after making contact, may fall into the bleachers.
However, a player may not put both feet on the bleachers in order to elevate and then make contact with the ball while having no body part in contact with playable area.
Both referees have responsibility for determining the legality of the hit in these instances as this type of play could happen on either referee’s side of the court, but could also happen outside the endlines.
BECOME AN NASO GAME SAVER
Studies prove that the best way to get and keep officials is through one-on-one contact with other officials. Sports officials who are willing to help recruits are needed.
NASO Game Savers are established officials who are willing to help guide officiating prospects through the process of becoming a sports official in their local area and chosen sport(s) by putting them in touch with the right people, associations, leagues and assigners, and leading them through the necessary steps toward becoming a registered official.
GETTING IT RIGHT
Crème de la Crème
By Brad Star
Officials associations throughout the nation have struggled with recruitment and retention in recent years, but an officiating academy in the Cleveland area seems to have found an answer to the shortage, at least locally.
The CYO Officials Academy is a program offered through the Diocese of Cleveland’s Catholic Youth Organization (CYO). Students, who are high school-aged, are trained to officiate at the youth level. Among the qualities that make CYO unique is its mentor observation program,
wherein veteran officials watch students officiate youth games and then provide immediate positive and corrective feedback. CYO trains basketball, volleyball, soccer and flag football officials.
The program was founded in 1998 by Nick Crème, who has officiated high school and college basketball (Divisions II and III) since 1978.
“The academy is my vocation, my calling, to use my talents to nurture the lives and faith of young people through the sport of basketball,” Crème said.
In the academy’s first year, Crème focused primarily on rules knowledge and classroom work. After the class was done, he wished the 15 students luck and sent them
on their way. When he checked on them a year later, he learned none of them had continued with officiating.
“I realized that if you don’t mentor them and develop a relationship with them, where they don’t feel loved and part of the group, many of them quit,” Crème said. “They don’t want to come back if they don’t feel loved or part of the association.”
The next year, Crème shifted gears and had his class primarily take place on the court. He also implemented the mentor observation program, ensuring his students were kept engaged and could develop relationships with veteran officials.
“When we did that, the return rate was 95%,” Crème said. “In today’s world, if you can get 95% of the officials to come back, we wouldn’t have a shortage.”
Over 650 officials have gone through the academy since. Many CYO participants have gone on to referee at the high school and collegiate levels. There’s currently one CYO alum — JB DeRosa, son of former NBA referee Joe DeRosa — officiating in the NBA.
Based in Akron, Ohio, CYO attracts students from the greater Cleveland area. And the program is open to more than just Christian students; Crème emphasized anyone is welcome.
In 2018, Crème was invited to present on the CYO Officials Academy at the University of Notre Dame “Play Like a Champion Today” National Leadership Conference to help other youth sports programs duplicate his efforts. Similar programs have since been developed in Seattle, Dallas, Virginia and Michigan, according to Crème.
“My advice to other people is networking and developing friendships and being likable and teachable,” Crème said. “Have a desire to want to give back.”
Brad Star is an assistant editor for Referee
Breaking Barriers
Three young women broke into a male-dominated profession when they became wrestling officials in Arkansas this past season.
Cailey Pittman, Vivi Edwards and Hadley Snider — all former high school wrestlers who decided not to compete in college — were the only females officiating wrestling in Arkansas last season, according to Anthony Haubner, the head official for the state.
“I feel like it’s so great that women are trying to get into this, just like wrestling,” Pittman, 17, told the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in February.
Edwards said being an example for younger females is important: “They think it’s so cool. I see the sparkle in their eye. I know it makes them feel included and happy. We’re still close enough in ages with high school that they are comfortable coming up and talking to me and saying, ‘This is awesome that you’re doing this.’ They ask me about maybe wanting to do this. I’m like, ‘Yes, do it. We need more of you.’”
SOURCE: NORTHWEST ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
Learning
From the
Best
Students enrolled in Taunton (Mass.) High School’s sports officiating class had a special experience in May. Through the program’s partnership with Sports Officials Care, students received instruction in officiating baseball, soccer, football and basketball from nine professionals who’ve worked at the pinnacle of their respective sports. Among them were former NFL referee Jim Mello, who served as down judge for Super Bowl XLVIII; 2023 MLS Assistant Referee of the Year Ian McKay; 2003 FIFA Women’s World Cup referee Rachel Woo; former MLS referee and current assistant video assistant referee Tom Supple; NCAA basketball referee Steve Wilson; and umpires Bill McCallum, who previously worked in Minor League Baseball, and Jeff Merzel, who worked the 2021 Division III baseball championship.
SOURCE: TAUNTON DAILY GAZETTE
Have you heard an inspirational or motivational officiating story? Send your ideas to GettingItRight@referee.com
Longtime basketball official Nick Crème (top left) runs an officiating academy in the Cleveland area.
The best-selling penalty manual is fully updated for 2024 with all the new NFHS rule changes. Explore multiple play scenarios with a direct visual representation with Referee’s exclusive MechaniGrams® and flow charts. Handy penalty summary and signal chart also included. scenarios
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SWING AND A MYTH
Softball’s Most Misinterpreted Rules
By Brad Tittrington
From the time softball was invented in 1887, there have been several rules myths that have reared their ugly heads and still exist today. It is understandable some myths have been created by fans, announcers, players and coaches.
However, some of these same myths exist within umpiring circles as well, which has caused great confusion over the years. And while these myths were created in the
MSU (Make Stuff Up) rulebook, they unfortunately still exist in today’s vernacular among some umpires. Let’s take a look at some of these myths and discuss what the truth is when it comes to these rules.
‘The Hands Are Part of the Bat’ There are exactly zero rule codes that exist where this statement is factually true. It is most effectively dispelled by stating when a bat is bought at the store, there are no hands attached to said bat. The
hands are part of the body and are never considered part of the bat. Too often, umpires call a foul ball when a pitched ball hits a batter’s hands, while in every rule code, it is in fact either a hit batter or a dead-ball strike, depending on if the batter swung or not.
“There Must Be Contact to Have Interference/Obstruction”
While it certainly makes it easier on umpires to call interference or obstruction if there is contact between
One of the biggest myths in softball is that the hands are part of the bat. In this situation, if the ball hits the batter’s hand, plate umpire Daniel Grupenhagen, Garden Grove, Calif., will need to signal dead ball, determine if the batter attempted to bunt the ball, then either call it a strike or award the batter first base.
HESTON QUAN
the offensive and defensive players, it is not a requirement by rule for there to be contact. For obstruction, if a defender is neither in possession of the ball nor in the act of fielding a batted ball and hinders or impedes the runner, it is obstruction.
NCAA rules even go a step further and judge it to be obstruction if a fielder without the ball is blocking any part of the leading edge of a base or plate without the ball. That action in and of itself is obstruction, whether the runner is truly impeded. Unless the umpire judges the runner would have clearly been put out, it is obstruction. In the other three codes, simply standing there is not obstruction in and of itself and the runner must still be judged to be impeded or hindered.
For interference, while contacting a fielder who is in the act of making a play or throw is interference, there are plenty of other actions, without contact, that also constitute interference. These include waving the arms or verbally distracting a fielder trying to make a play on the ball. While some judgment is still involved, never use the cop out of there was no contact so it can’t be obstruction or interference as that is not part of the rule in any code.
‘The Batter-Runner Is Outside the Runner’s Lane. It Is Automatically Interference’
How often have you seen a batterrunner running outside the runner’s lane, the throw going extremely high or wide of first base and a coach or announcer claiming it must be interference simply because of the batter-runner’s location outside of the runner’s lane? It actually happens often if you watch a lot of softball and see the batter-runner run outside the runner’s lane. However, being outside the runner’s lane is only part of the rule. And simply being there does not make it a violation.
The part of the rule most people, including some umpires, forget is that in order to be interference, the umpire must judge the batter-runner interfered with the fielder’s ability to take the throw at first. And there must be a throw in order for there to
be interference as the rule applies to the fielder taking the throw, not the fielder making the throw. The defense should not be rewarded with an out because of a poor throw that had nothing to do with the batter-runner.
“The Runner Is Out of the Baseline. She Must Be Out”
There is often great confusion between the baseline and the basepath. There is a reason these two words are found in the definitions of all rulebooks and it is important to understand the distinction between the two. The baseline is the direct line between any two consecutive bases. The basepath is the imaginary direct line, and three feet to either side of it, between a base and a runner’s position at the time a defensive player is attempting to apply a tag. The runner establishes the basepath. The baseline is always a fixed line. Too often, these two words get mixed up and used incorrectly, which can cause incorrect rulings. Remember, a runner is never required to run in a straight line between the two bases and runners are required to avoid contact with fielders attempting to make an initial play on a batted ball. This often forces runners outside of the baseline. Runners are never guilty of being outside of the basepath until a fielder is attempting to tag them. Once the fielder tries to tag the runner, the runner may not go more than three feet to either side, generally more than one big step.
‘The Runner Must Slide Going in to a Base’
This phrase is uttered much too commonly, considering it is not found in any of the four major rule codes. A runner is never forced to slide into a base or the plate. It would actually be a huge legal liability if a rule code forced runners to slide into every bag or plate. If a runner were to get injured because said runner was forced to unnecessarily slide, it would open that code up to legal action. Runners must avoid maliciously or flagrantly colliding with a fielder who has the ball, but there are ways other than by sliding to avoid contact. A runner can simply
QUICKTIP
I n today’s digital age, everything you post on social media is public. Avoid posting what games you are working and never make critical comments of teams, partners or coaches. The best policy, in general, is to avoid social media as much as you can. Not only is that for your own personal safety, but it also avoids potential conflicts of interest.
BY THE NUMBERS
The number of innings played by Alabama and Tennessee May 25 in the longest super regional game in college women’s softball history. Alabama beat Tennessee, 3-1, and the game lasted nearly five hours. The umpires for the game were Don Brown (P), Mike Burwell (U1), Bradley Newton (U2) and Tatem Stoelting (U3).
THEY SAID IT
“So over all these replays when a call doesn’t go your way, to see if you can get it switched on an obstruction call. Obstruction should not be a reviewable call. Along with base runners leaving early. If an umpire can’t see those 2 in the moment, then let the game continue.”
— East Stroudsburg University (Pa.) head softball coach Jaime Wohlbach in a tweet on X, formerly Twitter, on May 26 during the NCAA softball super regionals.
TEST YOURSELF
Each of the following includes a situation and possible answer(s). Decide which are correct for USA, NFHS, NCAA or USSSA rules and which might vary. Solutions: p. 81
1. With R3 on third and one out, F1 throws a low pitch to B3. The ball hits the plate, bounces up over F2 and hits the plate umpire in the shoulder. The ball then falls into the plate umpire’s ball bag.
a. The ball remains live and R3 may advance at her own risk with liability to be put out.
b. The ball is dead and R3 is automatically awarded home.
c. The ball is dead and R3 is only awarded home plate if the plate umpire judges she would have advanced to home plate if the ball had not become lodged.
2. R2 is on second base with two outs when B4 hits a single to center. R2 touches third and home. R2’s third-base coach, thinking R2 missed third base, tells her to return to third base to touch it. The defense tags R2 out between third and home.
a. R2’s run counts, but she is out for the third out of the inning.
b. R2’s run counts and no out is recorded.
c. R2’s run does not count and she is ruled out for the third out of the inning.
3. R1 is on first base and off on the pitch. B2 hits a ground ball to short. F6 fields the ball and throws it to F4 at second base. R1 is ruled safe at second base. F4 then throws the ball to first and the ball sails over F3’s head and out of play. The batter-runner had not reached first base at the moment F4 released the ball, but had when the ball sailed out of play.
a. R1 is awarded third and B2 is awarded second.
b. R1 is awarded home and B2 is awarded third.
c. R1 is awarded home and B2 is awarded second.
4. The bases are loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning with one out and the score tied, 4-4. B5 hits a ball to shallow right field that is caught by F9. The third-base coach stands next to R3 on third base and gives her a shove toward home as F9 catches the ball. R3 slides into home safely, just before F2 tags her.
a. Legal play, run scores, game is over.
b. R3 is out and the game moves to the eighth inning.
give up, veer out of the way, duck down, jump over (depending on the code), etc., but a runner is never required by rule to slide. Too often, runners have been either called out or have been ruled guilty of interference for failing to slide, which is a gross misinterpretation of the rule.
‘The DP/Flex Can Go in and Out for Each Other as Many Times as They Want’
When the DP/Flex rule was first introduced two decades ago, there was a lot of confusion as to how exactly it was used. While some of the confusion has dissipated over the years, some umpires still believe there are no restrictions and the DP/ Flex are basically the same player and they can go in and out for each other as much as they want. And this misinterpretation has appeared at all levels of play. In actuality, anytime the Flex runs or hits for the DP, the DP has left the game. And anytime the Flex is not playing defense, the Flex has left the game. Both the DP and Flex are starters and have re-entry rights so each is entitled to re-enter the game one time. Once they leave a second time, they are done for the game. This is true in all codes.
‘The Ball Hit the Plate,’ or ‘The Ball Is in the Batter’s Box It Is a Foul Ball’
A diagram similar to the MechaniGram below appears near the front of all rulebooks. It shows how the batter’s boxes should be drawn
and how the fair/foul lines should be drawn. Look carefully, and you will see the fair/foul lines start at the point of home plate. If the batter’s boxes are drawn correctly — which is half the battle on most fields, especially at the lower levels — those fair/ foul lines cross through a portion of the batter’s boxes. A large portion of the batter’s boxes are in fair territory and the entire plate is in fair territory (as shown in the MechaniGram). However, there are still those who believe it is foul ball if the ball hits or lands on the plate or is first touched within any part of the batter’s box. This is why it is important for plate umpires to get to first- or thirdbase-line extended on balls near the plate in order to get a good look at the ball to see if it is fair or foul and also important umpires explain the rules to a confused coach who will utter the words listed above about it automatically being a foul ball. While these certainly aren’t all the misinterpreted rules within the rulebook, they are all unfortunately too common. The more we can educate coaches, fans, announcers, players and our brothers and sisters in blue, the sooner we can get these myths to disappear. Unfortunately, the game has been around for over a century and some of these myths still exist.
Brad Tittrington is an associate editor for Referee. He umpires D-I softball and officiates women’s college and high school basketball, college and high school volleyball and high school football.
Plate Play Positioning Possibilities
Being a plate umpire can be a difficult job. Having to call 200 or more pitches a game can be mentally draining.
But even more difficult than remaining focused on every single pitch of a seven-inning game, or more if you play extras, is the knowledge you can be involved in a gamedeciding call late in a game on a close tag play at the plate. And while everyone thinks nailing ball and strike calls are where plate umpires earn their money, it is really on those tight plays at the plate where the true money is made.
The key to getting these calls right
is being in the proper position to start and then reading and reacting. That proper position depends on what code you are working. The good news for umpires is even if you work all four codes (NFHS, NCAA, USA Softball and USSSA), you only need to know two sets of mechanics as NFHS and USA Softball are identical and USSSA uses NCAA mechanics. Let’s take a closer look at the two different ways these codes handle plays at the plate.
NFHS and USA Softball
In NFHS and USA Softball mechanics, the plate umpire assumes a position in foul ground, 90 degrees to
the path of the runner, at a minimum of 10-12 feet from home plate in line with the outside deepest corner of the right-handed batter’s box (as shown in MechaniGram A on the next page). From this starting position, adjust as necessary to maintain an unobstructed view of the play. The key is to get an unobstructed view of the tag and be able to see when the runner touches the plate. The important thing to remember is to move as necessary to keep all the elements in front of you so you can successfully rule on a tag/ no tag, obstruction, interference and whether or not the runner touches the plate.
Plate umpires often are involved in game-deciding, close tag plays at the plate. It’s important for umpires to get in the best position possible, adjust to the play and then sell the call, just like Choo Kirkendoff, Ruston, La.
CASEPLAYS
Carry Into Dead-Ball Territory
Play: With R2 on second base and one out, the next pitch to B4 is ruled strike three by the plate umpire. F2, thinking there are now three outs, runs off the field and into her dugout. She had the ball in her glove when she crossed into her dugout, and at the time F2 crossed into deadball territory, R2 was standing on third base. Ruling: In all codes, the ball becomes dead when F2 crosses into dead-ball territory. Runners advance one base from where they were when the fielder crossed into dead-ball territory. In this case, B4 becomes the second out, the ball is dead and R2 is awarded home (NFHS 8-4-3h Pen.; NCAA 9.4 Eff.; USA Softball 8-5J Eff.; USSSA 8-14d-5).
Catcher’s Box
Play: With R3 on third base and a 3-0 count on the batter, F1 sets up to deliver a pitch. F2 moves far to her right and ends up outside the catcher’s box before F1 delivers the pitch, hoping to keep the ball away from the batter. F1 delivers the pitch, which is ball four. Ruling: In all codes, this is an illegal pitch and a delayed dead ball. The catcher must remain within the lines of the catcher’s box until the ball is released. Since the illegal pitch is ball four, the batter is awarded first base and R3 remains at third (NFHS 6-1-1 Pen. 4, 6-3-1 Pen.; NCAA 6.6.2 Eff., 10.8 Eff. (4); USA Softball 6A-7A, 6A-11B, 7-5D Eff. 2; USSSA 6-2A Pen., 6-3E).
On-Deck Batter Interference?
Play: With two outs and no runners on base, B3 hits a foul fly ball by team B’s dugout. As F5 attempts to catch the ball, the on-deck batter bumps her and causes her to not be able to catch the ball. Ruling: In all codes this is interference by the on-deck batter. The ball is dead, the batter is ruled out and the on-deck batter will be the first batter to start the next inning when her team comes to bat (NFHS 7-5-4 Pen. 2; NCAA 11.19 Eff.; USA Softball 7-1D Eff. 3; USSSA 7-1d-2).
That mechanic changes drastically if the plate umpire is returning to the plate from a play at third base and the ball is coming from foul territory. In these situations, stay inside the diamond and move parallel to the baseline, to a minimum of 10-12 feet from home plate and obtain a 90-degree angle to the path of a runner. This way, you don’t have to worry about crossing in front of the runner advancing from third base, or having to wait until she passes you, and it also prevents having to worry about being in the throwing lane.
NCAA and USSSA
With the change in the obstruction rule and the interpretations of that rule, NCAA made a major shift in its mechanics for plate umpires in regard to plays
at the plate. The starting position moved from that stipulated in NFHS and USA Softball to a point-ofplate starting position, as shown in MechaniGram B. The plate umpire should be in this position, at a calling distance of 3-10 feet. As the runner and ball approach and the defender adjusts her position, move to a calling position that ensures all of the elements of the play are in front of you. Continue to read the play as it develops, determine if obstruction, interference and/or a collision has occurred, then adjust as needed to see the application of a tag. In the past, the point-of-plate starting position was not to be used as a calling position, but that philosophy has changed and it could be a calling position if the play dictates it.
Besides the point-of-plate calling position, another possible location to
move to is the classic-90 position, which is first-base line extended in foul territory (the starting position for NFHS and USA Softball). Umpires should use this position if the fielder is straddling the plate or after possessing the ball, extends the glove parallel to the basepath to make a tag.
Because of the change in NCAA rules that dictates players are not allowed to position themselves between the runner and the plate without possession of the ball, fielders generally set up outside the basepath — normally in front of the plate inside the diamond — which results in a swipe tag as the runner tries to slide into the plate. The classic-90 or point-of-plate most likely will not give an unobstructed view of the tag as the runner’s body would block the tag from being seen. Umpires must work the wedge in this situation, keeping the side of the runner’s body that will be tagged, the part of the plate the runner is
No matter which code you are working, plays at the plate are dynamic and no two plays are alike. It is important to read and react and never remain flat-footed.
trying to touch and the tag itself in view at all times. This requires the umpire to move quickly to 6-8 feet behind the fielder and imagining a rope connecting the umpire’s belt buckle to the fielder’s plate-side hip. As the fielder moves, the umpire should move the same distance and should stay on an arc to keep all three elements in view. This movement will also give the umpire the best view to rule on obstruction. No matter which code you are
working, plays at the plate are dynamic and no two plays are alike. It is important to read and react and never remain flat-footed. You don’t have the luxury of replay, unless you are working the highest levels, so you only get one opportunity to view these plays. Move to get the best position, let the play develop, let your mind digest what your eyes have seen, and then rule confidently. The more games you work, the more second nature these plays become.
NO FAKERS ALLOWED NFHS Creates New ‘Flopping’ Definition, Penalty
By Scott Tittrington
While foregoing some of the major rules alterations that have occurred in recent seasons, the NFHS Basketball Rules Committee still took plenty of action during its annual April meeting in Indianapolis in advance of the 202425 season.
The committee, and subsequently the NFHS Board of Directors, approved a dozen rule changes, highlighted by the creation of a new definition of and a new penalty for faking being fouled, and
a change to categorization of certain technical fouls.
Referee thanks Lindsey Atkinson, NFHS director of sports and staff liaison to the rules committee, for reviewing this information, which appears in perceived order of importance.
Warning for Faking Being Fouled (4-49 NEW, 10-2-1g NEW, 10-4-6f)
In an attempt to clean up the actions of players trying to fool officials into ruling fouls on plays where no illegal contact has occurred, a new definition has been
created for faking being fouled (flopping) that includes a warning for a first team offense and a team technical foul for all subsequent infractions. This replaces previous rulebook language that required a player technical foul for a first violation.
The new definition includes actions such as “overtly embellishing the impact of incidental contact on block/charge plays or attempted tries for goal, using a ‘head bob’ to simulate illegal contact or using any other tactics to create an opinion of being
If official Marco Pantoja, Downey, Calif., believes a player has faked being fouled, an NFHS rule change for 2024-25 requires he issue a team warning on the first occurrence, and any subsequent occurrence would result in a team technical foul.
HESTON QUAN
fouled and therefore gaining an advantage.”
The warning for the first offense is recorded in the scorebook and reported to the head coach following the ruling. When a defensive player is the offender, the official should not disrupt play and take away the advantage that may exist for the team that is not being warned. However, the ruling official will use new signal No. 15 in the official NFHS signal chart (see PlayPic A) to indicate a flopping ruling when it occurs.
Play 1: Ballhandler A1 is driving to the basket against defender B2. During the drive, B2 falls to the playing court without contact in an attempt to fool the trail official into thinking A1 has committed a player-control foul. A1 dribbles past B2 and converts a successful layup. No warnings for faking being fouled have been issued against team B to this point. Ruling 1: The trail official does not blow a whistle once B2 falls to the floor but gives the signal for flopping. Once B2 scores the goal and the ball becomes dead, the trail official will blow the whistle, stop the clock and issue a team warning for faking being
fouled, reporting it to the head coach and ensuring it is recorded in the scorebook.
Play 2: Ballhandler A1 catches a pass from a teammate and turns to face the basket. As defender B2 approaches, A1 bobs the head in an attempt to fool the trail official into thinking B2 has committed illegal contact against a ballhandler. Team A has previously been issued a team warning for faking being fouled.
Ruling 2: The trail official will blow the whistle to stop play and issue a team technical foul to team A. The foul will be added to team A’s team foul count but not to A1’s five fouls toward disqualification. Any player or substitute of team B will be awarded two free throws with the lane cleared and play will resume with a team B throw-in at the division line opposite the scorer’s table.
Team Technical (10-2-7 NEW)
The penalty for dunking or attempting to dunk or stuff a dead ball, including pregame dunking, has been changed from a bench technical foul to a team technical foul. Doing so means the offending player will not have a personal
BY THE NUMBERS
The number of plays the Indiana Pacers believed were incorrectly adjudicated by the on-floor officials during games 1 and 2 of their second-round Eastern Conference playoff series against the New York Knicks. Each of those plays was submitted to the NBA office for review.
THEY SAID IT
Grant Hill: “I love Scott Foster. I don’t know if I can say I like officials like that, but I respect him. ... We can critique the officials, politely.”
Ian Eagle: “I believe your quote was, ‘I love Scott Foster.’ That’s all that matters. That was your quote.”
— Discussion between analyst Grant Hill and play-by-play announcer Ian Eagle during the Philadelphia 76ers-New York Knicks opening-round Eastern Conference playoff series
TOOLS
NFHS Basketball Officials Manual
As you begin preparations for the 2024-25 season, are you aware that Referee and the NFHS have partnered to create a new blueprint for high school basketball officials? The NFHS High School Basketball Officials Manual 2023-25 features the established NFHS two- and three-person mechanics, brought to visual life through more than 100 Referee MechaniGrams. Officiating principles, terminology and the official NFHS signal chart make this manual a one-stop mechanics shop for officials. The 192-page book is $21.95 and available at store.referee.com/basketball.
PlayPic A illustrates the official signal added to the NFHS signal chart to indicate a player has flopped/faked being fouled. After a warning for a first occurrence, any subsequent occurrence results in a technical foul.
BASKETBALL
TEST YOURSELF
In each of the following, decide which answer or answers are correct for NFHS, NCAA men’s and NCAA women’s rules, which might vary. Solutions: p. 81.
1. In which of the following shall basket interference be ruled when a player causes the basket or backboard to vibrate and:
a. The ball is on or within the basket only.
b. The ball is on or within the basket, backboard or cylinder.
c. The ball is on its downward flight.
d. None of the above result in basket interference.
2. Which of these results in loss of coaching box privileges for the head coach for the remainder of the game?
a. A technical foul charged to the head coach.
b. A technical foul charged to an assistant coach.
c. A technical foul charged to any other bench personnel.
d. All of the above.
e. None of the above.
3. What is the result if two players wish to participate and they both have different numbers on their uniforms than the numbers indicated in the scorebook?
a. A technical foul charged to both team members.
b. A single team technical foul.
c. A single administrative technical foul.
d. Two administrative technical fouls.
4. All of the following are true of a goal, except which?
a. It can be scored during a live ball.
b. It can be scored during a dead ball.
c. It includes both a free throw and field goal.
d. It can be scored while the clock is stopped.
5. Which of the following is true when jumper A1 legally tips the ball, and before the ball touches a non-jumper or the floor, it touches the tossing official?
a. The official must toss the ball again.
b. Neither jumper is permitted to touch the ball a second time until it touches a non-jumper.
c. Jumper A1 may not touch the ball a second time until it touches a non-jumper, but jumper B1 may touch the ball right away.
d. The jump ball has ended and any player may touch or grab the ball.
foul charged that counts toward disqualification and the offending team’s head coach will not lose the privilege of using the coaching box.
Play 3: At the five-minute mark before the scheduled start of the game, A1 is observed attempting to dunk. Ruling 3: Team A is issued a team technical foul. The technical foul is added to team A’s team foul count. The game will begin with two free throws awarded to any team B player or substitute, followed by a throw-in for team B at the division line opposite the scorer’s table. Team A’s head coach retains the privilege of using the coaching box.
Bteam and bench technical fouls that occur during the pregame will now offset if they occur in equal numbers between the two teams and no free throws are awarded, allowing the game to begin with a jump ball. Also, the head coach of the offending team(s) does not lose the privilege of the coaching box.
Play 4: At the 10-minute mark prior to the scheduled starting time, team A has not supplied to the official scorer the name and number of each team member, and the officials rule an administrative technical foul. At the five-minute mark, B1 is observed making a dunk and team B is issued a team technical foul. Ruling 4: Both team A and team B will begin the game with one foul in their respective team foul counts. However, no free throws are awarded as the two
CAn NFHS rule change for the 2024-25 season addresses bench personnel and injured players. If bench personnel beckoned onto the playing court for an injured player do not come out, or come onto the playing court without being beckoned, the injured player must be removed from the game, unless a timeout is requested to continue assessment and allow the injured player to remain in the game.
pregame technical fouls offset, and the game will begin with a jump ball. Team B’s head coach does not lose the privilege of using the coaching box.
Substitution (3-3-6)
A player who has been injured must be removed from the game if the coach is beckoned by an official, whether or not the coach enters the playing court, or if bench personnel (i.e., a coach or athletic trainer) enters the court without being beckoned.
The rationale for the rule change is either the beckoning or the entrance to the playing court necessitates the substitution, and both actions are not necessary for a required substitution to result.
The coach may still use a timeout to continue assessment of the injury and allow the injured player to remain in the game.
Play 5: While chasing down a loose ball, A1 and B2 collide and the ball rolls out of bounds. A1 begins
clutching her knee, at which point (a) the officials beckon team A’s coach onto the playing court, but the coach does not enter, or (b) team A’s athletic trainer enters the court before the officials request anyone to attend to the injured player.
Ruling 5: A1 must leave the game in both (a) and (b) unless team A’s coach requests a timeout to allow A1 to remain in the game.
Substitution (3-3-7)
A team is now allowed 20 seconds to address any minor blood on the body or uniform of a player without that player having to leave the game. If the blood cannot be appropriately covered/cleaned within 20 seconds, the head coach may use a timeout to address the issue or substitute for the player.
Play 6: In the second quarter, the officials notice A1 has (a) blood on the jersey, or (b) blood on the forearm after being scratched.
Ruling 6: The officials should stop
play in both (a) and (b) and notify team A’s head coach there is an issue with blood on A1. The official timer should start a 20-second clock, with a first horn sounded with 15 seconds remaining and a second horn at the end of the 20-second interval. At that point, if the blood has not been adequately covered or cleaned, team A’s head coach may request a timeout to further address the issue or substitute another team member for A1.
Uniforms (3-4-3, 3-4-4a NEW)
A rule passed prior to the 201920 season takes effect this year as the option to have jersey numbers that are the same color as the predominant color of the jersey has been eliminated (see PlayPic D). The two remaining legal options are a solid contrasting number with no more than two solid-colored 1/4-inch borders around the entire number or a solid contrasting number with a “shadow” trim of
ALL IN ONE BOX
CASEPLAYS
Technical Foul After Jump Ball
Play: During the game’s opening jump ball, jumper A1 tips the ball. While the ball is loose, and A2 and B3 are attempting to grab the tipped ball, A2 grabs B3’s arm and is called for a personal foul. Team A’s head coach is upset about the foul call, is screaming at the officials and an official assesses a technical foul to team A’s head coach for this behavior. How is play resumed, which team shall have the alternating-possession arrow in its favor and when is that alternating-possession arrow set?
Ruling: Since team B is not in the bonus, there are no free throws attempted for A2’s personal foul. The technical foul against team A’s head coach results in two free throws to any team B player. In NFHS and NCAAW, team B shall receive a throw-in at the division line following the free throws. In NCAAM, play is resumed following the free throws at the point of interruption, which is a throw-in for A2’s personal foul following the procedure in 7-3.2. The possession arrow shall be set to team A when the ball is placed at the disposal of the thrower-in for team B following the free throws (NFHS 4-3-3b, 6-41, 10-4-1a Pen., 10-7-1; NCAAM 4-9.6.b, 6-3.4, 7-3.2, 10-1.1, 10-3.2.a Pen.; NCAAW 4-8.6.b, 6-3.4, 10-10.2, 10-12.5.a.1 Pen.).
Ending a Dribble Play: A1 is dribbling the ball. While attempting to secure the ball with both hands, A1 mishandles it and it bounces away. A1 runs after the ball, and prior to any other player touching the ball, A1 (a) grabs and holds the ball, or (b) pushes the ball back down to the floor and dribbles it. Has any violation occurred? Ruling: A1’s dribble ends when the player touched the ball with both hands simultaneously. But A1 fumbled the ball when they were unable to control the ball and it bounced away. Any player may recover a fumble without violating. Therefore, in (a), A1’s recovery of the fumble after the dribble ended is legal. In (b), A1 began a second dribble when pushing the ball back down to the floor, and a double dribble violation is the result (NFHS 4-153, 4-15-4c, 4-21, 9-5; NCAAM 4-13.2, 4-13.4.b, 4-16, 9-7; NCAAW 4-12.2, 4-12.4.b, 4-16, 9-7).
a contrasting color on part of the number not to exceed 1/2-inch in width and that may be used with one 1/4-inch border.
Also new this year is teams may now place a school logo/mascot image on the front of the jersey, centered directly above the uniform number, in place of an identifying name. This removes the restriction of allowing only lettering on the front of the jersey.
Basket Interference
(4-6-1 Exc . NEW)
An exception has been added to the definition of basket interference. A player is allowed to touch only the net while the ball is on or within the basket provided the contact does not affect the ball, allowing play to continue.
Play 7: A1’s try attempt is in the basket but has not cleared the bottom of the net when A2, anticipating the try being missed, jumps and makes contact with the net. Ruling 7: If in the officials’ judgment the contact with the net has not had an effect on the ball, the touching is ignored.
Closely Guarded
(4-10, 9-10-1a Note NEW)
In states using the 35-second shot
clock, state associations may now adopt a modification to the closely guarded rule that allows players to dribble the ball for more than five seconds while closely guarded. As such, a closely guarded violation would only occur if a player holds the ball while closely guarded for five continuous seconds.
Warning
for Delay (4-47-5 NEW, 10-2-1g NEW, 10-4-5b)
A new fifth delay warning has been added to rule 4-47 to address when a player fails to immediately pass the ball to the nearest official when a whistle sounds. Previously, such actions were subject to being ruled a player technical foul, which would count against a player’s five fouls toward disqualification. Now this situation is handled the same as the four other delay warnings in 4-47 with a warning for delay issued on a first occurrence and a team technical foul for any subsequent rule 4-47 violation.
Out of Bounds — Player, Ball
(7-1-1)
A rewrite of this rule establishes a player is out of bounds if contact by a teammate or other bench personnel outside the boundary line of the playing court provides an advantage that allows the player to remain inbounds.
Electronic Devices (1-19)
A rewrite of this rule limits the use of electronic devices used during a game for the purposes of recording and tracking stats, reviewing or diagramming plays or other similar contest-related functions.
Scorer’s Duties (2-11-11)
Non-official scorers are required to compare records with the official scorer when multiple scorers are present. If there is a discrepancy, the official scorer must notify the referee immediately.
Major Editorial Changes
The committee also made several major editorial changes for the 202425 season:
• Clarification that scoring, timing and bookkeeping errors are not reviewable after the game officials’ jurisdiction has ended, while state associations may intercede on a case-by-case basis for unusual incidents outside these areas (2-2-4 Note).
• One visible manufacturer’s logo/trademark/reference may be placed anywhere on the team jersey provided it does not interfere with the visibility of the uniform number and meets all size specifications (3-4-2a).
• Clarification that team control during a throw-in only applies to fouls committed by the offense; therefore three-second and backcourt violations are not in effect. Additionally, this clarifies team control, as the result of a throw-in, remains in that team’s control until player control is established by either team (4-12-2 Note NEW, 9-7-1 Note NEW, 9-9-3 Note NEW).
• Support of language in the NFHS casebook that asserts officials should ignore an intentional throwin plane violation or a player interfering with the ball following a goal when the clock is running and there are five seconds or less on the game clock (9-2-10 Note 2 NEW).
• Clarification that after a warning is issued during an alternating-possession throw-in, the throw-in remains an alternatingpossession throw-in (9-2 Pen. 1).
• In addition to the new signal for flopping/faking being fouled, signal No. 21 has been re-named “Delayed Violation: Withheld Whistle” and shall be used to signal when players step out of bounds on their own volition. Also, signal No. 25 has been re-named “Backcourt and First to Touch From Out of Bounds Violation” and shall be used to signal the violation once the player is first to touch the ball after returning to the playing court. Scott Tittrington is an associate editor for Referee . He officiates high school and college basketball, high school and college baseball, and high school football.
All Done Here, Now Move Along
The words “bump and run” are a part of the lexicon in many different sports for many different reasons, and basketball is no different. However, when used on the hardwood, we are talking about a specific action by the officials, not the players.
The center official is “bumped” any time there is an offensive violation in that official’s coverage area during a game being officiated by three-person mechanics (see MechaniGram). This includes when the ball goes out of bounds and the former defensive team is awarded the subsequent throw-in.
Once the center official completes the necessary signaling to inform the players, coaches and the other two members of the officiating crew about what has happened and what will happen next — stopping the clock with an open hand, signaling the violation and the direction in which play will resume, and indicating the spot for the ensuing throw-in — the center should run down the court to
The center official is “bumped” any time there is an offensive violation in that official’s coverage area during a game being officiated by threeperson mechanics
become the new lead on that side of the floor.
The former lead official moves to the opposite side of the court and administers the throw-in at the spot designated by the departing center official, becoming the new trail official. The former trail official remains on the same side of the court and now becomes the center official on the opposite side of the court from where the throw-in is being made.
PROFILES
Unbreakable Glass
By Brad Star
When he took the field for a match this past spring, Ben Glass officially hit the half-century mark in his career as a soccer referee.
Unfortunately, the rest of his 50th season in officiating has since been on hold after some routine screenings led to the discovery of several heart blockages. Glass has been recovering from successful open-heart surgery and will return to the field in August.
Glass, 66, plans to continue officiating soccer for as long as he can. He got his start as a referee in the 1970s when he was still playing high school soccer.
“I just liked (officiating) from the beginning,” Glass said. “I was a reader, so I always felt that I was a student of the Laws of the Game.”
A native of Annandale, Va., Glass was a standout player in high school. His U-19 team won the national championship, the McGuire Cup, in 1976. He went on to play Division I soccer at William & Mary College before attending George Mason University to study law. Glass noted there have been
times when he’s had to scale back his workload as an official, such as when he was developing his law practice, BenGlassLaw, and while raising his nine children, three of whom he coached in soccer. Even during those times, though, Glass stayed involved in officiating youth soccer. In recent years, he’s gotten more into working high school games.
While Glass isn’t an official U.S. Soccer referee mentor, he’s done his part to help young officials and address the officiating shortage. Glass wrote You, A Teenage Soccer Referee , a guide to helping young and new soccer referees navigate the mental side of officiating, such as dealing with rowdy fans.
“My space really is giving them the mindset of it, which is when you start something new, like refereeing, you’re going to be bad at it,” Glass said. “Because you won’t be good at something new until you do it a bunch of times. It’s how do you get through that first season and second season when you don’t have the reps, you don’t have the number of games, and you probably need the confidence level up.”
Glass makes a point of working games alongside young officials. He often has the newer official take the lead as referee while Glass works as assistant referee. This allows the younger referee to get experience as the lead official while also being able to receive immediate feedback from a seasoned official in Glass.
“Sometimes I’ll post on social media, ‘Hey, I’m doing a U-15 game. If there are any young referees who want to come work with me, reach out to the assigners and come work and we’ll do a master class in refereeing during that game,’” Glass said.
“My space now is helping that young referee develop some habits and a mindset that gets them through that really hard part where you’re just starting to referee.”
Brad Star is an assistant editor for Referee
‘Miss Ma’am Referee’
Kristin Sortino made history Feb. 29, becoming the first woman to call a boys’ Class 4A basketball championship in the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL). The matchup between Lincoln Park and Hampton came two weeks after Sortino became the first woman to work a WPIAL boys’ playoff game.
“I didn’t think anything of it,” Sortino told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “I just was excited because I looked at it as a challenge and I was glad to have the opportunity.”
Sortino, a longtime women’s basketball referee at the high school and college levels, noted there has been some awkwardness since she started working boys’ games.
“A player came up to me and nicely called me, ‘Miss ma’am referee,’” Sortino said of a game earlier in the season. “He just didn’t know what to call me.”
SOURCE: PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE
Tomah Tribute
Scott Brookman Tomah, Wis.
Scott Brookman hit 50 years of service as a Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association wrestling official last December and was surprised with a celebration in his honor. While officiating a tournament at his alma mater, Tomah (Wis.) High School, Brookman was presented with a plaque and a banner.
Brookman wrestled at Tomah and the University of WisconsinLa Crosse prior to becoming an official. He’s worked matches at the local level, including the Bi-State Classic in La Crosse, all the way to the state tournament, his first of which was in 1996.
SOURCE: TOMAH AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT
Do you know a person or group who should be profiled? Send info to us at profiles@referee.com
Kristin Sortino Dormont, Pa.
Ben Glass is in his 50th season as a soccer referee. He’s worked at the youth, high school and adult amateur levels during his career.
NATIONAL OFFICIATING SURVEY
START ME UP
Every official on the field, court or pitch got their start somewhere. The 2023 National Officiating Survey — conducted by the National Association of Sports Officials and powered by Referee.com — included several questions about when, where and why people got involved in sports officiating.
What follows are data highlights gleaned from
HOW DID YOU FIRST GET INTO OFFICIATING?
the responses of the more than 35,000 sports officials who participated in the survey. Survey respondents officiated a range of professional, college, high school, youth, amateur and recreational events in more than 20 different sports.
Additional results can be found at naso.org/ survey.
AT WHAT LEVEL DID YOU START OFFICIATING?
IN WHAT YEAR DID YOU BEGIN OFFICIATING?
WHAT WERE THE MAIN REASONS YOU GOT INTO OFFICIATING? (SELECT UP TO 5)
ATTENTION GRABBER
The Zone You Should Own
By Jeffrey Stern
Anyone who has played a competitive game — be it basketball or bowling, pickleball or pinochle — knows about “the zone.” When you’re in it, you’re virtually invincible. When your opponent is in it, well, good luck.
The problem athletes have with the zone is it’s fleeting. They don’t know in advance when they’ll be in it and there is no way to train themselves to get into it.
Officials have a zone of their own. It’s a state of mind in which their concentration is at its highest level and their powers of observation
are most acute. Unlike athletes, the very best officials are able to get into the zone and stay there for an entire game. When outside forces threaten to break their train of thought, they are able to set those distractions aside and get back to the job at hand. Be ready from the start. Knowing what you are going into can help you get ready to face it. A good pregame gets everyone’s head in the game. Knowing the tendencies of the teams and trying to visualize what is going to happen make it a lot easier to remain focused during the game.
Most of us aren’t born with the ability to snap our fingers and summon the focus necessary to be a
great official. But it can be self-taught. Since each sport has breaks in the action, using that time to follow a pre-play routine can help you redirect your attention on the task at hand. Shutting out distractions such as noisy fans, whiny coaches and complaining players is one of the tougher skills to learn, but once acquired it is a valuable tool. Of course, unsportsmanlike acts or comments from players and coaches that cross the line must be penalized. But garden-variety gripes are best ignored.
Control what you can control. Officials are control mavens — we like to take charge of the game.
DALE GARVEY
Blake Jensen, South Jordan, Utah, is laser-focused as a play develops. Treating each play as if it’s the only one you’ll officiate in the game helps you maintain concentration throughout the contest.
But some outside factors can’t be changed. Rain delays are a common problem in baseball and softball because an umpire never knows when, or if, the game will resume. While you will naturally relax a bit during the stoppage, abandoning focus altogether by thinking the game is over is not advisable. If the game resumes, you may have a difficult time finding your edge once again.
In addition to dealing with situations that occur in their games, most officials have jobs and families to think about. An official’s concentration on the game may be adversely affected by a bad day at the office or a spat with a loved one. That’s when it’s helpful to have a “split personality” that separates real life from officiating. On the way to the game, leave your job behind. Unless you are expecting a call or text related to the assignment, it might be helpful to turn off your phone to eliminate the temptation of getting into a work-related discussion that affects your pregame mental preparation.
At one time or another, we’ve all worked games when we weren’t in tiptop shape. In those situations, we must shift attention from illness or fatigue to the job at hand. Being tired can actually work in your favor by forcing you to slow down and focus on what’s happening.
Having fun yet? When a game drags on due to a lopsided score, multiple pitching changes, substitutions, game stoppages or poor play, you have to rekindle your emotional fire. While that game may
not feel like a plum assignment, think about your overall enjoyment of officiating. Working a bad game is better than no game at all. Not to mention those games are great opportunities to work on certain aspects of your officiating. Slight adjustments in mechanics and positioning that might be harmful in a close game won’t be as critical in a blowout.
Remember letting your guard down and losing focus in a rout can result in your not recognizing flaring tempers that lead to overly physical play.
Everyone misses a call every now and then. One of the times your focus is most tested is when a ruling is obviously missed. Whether you’re the culprit or it happens to another official on the game, your reaction to a missed call will dictate how the rest of the game will go. You have to forget about it or you’ll be distracted. If you are the guilty party and you continue to dwell on it, you’ll miss the next one (or more) as well. If your partner made the blunder and you can see his or her concentration is suffering, wait for a break (i.e., between innings, a timeout, etc.) so you can boost their confidence and help them refocus. Let some time pass before you have that conversation, however. You don’t want fans, players and coaches to think you’re talking about the missed call so soon after it occurred.
Jeffrey Stern is Referee’s senior editor. He formerly officiated high school and college football and high school baseball.
A Strike You Don’t Want to Deal With
By Rick Woelfel
Virtually every official who works an outdoor sport has dealt with lightning. Lightning is dangerous because it can kill. In the last two years, 33 lightning-related deaths
were reported in the U.S., according to the National Lightning Safety Council.
But there are far too many stories of officials who don’t follow lightning protocols. Whether to appease a coach or tournament director, or
QUICKTIP
Reading the rulebook without knowing the definitions is like starting to read a murder mystery from the middle. If you don’t know the suspects — or in the case of the rules, the definitions — the terms used in the rest of the rulebook aren’t going to make sense. When studying the rulebook, go to the definitions first. A thorough understanding of the definitions allows you to figure out who’s who and what’s what.
Are you more likely to withhold officiating services due to a pay dispute or a security/safety issue?
DID YOU KNOW?
It’s unusual but not unheard of for pro games to be forfeited or ended early. On Sept. 30, 1971, Washington Senators fans, angered the team was moving to Texas the next year, stormed the field at RFK Stadium with two outs in the ninth and the Senators ahead, 7-5. The umpires forfeited the game to the Yankees. Disco Demolition Night on July 12, 1979, at Comiskey Park in Chicago caused the second game of a doubleheader between the White Sox and Detroit to be forfeited to the Tigers. The playing field was damaged by an explosion and by marauding fans. In the NBA, the Malice in the Palace, a brawl between the Pacers and Pistons, occurred on Nov. 19, 2004. Referees ended the game with 45.9 seconds remaining and awarded the Pacers a 97–82 win.
simply to assure themselves of a game fee, there have been instances where officials have allowed play to go on in potentially dangerous conditions. The possible ramifications of doing so are at best sobering and at worst catastrophic.
Attorney Alan Goldberger, who frequently writes on legal issues for Referee, said when it comes to lightning issues, there are few gray areas or loopholes.
“If you can hear thunder you stop the game,” he said. “If you see lightning, no matter how distant it is, stop the game and then from there you have the 30-minute time period and so forth. It just requires having a little bit of awareness.”
Guidelines in the rulebooks. The NFHS guidelines for handling lightning or thunder are provided in rulebooks. They read as follows:
When thunder is heard or a cloudto-ground lightning bolt is seen, the leading edge of the thunderstorm is close enough to strike your location with lightning. Suspend play for 30 minutes and take shelter immediately. Once play has been suspended, wait at least 30 minutes after the last thunder is heard or flash of lightning is witnessed prior to resuming play. Any subsequent thunder or lightning after the beginning of the 30-minute count will reset the clock and another 30-minute count should begin.
The NCAA guidelines appear in the Sports Medicine Handbook. The guidelines call for institutions to develop a lightning safety plan for each outdoor venue, including venue-specific plans for suspension, evacuation and resumption of play. They suggest monitoring weather reports before and during practices or events, planning ahead for the time it takes to evacuate facilities if lightning or severe weather threatens and designating a person to monitor threatening weather who has “recognized and unchallenged authority” to suspend activities.
Gone are the days when lightning protocols relied upon counting the time between the lightning flash and the thunder — the so-called flash-tobang method — to assess a storm’s distance. For every five seconds, the
the time a lightning flash this obvious is seen, game action should be halted.
lightning is roughly a mile way. There has been a realization that if thunder is heard, there is already a risk of the storm producing lightning at your location.
Who makes the call? In most sports and in most circumstances, the decision to continue, halt or resume play because of weather-related issues rests with the game officials.
Mi Angelo, a baseball umpire from Hawthorne, N.J., knew to do the right thing but was overruled by — of all people — his partner. “I heard thunder and ordered the field evacuated and the home team claimed because their (lightning detection) system hadn’t gone off, we should keep playing,” Angelo said. He said the crew chief “overruled me and ordered the teams back onto the field. Thank goodness, five minutes later, the (detection) system went off, and so did the teams.”
Unfortunately, some officials seemingly turn a blind eye to potential weather problems. There may be dark clouds in the distance or even visible lightning, but some are loathe to stop play until the storm actually hits and the situation has become potentially dangerous.
Some officials will try to justify their actions by saying, “There is no thunder; the lightning is too far away to be a problem,” or, “They haven’t stopped the game on the other field, so why should we stop?”
Officials may find themselves assigned to a tournament or showcase with multiple games scheduled on the same field, perhaps from early morning until dark. Any kind of weather delay impacts the schedule and could cause some games to be called off altogether.
In those circumstances, officials may find themselves being pressured by coaches or tournament directors to keep things moving along, whether by shortening a mandatory waiting period (depending on the rules in effect) or starting or continuing play when severe weather appears imminent.
“I worked a youth baseball tournament and was told that the umpires do not have jurisdiction over the weather,” said Charles Scott, an umpire from Reno, Nev., who said the edict came from the tournament director and his field coordinators. “I honored my assignments and told my assigner I’m not working that tournament again.”
While lightning detectors or apps may provide officials with information that helps them decide if and when to suspend play or return to play, they do have limitations. They may show you lightning bolts before you hear the thunder if they’re far enough away, and you can see that there is lightning coming in your general direction. They are useful in that respect, but as far as determining where a future bolt might strike, experts don’t believe their accuracy can be depended on.
Officials’ responsibilities are numerous and varied. But the first responsibility is to safeguard the welfare of the athletes involved in the game. That mandate must never be forgotten.
Rick Woelfel, Willow Grove, Pa., works various levels of softball and in the past has officiated baseball, basketball and football. This column is excerpted from a feature that appeared in the 6/17 issue of Referee
By
Are You On a Pleasure Crews?
No
matter what sport you’re officiating, crew cohesion is a must for your crew to be perceived positively. When everyone isn’t on the same page, it doesn’t take players, coaches and fans long to recognize “tonight’s officials are struggling.”
The best officiating crews know the only philosophy that matters is the crew’s philosophy. They know each other, respect each other’s judgment and approach the game with confidence.
No crew establishes a quality reputation quickly. Only after working many games together, suffering through mistakes and sharing the highs and lows of several seasons can a crew establish itself as one that can be counted upon to work the big games consistently.
We’ve all seen the football crews with one official who throws many
more flags or basketball crews with one official who calls more fouls or violations. It’s a recipe for disaster.
Each crew of officials has (or should have) a leader, usually the crew chief. A good crew chief heads off many of the ills described above by conducting a thorough pregame meeting.
It’s the crew chief’s responsibility to make each person feel comfortable in the pregame. If one of the crew members is new or less experienced, the crew chief can elevate him or her up to a higher level so the entire crew performs at a higher level.
One way to do that is to have the new or less-experienced crew member begin conducting the pregame conference. The more that official participates and throws out ideas, the more comfortable he or she will feel. A crew chief who dominates
the pregame can create barriers.
When the game begins, the process continues. No raised eyebrows, negative body language or outward criticism can be tolerated if the crew is to work productively as a team, and thereby earn the respect of the players, coaches and fans.
Officials must try to help each other. Don’t openly criticize, but offer honest assistance. Don’t ever embarrass a crew member and imply you don’t agree with his or her judgment.
It’s important to know the other officials on the field or court are with you in every sense of the word. It’s not enough to just wear the same clothes; you’ve got to take the time and make sure everything fits. Your performance and your crew’s reputation will benefit from the extra effort.
FOR THE RECORD
POSTSEASON ASSIGNMENTS
COLLEGE
• Minnesota State defeated Texas Woman’s University, 89-73, to win the NCAA Division II women’s basketball championship. Officials were Michal-Ann Ure, Amy Sanchez and Angie Leite. Final Four officials were Sanchez, Ure and Amy Krommenhoek (Texas Woman’s 68, Ferris State 52) and Michelle Kramer, Stacey Thomas and Leite (Minnesota State 70, Cal St. San Marcos 68).
Other tournament officials: Nate Acosta, Katelyn Adams, Angie Ahrendt, Sam Allen, Randall Arbuckle, David Arden, Josh Batin, Amanda Bender, Josh Beutell, Ty Bills, Christopher Bradley, Brandon Breese, Taacha BrownDrummond, Sarah Burgess, Jen Calhoon, Alganese Carr, Andrew Carucci, Jessyca Christopher, Travis Clark, Jake Coody, Christopher Cooper, Crista Couch, Kara Crossett, Elizabeth Crowe-Covington, Kelsey Curry, Kalee Davidson, Darryl Dawkins, Dominique Dawson, Jarra Dennis, Carolyn Derksen, Kamaria Douglas, Traci Drake, Brad Duistermars, Heather Durbrow, Tori Durrett, Rich Fetter, Jasmyne Fox, Tara Gallupe, Katelynn Hall, LeAnn Hall, April Harding, Brette Hayward, Andy Heo, Tammy Holman, Trevor Inouye, Laura Isabelle, Alicia Iwakiri, Camille Johnson, LaTrice Johnson, McCall Judd, Jeff Klaus, Scott Klomfas, Mike LaCroix, Kerri Lang, Brihtani LassiterBurgoyne, Natalie Lehmann, Dana Lopez, Alexander Louk, Elicia Lynch, Mark Majewski, Heather Marshall, Quinn Mathlin, Kevin Maurer,
Chris Meyerson, Gabrielle Mortis, Kiara Negron, Genesis Perrymond, Jocelyn Price, Jillian Quinn, Ric Raffone, Allyn Richardson, Drew Roberts, AJ Sibcy, Rebecca Skoterro, Dustin Smith, Jason Smith, Jessica Smith, Phebe Smith, Joe Spencer, Colleen Thompson, Darwin Thompson, Michael Thorner, Keith Wages, Jessica Walter, Sloane WaltonClark, Jordan Williams, Zoe Young.
• Minnesota State defeated Nova Southeastern, 88-85, to win the NCAA Division II men’s basketball championship. Officials were Kyle Bowen, Chance Wallesen and Connor Penn. Final Four officials were Daniel Basile, Devyn Page and Wallesen (Minnesota State 79, West Texas A&M 72) and Bowen, Pete Larson and Penn (Nova Southeastern 91, CSUSB 77).
Other tournament officials: Andy Acosta, Kevin Agee, Ray Ames, Greg Anagnostopoulos, Derek Anganes, Kelly Anlauf, John Atanassov, Nick Atwood, Mamadou Ba, Fred Babadjanians, Derick Barnes, Layne Barney, Cedric Bennett, LeShay Bernstein, Aaron Broadway, William Brunelle, Landen Cammack, Andrew Casas, Luke Chittum, Daniel Clark, R.B. Clyburn, Sidney Cohen, Isaiah Conrad, Juan Corral, James Curran, Williset del Valle, Gregory Deverson, Dave DeYong, Aaron Dickerson, Darren Drake, Owen Farist, Mike Fortunato, Bob Franklin, Lance Fuller Jr., Chase Furlough, John Paul Guerrero, Larry Hamilton, Wesley Harper, Marvin Harris Jr., Aran Hart, Marcus Hawkins, Courtney Holmes, Derik Hrubosky, Ryan Huber, Jimmy Jarrett, John Jenkins Jr., Keswic Joiner, Austin Jones, Jesse Joseph, Matthew LaGanke, Connor
MacDaid, Troy Mathis Jr., Matthew King, Michael Kolen, Kyle LeRoy, Wacey Lym, Shawn Manuel, Chuck McCoy, Nate Melson, Nick Meyer, Dawud Mills, Andrew Murray, Zach Perine, Ron Porter, Kevin Raher, Brian Read, Ruben Rodriguez, Jermaine Rogers, Vasili Rousseas, Tyler Sandmann, Dave Schattauer, Nick Shields, Brian Shore, Scott Siville, Chris Slattery, Joe Strednak, Joey Switzer, Kurt Tackett, Corey Taylor, Anthony Thomas, Gregory Tolson, Mark Tortorella, Dustin Williams, Jawaan Williams, Leon Wilson, Ben Wolfe, Ricky Wolter, Robert Worthams, Jerome Yancey, Brad Zapenas.
• NYU defeated Smith College, 51-41, to win the NCAA Division III women’s basketball championship. Officials were Randy Martin, Abby Burmeister and Meg Dallman Final Four officials were Eric Ferris, Sarah Fye and Kyle Wescott (NYU 57, Transylvania 42) and Rob McDow, Jack Clingan and Judith Dyehouse (Smith 61, Wartburg 54).
Other tournament officials: Angie Ahrendt, Sam Allen, Jason Alons, Brian Alves, Matt Andres, Randall Arbuckle, Matt Balster, Brett Barnes, Amanda Bender, Tom Berry, Jonathan Best, Josh Beutell, Chris Boyer, Kina Brown, Taacha BrownDrummond, Jenna Buffi, Teron Buford, Jerry Burgess, Sarah Burgess, Mickeni Caldwell, Steve Call, Daniel Chandler, David Claudio, Jim Coffin, Jarra Dennis, Carolyn Derksen, Brian Devine, Lamar Diamond, Shelley Dietz, Laura Dominguez, Jodi Duffe, Bill Dugan, Brad Duistermars, Heather Durbrow, Scott Dutterer, Austin Edge, Joe Emerson, Paulette Franklin, Erin Frias, Scott Fruehling, Ivan Fulton, Victor Garay, Kevin George, Alex Gerbers, Shante Glenn, David Gnall, Patrick Gregg, Alyssa Hann, Kirk Harbinger, Katie Hardell, Carson Hattel, Ben Hauge, Brette Hayward, Scotty Hermann, Tammy Holman, Mark Horn, Bob Horne, Wyatt Howard, Hannah Ingle, Camille Johnson, April Kabes, Lynda Kashouh, Eric Laffey, Jacinda Lambert, Kerri Lang,
Alex Leap, Keith Lehrman, Rachel Lenz, Brandon Long, Dana Lopez, Shelbey Lorenzetty, Wes MagnumSmith, Josh Mara, Brock Matlock, Steve Matuszewski, Ashley Mayerjak, David McAndrew, Jeremy McHugh, Jeffery Meeks, James Mento, Kelly Mitchell, Melinda Moore, Michael Motta, Don Nadeau, Jason Nate, Nina Norman, Corey Pothier, Alissa Purko, Kristin Quinn, Troy Ramey, Ric Raffone, Katie Ressie, Chrissy Reuss, Andrew Rogers, Jeffery Rousseau, Larry Ruffing, Aaron Rush, Amy Sanchez, Roger Saraiva, Matthew Sheehan, Alicia Shivers, Andre Smith, Charles Smith, Peggy Sostand, Chris Stafford, Frederick Steubing, Kevin St. John, Clark Stridsberg, Colin Thiele, Stacey Thomas, Suzanne Tiranno, Renee Tourigny, MJ Wagenson, Mara Wager, Mike Walsh, Jill White, Kenneth Williams, Mark Woelfel, Christine Zazzaro-Stanley. • Trine University defeated Hampden-Sydney, 69-61, to win the NCAA Division III men’s basketball championship. Officials were Kyle Bottoms, Eric Dust and Dillon Brasher Final Four officials were James Salamone, Connor Hoagland and Rob Snedden (HampdenSydney 62, Guilford 57) and Andy Acosta, Kelly Anlauf and Isaiah Conrad (Trine 66, Trinity 54).
Other tournament officials: Jordan Ablon, Ryan Adams, Greg Anagnostopoulos, Chris Anderson, Scott Arbogast, Matt Arellano, Travis Bain, John Barley, Daniel Basile, Chris Bennett, Robert Bennett, Scott Bennett, Chris Boehm, Haywood Bostic, Ralph Bretz, Matt Brookman, Jim Bruno, Darren Budahn, William Buehner, Kevin Calzonetti, John Caputo, Joseph Carmisione, David Carter, Ben Cartmell, Nick Carusone, Mike Collins, Travis Caswell, Robert Davison, Cory DeGroote, Dave DeYong, Danny De Yong, Raymond Downs, Gary Duda, Kristyne Esparza, Michael Ford, Greg Gerritsen, James Gibson, William Givens, Michael Glover, Jimmy Googas, Brandon Harris, Aran Hart, Rob Hartle, Patrick Harwood, Derik Hrubosky,
Josh Jennings, Larry Johnson, Michael Kelso, Devorn Kinsey, Zach Kmieciak, Jim Koskinen, Alex Landis, Jacob Lear, Tony Ledwell, Mark Lewis, Eric Lowe, Devon Maio, Shawn Manuel, Willie Mason, George Mayoral, Riley McGraw, Cliff McLean, Jay McMichael, Jim Miller, Mike Millione, Dawud Mills, Kevin Mottor, Rod Mrakovich, Andrew Murray, Garrett Nestor, David Niven, Matt Obitas, Andrew Otten, Anthony Ovial, Chad Palmer, Vince Pease, Kyle Peterson, Michael Pilla, Kevin Raher, Kevin Regan, Vasili Rousseas, Jerry Scherzinger, Bryan Scipio, Jason Shook, Brian Shore, Sutton Simon, Brian Smith, Luke Smith, Shane Snyder, Andrew Steratore, Kyle Stewart, Joe Strednak, Corey Taylor, Chaseton Vaden, Nick Vecchio, Bryan Washer, Christopher Weber, Mike Webster, Damon Williams, Daniel Williams, Dustin Williams, Tim Windler, David Yancey.
HIGH SCHOOL
• These officials were assigned by the Minnesota State High School League to work 2023-24 winter sports championships: Boys’ hockey — Nick Biondich, Hermantown; Keith Block, Baudette; Brendan Boche, Lakeville; Nicholas Bradshaw, Saint Paul; Michael Elam, Lake Elmo; Mike Forys, Cottage Grove; Cole Hansen, St. Louis Park; Matthew Heck, Greenfield; Reid Huttunen, East Grand Forks; Gavin Jocelyn, St. Michael; Daniel Kovarik, Mendota Heights; Jordan Kraabel, Blaine; Tony Lancette, Shakopee; Tanner Landman, Roseau; Andrew Liebaert, Superior; Timothy Likes, Hastings; Lucas Lindstrom, Duluth; Troy Nichols, Mountain Iron; Joseph Oberg, Shakopee; Mike Paulson, Inver Grove Heights; John Priester, Stillwater; Tyler Rew, Montgomery; Jordan Schwandt, Inver Grove Heights; Joe Setrum, Clear Lake; Morgan Shepherd, East Gull Lake; Clayton Smith, Osseo; Matthew
Stephens, St. Joseph; Shawn Storey, Warroad; Ryan Swafford, Mankato; Eric Thom, Rosemount; Wesley Waytashek, St. Cloud; Ben Yanez, Saint Paul.
Girls’ hockey — Jesse Anderson, Farmington; Ben Bengtson, Warroad; Jake Caneff, Hastings; Ron Coller, Hugo; Ben Counters, Lakeville; Jordan Doffing, Richfield; Michael Gulenchyn, Mahtomedi; Mark Henry, Bemidji; Ryan Ingeman, Grand Forks; Kendall Kamrath, Rochester; Kevin Kangas, Cloquet; Matt Klein, North Branch; Michelle McDonough, Fairmont; Shane McKinlay, Saint Paul; Michael Misner, Champlin; Sarah Moe, Prior Lake; Kristin Moran, Sartell; Shannon Motzko, Inver Grove Heights; Jason Pastika, Hibbing; Brian Perpich, Chisholm; David Rodgers, Lakeville; Bronson Shepherd, Brainerd; Brendan Skime, Pelican Rapids; Phillip Stodgell, Warroad; Kaelyn Szymanski, Sauk Rapids; Ryan Szymanski, Sauk Rapids; Tai Thorsheim, Oakdale; Haley Toth, Albertville; Matt Tryggestad, Lakeville; Carlye Veer, Bloomington; Preston Warren, Duluth; Gregg Williams, Tonka Bay. Boys’ swimming and diving — Gary Albrecht, Woodbury; Michael Bauerle, Rochester; Brenda Bebeau, Blaine; Gary Bork, Eden Prairie; Michael Bougie, Vadnais Heights; Terry Bumgarner, Richfield; Jerry Casey, Chisholm; Elisabet Casserberg, Duluth; Mark Challgren, Apple Valley; Annette Crews, White Bear Lake; Robert Crunstedt, Savage; John Dailey, Champlin; Mary Dillard, Dalton; Jim Ellingson, Litchfield; Craig Feil, Brooklyn Park; Bryon Fraser, Cohasset; Frank Gaertner, Mendota Heights; Samarah Hadley, Orono; Jim Hafdahl, Virginia; Michael Hilber, Lindstrom; Steven Hudoba, Chanhassen; Tanya Iverson, Inver Grove Heights; Jeffrey Jezorski, Stillwater; Kristin Kaldahl, Minneapolis; Bonnie Kee-Bowling, Minneapolis;
Do you have any rosters, assignments or awards that warrant mention? Send info to us at ForTheRecord@referee.com
Martin Knight, Stillwater; Kelly Lenz, Maplewood; Kimberly Lichtenwalter, Chaska; Kelly Lindquist, Eden Prairie; Julie Linscheid, Apple Valley; William McCann, Lakeville; Gillian McNeal, Duluth; Jerold Meininger, Grand Rapids; Charles Nelson, Lake Elmo; Laura Nelson, Saint Peter; Rusty Nelson, Minneapolis; Bradley Ness, Northfield; Kelly Punyko, Saint Paul; Lee Raihle, Spring Lake Park; Aaron Rooney, Alexandria; Darcy Samson, Lake Elmo; Judy Seliga-Punyko, Duluth; Ann Simms, Inver Grove Heights; Melany Southern, Willmar; Kellie Stedje, Shafer; Charles Stewart, Eden Prairie; Marcus Stromberg, Buffalo; John Tegg, Burnsville; Tracy Torgerson, New Prague; Deborah Welch, Forest Lake.
OBITUARIES
• Ron Spitler, 85, of Scottsdale, Ariz., died Sept. 5, 2023. Spitler had an illustrious 37-year officiating career in football and basketball. He refereed both sports at the high school and college levels, including officiating the Big Eight and Missouri Valley conferences. Spitler reached the NFL in 1982 and served as a field judge, side judge and back judge until he retired after the 2003 season. In 1984, Spitler officiated the NCAA men’s basketball championship
game between Georgetown and Houston.
• Oscar Payen Jr., 73, of El Paso, Texas, died April 16. He officiated basketball, football, volleyball and track and field with the New Mexico Officials Association (NMOA). Payen served in numerous statewide and local leadership roles with NMOA and was inducted into the NMOA Hall of Fame in 2022.
• Kevin Lewis, 62, of Fountain City, Ind., died April 19 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Lewis worked high school baseball, softball, football and boys’ and girls’ basketball during a 30-year career. He officiated Indiana state finals in football and girls’ basketball. The Indiana Officials Association named Lewis its 2023-24 Official of the Year. Lewis also received the Indiana High School Athletic Association Commissioner’s Distinguished Service Award in 2024.
• Ernie Furrer, 83, of Janesville, Wis., died May 8. He officiated high school basketball, baseball and softball for over 50 years. Furrer worked thousands of youth games in his career, including several Wisconsin high school state tournaments. He was inducted into the Janesville Sports Hall of Fame in 2017 and the Blanchardville/ Pecatonica (Wis.) Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022.
Concussion Calls
By Alan Goldberger
No matter what sport you officiate, just hearing the word “concussion” in any gathering of officials is likely to trigger debate. As with any difficult and nuanced aspect of the rulebook, the rules governing the potential for traumatic brain injury — and the development of mechanics and protocols for officiating the rule — have suffered under the weight of a decade and a half of confusing, inconsistent and vague “guidance” for officials regarding the rule.
Who’s to blame? Media hype asserting, inaccurately, that referees must “diagnose” a concussion? Attempts to prevent concussions by distributing pamphlets to coaches, parents and athletes? Or is it just a case of “one rule, many inconsistent interpretations”?
What do officials need to know to officiate the concussion rules?
Probably all of the above factors are at work. One thing remains clear: Officials still struggle with enforcing concussion rules. Over the past decade and a half, provisions for mandatory removal from play morphed from identifying the “unconscious” player (pre-1991-1992) to the “apparently unconscious player” (circa 1992-2009) to the 2010 landmark NFHS rules change dictating removal of a player who exhibits a sign, symptom or behavior consistent with concussion. And, to make matters worse, during this time frame, every state legislature and other governmental authorities have collectively imposed dozens of statutes and administrative regulations on the subject.
While many states prohibit sameday return to play for anyone for whom a substitution is mandated under the law, other states mirror the NFHS rule that permits a same-day return to play for athletes when authorized by a specified health care provider. State laws and association policies vary widely as to the details.
At the level of intercollegiate athletics, there are few legislative requirements. Several years after the NCAA rejected proposed rules mirroring the NFHS rules, it revised an appendix to the playing rules stating, “Game officials are often in the best position to observe student-athletes up-close and may be the first to notice the unusual behaviors that indicate a concussion may be present. Studentathletes with a suspected concussion must be removed from competition so that a medical examination can be conducted.”
Various sport-specific organizations may have their own concussionrelated policies, and, in some cases, corresponding playing rules. Still, enforcement techniques remain elusive for many officials groups. Governing bodies, often prone to regard officiating as an “afterthought,” cannot be relied upon for practical guidance. And, unfortunately, too many officials associations do not take sufficient care to make sure the protocol for officials to follow is workable, practical and compliant with state and local law. What do officials need to know to officiate the concussion rules? Concussion events in sports are governed principally by three regulatory devices: playing rules; national, state and/or local governing body regulations or rules modifications; and state and/or local law. Virtually all state laws require the removal of a potentially concussed athlete. Returning to play in the game is another matter. Here, state rules vary. Bungling potential concussion situations can be legally problematic for officials at whose feet concussed athletes may fall. Good and clear mechanics for enforcement will go a long way to prevent legal complications. In short, the official who knows when to substitute, when to permit return to play and when to deny return to play — and what to say in between — will meet the challenges of the concussion rules.
Alan Goldberger is an official and attorney from Fairfield, N.J. This column is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice.
Concussion Enforcement
Here’s what you need to know to manage the concussion-rule risks:
1. REALIZE that you and your crew are the best educated impartial adults in the venue, especially in youth/rec sports. So knowing when to get a sub; and when not to permit return-to-play are the protocols that count.
2. UNDERSTAND that the rules governing concussion are rules that need to be officiated; and to effectively officiate the rule, you need a mechanic driven by the rule and the law of the place where the game is played.
3. RECOGNIZE the signs, symptoms and behaviors consistent with concussion. Your ability to do this will make your directing that substitute be saddled up the right call!
4. GET PERSPECTIVE that will allow you to officiate the rule: Once a single sign, symptom or behavior consistent with concussion is evident, you will make the call to remove the player from the game — without any “roundtable discussion” or “consensus building.” Removing a player is not a diagnosis. It is officiating the rule. And it is following the law.
5. HAVE A PLAN for what to do at the time of substitution. Upon removal of a player, the cause of the removal ought not to be kept a secret or tiptoed around. Any “guidance” to that effect simply misses the point of the rule and the laws in place. The head coach needs to know why the player is removed as the reason may impact whether and when the player can return to play in that game, or at another time.
6. KNOW THE PROTOCOL for same-day return to play, if any. Once the injured player is removed, the officials have limited — but vitally important — involvement. In some states and for some governing bodies, there is no return to play that day. If the game is played in a state where return to play same-day is permitted by the state (and the league, sponsor or governing body), there will be preconditions such as approval by a state-association titled “appropriate health care professional (AHCP).” This approval may be written or verbal depending on state association regulations. If written, the crew chief should retain the written approval. NOTE: In these situations, officials should ask a coach or site manager to identify the AHCP before the game.
SOURCE: ALAN GOLDBERGER
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QUIZ ANSWERS
BASKETBALL
1 — NFHS – d (4-6, 9-11); NCAAM/W – b (9-15.2.a.5)
2 — NFHS – d (10-6-1a); NCAAM/W – e (NCAAM 10-3.2 Pen., 10-4.2.e.1 Pen.; NCAAW 10-12.5.d.1 Pen.)
3 — All – c (NFHS 10-1-2c Pen.; NCAAM 10-2.2.b Pen.; NCAAW 10-12.2.b.2 Pen.)
4 — All – b (NFHS 4-20-1, 4-412, 5-1; NCAAM/W 5-1.2, 5-1.3, 5-1.16)
5 — All – d (NFHS 6-3-7, 6-3-8, 9-6; NCAAM/W 6-2.2, 9-8.1.b)
BASEBALL
1 — NFHS, pro – a (NFHS interp.; pro interp.); NCAA – b (2-13)
2 — All – a (NFHS 8-4-1g; NCAA 7-11p; pro 5.09a11)
3 — All – c (NFHS 2-9-1; NCAA 2-16; pro Catch Definition)
4 — NFHS – c (1-5-3); NCAA, pro – b (NCAA 1-15b; pro 3.08d) FOOTBALL
1 — NFHS – b (9-2-3c Pen., 10-42b); NCAA – c (3-3-2d-8; 9-3-4 Pen., 10-2-3)
2 — NFHS – b (7-5-2b); NCAA –
a (7-3-2a)
3 — NFHS – c, d (4-2-2i, 8-3-2a);
NCAA – b, d (8-3-4a)
4 — Both – c (NFHS 8-2-2, 8-2-5; NCAA 10-2-5a-2, 10-2-5c)
5 — NFHS – b (9-5 Pen.); NCAA – a (9-2-6b)
SOCCER
1 — All – c (NFHS 12-9-2d4; NCAA 12.7.4.4.2; IFAB 12.3)
2 — All – a (NFHS 5-3-1a; NCAA 13.1.2; IFAB 13.3)
3 — All – b (NFHS 12-9-1f8; NCAA 12.4.3.5; IFAB 12.3)
4 — All – c (NFHS 3-3-6; NCAA 3.7.1.c; IFAB 3.3)
SOFTBALL
1 — NFHS, NCAA, USA Softball – c (NFHS 5-1g-5, 8-4-3k Pen.; NCAA 12.12.6.3 Eff.; USA Softball 8-5M-1 Eff.); USSSA – b (8-14D1, 10-1G-5)
2 — All – b (NFHS 2-49, 9-1-1; NCAA 6.2.2; USA Softball 5-5A-1; USSSA 4-2A)
3 — All – c (NFHS 8-4-3e Pen.; NCAA 9.10.1, 12.12.8.3; USA Softball 8-5G Eff.; USSSA 8-14C3)
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TRAINING RESOURCES
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AUGUST
FLASHBACK
40 YEARS AGO … 1984
• Bob Herrold is appointed supervisor of basketball officials for the West Coast Athletic Conference (now West Coast Conference). Herrold, who worked multiple L.A. City championships, CIF championships and NCAA Final Fours during his oncourt career, would hold the position for 14 years.
4 — All – b (NFHS 3-5-4 Pen., 8-6-5 Pen.; NCAA 12.4.4 Eff.; USA Softball 8-7E Eff.; USSSA 8-18Y)
VOLLEYBALL
1 — All – a (NFHS 9-4-6d; NCAA 14.3.2.2; USAV 9.1.2.2; )
2 — NFHS/NCAA – a (NFHS 9-91, Pen. 1; NCAA 6.3.3.2); USAV – b (16.2.3)
3 — All – a (NFHS 4-5; NCAA 7.2.3.1; USAV Referee Techniques, Points of Emphasis 7d)
4 — NFHS – b (11-2-3); USAV – a (15.4.1); NCAA – c (11.2.2)
5 — All – c (NFHS 9-3, 9-81; NCAA Interp. 11-1; USAV Techniques, Mechanics, Procedures – Point of Emphasis-10)
6 — NFHS, NCAA – b (NFHS 4-1-4; NCAA 11.4.1); USAV – c (Techniques, Mechanics, Procedures – Point of Emphasis7a)
MISSION
Referee is a magazine written from an officiating perspective, blending editorial credibility and business viability. It educates, challenges and inspires officials at the youth, recreational, high school, collegiate and professional levels in all sports, with an emphasis on baseball, basketball, football, soccer, softball and volleyball. Referee is the journal of record for officiating and takes informed positions on selected issues. The magazine provides a forum for its readers, facilitates the flow of information, raises public consciousness about officials’ roles and serves as a catalyst for improved officiating worldwide.
30 YEARS AGO … 1994
• Retired major college football referee Gene Calhoun is convicted of two counts of delivery of crack cocaine in Dane County (Wis.) Circuit Court. Calhoun officiated in the Big Ten and was later the conference’s supervisor of football officials. He is the only official to referee the Rose Bowl in three different decades.
20 YEARS AGO … 2004
• Merle Butler, director of umpires for ASA (now USA Softball), retires. Butler was umpire-in-chief for the Olympics in 1996, 2000 and 2004, and was inducted into the International Softball Federation Hall of Fame in 1993.
10 YEARS AGO …
2014
• NFL referees Ron Winter and Scott Green retire. Winter, previously a referee in the Big Ten Conference, was hired by the NFL in 1995 as a line judge before being promoted to referee in 1998. Green started as a field judge in the NFL in 1991 and was promoted to referee in 2005.
On Fire About Officiating
For all of you who started officiating early in life, I envy you. I wish I had started years ago, but I have spent the last year trying to make up for lost time.
I am a newly licensed high school varsity football official in the Arizona Interscholastic Association and work as a wing. I had several goals for my offseason, but my main one for last year was to be the best high school football official I could possibly be and leave little to chance. I felt the best way to do that was to participate in as many quality snaps that I could during the offseason and be critiqued by those with far more experience
my mentor, Mike Taylor, asked me to join his varsity crew, and I readily accepted. Not wanting to disappoint Taylor nor decrease his confidence in me, I pursued as many training opportunities for football officials in the offseason that I could. Being retired allowed me the opportunity to attend without worrying about the schedule, so I took advantage of my annuitant status. It also helped that my wife took a job in Los Angeles in late 2022 and we moved there temporarily from Arizona, thus opening additional training options. One other little time requirement for me during all of this was I was training for the 2023 World Police and Fire Games (WPFG) CrossFit competiton, occurring in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in August 2023.
Over the summer, from attending camps and online discussion, I learned several valuable lessons all officials should realize.
Go all in. Once you decide to make the commitment, go all in. If you have one or two spare hours a week to get extra training, use them to get better. If you can get in one more snap at a clinic, jump in and take it. Bottom line is if you are going to participate in this wonderful avocation, doing it the right way pays off. You owe it to your crew, the players playing the game and, most importantly, to yourself.
The last game of the season was bittersweet as I felt I was just hitting my stride and I didn’t want the season to end.
than I. Attached to this first goal included attending any and all rules meetings I could. Secondly, I wanted to be in the best physical shape I could be going into the season.
I started officiating high school football in 2022 and fully embraced the experience. Dealing with young people, fellow officials and school administrators reminded me of my pre-retirement days in law enforcement, in a positive way. The camaraderie was refreshing. Officiating freshman and JV games with vigor in 2022 was a great experience for me, and I loved every minute! Before the start of last season,
Get out of your comfort zone. As a 30-year federal law enforcement veteran, I was confident in my abilities to execute the duties of being a special agent. However, as a brand-new football official, I felt like a “boot” or newbie in the academy when officiating during these clinics at times. I was often not sure if what I was doing was the correct mechanic and like everyone, I didn’t want to be embarrassed by my lack of skills, especially with an audience. I was definitely outside my comfort zone, to say the least. All these experiences, though, helped me become a better high school football official during the 2023 season. The experience I gained doing scrimmages significantly enhanced my self-confidence as well.
After one clinic, I came home in a terrible mood. I had not done well, in my opinion. I missed some calls and was lamenting my poor performance. My wife asked me what was the matter and I had told her. She said to me with hand on hip, “Well, get back out there and do it again until you get it right.” Like I said, get out of your comfort zone and hopefully your significant other is as honest as mine.
Physical fitness is paramount. Though my choice of exercise is CrossFit, I urge you to find something that you will consistently participate in to enhance your cardio fitness. I do, however, suggest you contact your physician in advance of any physical fitness activities you pursue, especially if just starting over to “get back in shape.” The current research on walking as part of your exercise regimen is it does wonders for your overall health. Whatever you choose, be consistent.
My 2023 season ended in a resounding success. My crew chief provided me honest feedback throughout the season and I appreciated the time he took to do so. The crew I was on also provided me the help I needed all season long and I couldn’t be more thankful. Lastly, I have a supporting wife who tells it like it is and loves me unconditionally no matter how cranky I can get.
The last game of the season was bittersweet as I felt I was just hitting my stride and I didn’t want the season to end.
As an aside, I won the gold medal in my division at the WPFG. I can hardly wait for next summer!
John A. Torres, Buckeye, Ariz., is a high school official and member of the California Football Officials Association (San Fernando Valley Unit) and the Arizona Football Officials Association. He is retired from the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives as the deputy assistant director and attained the senior executive service rank during his 30-year career.
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Send your story or queries to lastcall@referee.com
IT’S OFFICIAL
2025 Summit in Montgomery Dares Attendees to Lead
The 2025 NASO Sports Officiating Summit takes us to the capital of Alabama. Montgomery will serve as the center of the sports officiating universe for the three-day event. NASO is looking to arm attendees with lessons on leadership that will help administrators, supervisors and coordinators into the future of the officiating landscape.
“Montgomery is going to be fantastic!” NASO President Bill Topp said. “It’s a region rich in civil and political history, and with a strong sports culture. We are excited to connect with the sports officiating community there.”
After addressing recruitment, retention and sportsmanship at recent Sports Officiating Summits, the focus now shifts to leading sports officiating into the future, tackling a new set of crucial challenges. The theme for the three-day industry event of the year in 2025 is “Dare to Lead: Develop, Direct & Defend Officials.”
Recent data from two historic, industry-wide surveys in the last eight years highlights the importance of mentoring, assigning and managing the messages; those three topics and many more will be explored
by the industry’s best while in Montgomery.
“We are looking forward to working with the Alabama High School Athletic
Association (AHSAA) as it hosts State Day and the Summit for the first time,” Topp said. “The officials in Alabama and the surrounding region will enjoy an opportunity like they haven’t seen before.”
Officiate Alabama Day, co-sponsored by the NFHS and the AHSAA, will be held July 26, 2025, and the Sports Officiating Summit will be held July 27-29, 2025. All events will take place at the Montgomery
Renaissance Hotel and Convention Center.
“We are thrilled to host the Sports Officiating Summit in Montgomery, and the AHSAA is eagerly looking forward to the exciting opportunities it presents,” AHSAA Director of Officials Ken Washington said. “The Summit promises to be a fantastic event, and we’re enthusiastic about the positive impact it will have in our community and the sports landscape in the state of Alabama.”
Montgomery is nestled along the Alabama River and sits about 150 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico. The state capital is rich in Civil Rights history and is home to many national historic landmarks. The mix of restored 19th century buildings, revitalized downtown and updated Riverwalk are all part of a business and residential growth plan for the city.
NASO and AHSAA look forward to the maiden voyage of Alabama hosting the event. For anyone involved in sports officiating, Montgomery is the place to be in July 2025. More information about the event will be available at sportsofficiatingsummit.com following the conclusion of this year’s Summit.
NASO continues to be the leading voice for sports officials across the country. As a byproduct of that, various media, educational, government and news outlets contact NASO for comments on matters that affect officials and lean on NASO for important projects across the sports officiating landscape as well as feature officiating leaders connected to NASO. Here are recent examples of NASO impact:
NASO Board Chair Honored NASO board chair Robert Smith Jr. was recognized March 29 at the Spirit of Griots Culture Makers Honors. The event
NASO in the News
took place at the Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center at the University of Northern Iowa and was hosted by Charles Daniel, senior pastor of Antioch Baptist Church, and Deidre DeJear, business owner and voting rights activist.
Griots originated from West Africa and served as storytellers, musicians, praise singers and oral historians of their communities. Griots Honors has the mission to celebrate the modern-day individuals who continue this tradition of heritage and culture.
com, Miles sat down with NASO President Bill Topp for some more insights into the current officiating landscape.
“We’re here largely because the treatments and the working conditions for sports officials are not good and have not been good for many decades,” Topp said.
“There’s been a slow decline in the number of people who have interest in becoming a sports official. The officiating industry is an aging one, supporting the need for recruitment and retention.”
Editor: Julie Sternberg
Sports Editor: Brent Killackey
Graphic Designer: Dustin Brown
Contributors: Don Collins, George Demetriou, Alan Goldberger, Joe Jarosz, Patrick Rosenow, Tim Sloan, Brad Star, Jeffrey Stern, Brad Tittrington, Scott Tittrington, Bill Topp
NASO BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Robert Smith, Waterloo, Iowa, Chair
Lisa Jones, Chandler, Ariz., Vice Chair
Bill Topp, Racine, Wis., President
Dana Pappas, Lebanon, Ind., Secretary
*Bill Carollo, Shorewood, Wis., Treasurer
*Ron Foxcroft, Hamilton, Ontario, Special Adviser
*Barry Mano, Racine, Wis., Special Adviser
Dean Blandino, Santa Monica, Calif.
Paul LaRosa, Hendersonville, N.C.
Pati Rolf, Pewaukee, Wis.
Sandra Serafini, Yachats, Ore.
Ron Torbert, Hanover, Md.
Mark Uyl, DeWitt, Mich.
Rob Wigod, Los Alamitos, Calif.
*Non-voting members
NASO MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of NASO is to:
• Serve members by providing benefits and services.
• Improve officiating performance through educational programs.
• Advocate opportunities for officials and engage in programs to recruit and retain officials.
• Create alliances with organizations that benefit from healthy officiating programs.
Smith is a Big Ten football back judge and the executive director of the Center for Urban Education at the University of Northern Iowa. He was the recipient of the Culture Makers Honors in the sports classification.
“Being the recipient in the athletics category was a major honor, and officiating has been the key,” Smith said.
Smith was one of about a dozen individuals honored with the Spirit of Griots this year. Other categories include business, music, philanthropy, education, and wellness.
NASO in National Sporting Goods Association Magazine
The National Sporting Goods Association magazine, NSGA NOW, featured an article by Bruce Miles in its March/April 2024 edition titled, “Official business: Declining numbers penalizing teams, athletes.” In addition to citing a variety of data from the 2023 National Officiating Survey powered by Referee.
Miles has covered sports in the Chicago area since 1979 and was the Daily Herald’s beat writer covering the Chicago Cubs from 1998-2019.
NFHS Voice Cites
NASO Survey
A 5/24 edition of “The NFHS Voice,” a recurring article series about hot topics in high school sports across the country, had NFHS CEO Dr. Karissa Niehoff leading off with, “Unacceptable behavior at high school sporting events — it’s still happening.”
Those of us in officiating are on the front lines and experience what Niehoff is expressing.
Niehoff quoted data in her article from the 2023 National Officiating Survey powered by Referee.com. She pointed out that 68% of respondents said sportsmanship is getting worse, an 11% jump compared to the results of the same question asked of those surveyed in 2017.
Niehoff concluded with, “We must do better. In high school sports, coaches must support those individuals who are serving as officials — those people who make it possible for the games to continue.”
2024 NASO Summit Support Organizations
Alabama High School Athletic Association — Founded in 1921, the AHSAA regulates athletic programs among its 414 senior high members and 287 junior high and middle school members, representing more than 100,000 students.
American Specialty Insurance-Risk Services Inc. Founded in 1989, ASI specializes in insurance and risk services for the Sports and Entertainment industry. Over 50 niche programs are offered to the Professional Sports, Amateur Sports, Motorsports and Entertainment industries.
ArbiterSports — The company pioneered the use of sports-official-assigning software in 1984 and has been the industry leader ever since.
Arizona Interscholastic Association — AIA, started in 1913, is committed to the inclusion of equitable interscholastic opportunities for both boys and girls in all Arizona high schools.
Atlantic Coast Conference — The ACC, through its institutions, seeks to maximize the educational and athletic opportunities that shape the leaders of tomorrow — in the classroom, competition and life.
Big East Conference — Founded in 1979, the league’s 11-member schools are committed to academic integrity, athletic excellence and community service. Reorganized in 2013, the Big East chose to return to its basketball-focused heritage.
Big Sky Conference — The Big Sky, established in 1963, is one of three conferences in the western U.S. playing Division I football and is a national leader in the Football Championship Subdivision. It sponsors nine women’s and seven men’s sports.
Big Ten Conference — The Big Ten is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the U.S, and despite its name, consists of 14 member schools.
California Basketball Officials Association — More than 3,700 officials are members of the only statewide basketball officials association in the state, from youth to semi-pro competition.
The success of the NASO Sports Officiating Summit depends on the support of a number of sponsoring organizations. Here’s a brief description of each of the support organizations for 2024.
California Interscholastic Federation — A presenting sponsor of the 2023 Summit, CIF’s ideal of “Pursuing Victory with Honor,” provides the opportunity to dramatically influence the actions of the athletic community.
California Interscholastic Federation-Southern Section — Founded in 1913, the CIF-Southern Section is largest of the 10 sections that comprise the California Interscholastic Federation. It was a presenting sponsor of the 2023 Summit.
Canadian Football League — The professional football league of Canada started in 1958. Currently nine teams battle each year for the Grey Cup.
Chief Zebra Enterprises — A consulting company founded by Mike Pereira, the former vice president of officiating for the NFL and current Fox Sports officiating analyst.
Cliff Keen Athletic — An officials apparel company, Cliff Keen Athletic is dedicated to the advancement of athletics through innovative products.
Collegiate Football Officiating LLC — CFO was formed in 2008 by the NCAA and the Collegiate Commissioners’ Association to ensure consistent application of football rules and officiating mechanics and to establish a leader for officiating.
Collegiate Officiating Consortium — The COC is a group organized to assist intercollegiate athletic conferences in all activities related to officiating. COC football officials work in the Big Ten, Missouri Valley, MAC, Pioneer League and various D-II and D-III leagues around the Midwest.
Colorado High School Activities Association — Serving 230,000 students in more than 360 member schools in Colorado, the CHSAA was the host of the 2022 NASO Summit.
Court Club Elite — Court Club Elite’s personalized basketball officiating training program includes all facets of becoming a successful high-level referee. It covers topics from rules, to mechanics and gamecalling, to effective game management strategies.
Division II Collegiate Commissioners Association
The mission of the CCA is to encourage and promote Division II athletics and high standards of sportsmanship as important elements of higher education. The CCA works as a communications channel to NCAA Division II members, and serves as a voice to the NCAA representing those schools.
DVSport Software Inc. — DVSport Inc. specializes in digital video acquisition, analysis, and play-back software designed specifically for the sports market.
Eagle Tax Res — Eagle Tax Res Inc is a tax resolution firm specializing in fixing tax issues nationwide. It offers tax preparation for sports officials and knows the ins and outs of deductions for officials.
Fox 40 International Inc. — Fox 40 is manufacturer of the world-famous Fox 40 Pealess Whistle. It developed an innovative and reliable product that revolutionized the whistle and changed the industry. Fox 40 products also include whistle attachments, gear, coaching boards, mouthguards and marine & outdoor products.
Fox40ShopUSA.com — Fox40shopUSA.com is the online retailer of Fox 40 products. Fox40shopUSA. com offers Fox 40’s complete product line and allows ease of purchase for all Fox 40’s customers.
Fox Sports — FOX Sports is the umbrella entity representing FOX Corporation’s wide array of multiplatform US-based sports assets.
Game Keepers — Officiating consortium directed by Debbie Williamson, American Athletic Conference and Big East Conference Coordinator of Women’s Basketball Officiating.
Georgia Athletic Officials Association — GAOA provides services and support to its member officials statewide to encourage excellence, emphasize sportsmanship, fair play and integrity at all levels.
Georgia High School Association — With more than 460 schools and serving more than 450,000 students, the governing body for high school athletics in Georgia is the host and a presenting sponsor for the 2024 Summit.
Honig’s — Honig’s has been an industry leader in officiating equipment and clothing for more than 40 years. Its online store at honigs.com provides a safe and hassle-free shopping experience for officials.
Hudl — Hudl is a pioneer in performance analysis technology, now helping more than 200,000 teams in 40+ global sports prepare for and stay ahead of the competition. From grassroots to the pros, more than 6M users utilize Hudl’s best-in-class software.
Illinois High School Association — With close to 800 schools, the IHSA offers 15 statewide championships for boys and 17 for girls. More than 546,000 students attend IHSA schools.
Indiana High School Athletic Association — This school year, more than 160,000 students will compete in IHSAA-sanctioned tournaments in 22 sports — 10 for girls, 10 for boys and two co-ed.
International Association of Approved Basketball Officials — Founded in 1923, two of IAABO’s stated purposes are to educate, train, develop and provide instruction for basketball officials and to promote the welfare of the game, its players and officials.
Iowa High School Athletic Association — The governing body for boys’ sports in Iowa serves nearly 400 schools and more than 230,000 students.
Kansas State High School Activities Association — Formed in 1937, the KSHSAA is supported by more than 700 member schools. The KSHSAA offers state championships in 11 boys’ and girls’ sports.
Kentucky High School Athletic Association — The KHSAA, organized in 1917, sanctions 13 sports and six sport activities, and licenses more than 4,000 officials. Kentucky hosted the 2017 NASO Summit.
Let’s Go Ref — Let’s Go Ref provides a new way to pay your referees. It’s fast, saves time and removes headaches and errors.
Major League Baseball — MLB is the highest level of play in North American pro baseball. Reviving Baseball in the Inner Cities and the Youth Baseball Academy are among MLB’s community programs.
MIBT Media — MIBT Media offers a variety of media services, including officiating education, clinic/camp event planning and management, instructional videos, sports entertainment, documentary production and officiating services.
Michigan High School Athletic Association —
Nearly 300,000 athletes participate in MHSAA sports each year, competing for more than 120 state titles. The MHSAA and NASO partnered in 2022, enrolling all MHSAA officials into NASO.
Mid-American Conference — The MAC has 12 member schools and is one of 11 Division I footballplaying conferences. It offers 10 men’s and 12 women’s sports.
Minnesota State High School League — The MSHSL oversees more than 8,000 officials and provides sports for more than 240,000 students at 500 schools. Minnesota hosted the 2010 NASO Summit.
Missouri State High School Activities Association
The MSHSAA sponsors 17 sports and more than 175,000 students by promoting the value of participation, sportsmanship, team play and personal excellence.
Missouri Valley Football Conference — Founded in 1985, the Missouri Valley Football Conference, a member of the Football Championship Subdivision, is made up of 11 schools in the Midwest.
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
Founded in 1937, the NAIA is the governing body of athletics programs dedicated to character-driven athletics. More than 77,000 NAIA student-athletes from 250 schools play college sports.
National Collegiate Athletic Association — Founded in 1906, the NCAA is made up of three membership classifications that are known as Divisions I, II and III. Each division creates its own rules governing personnel, recruiting, eligibility, financial aid, and playing and practice seasons.
National Federation of State High School Associations — A presenting sponsor of the Summit, the NFHS has been the leader of high school sports and other activity programs nationwide for more than 100 years.
National Football League – Officiating Department The NFL’s office that coordinates all operations related to officiating.
National Football League Referee Association — The group that represents all the NFL’s officials. The association is involved with charitable and educational efforts throughout the country.
National Hockey League — Established in 1917 as the successor to the National Hockey Association the NHL is a professional hockey league with 32 member clubs: 25 in the U.S. and seven in Canada.
National Hockey League Officials Association —
The NHLOA was born in 1969 to improve working conditions, salaries and other benefits for NHL officials. All members are active officials working in the NHL and designated minor leagues.
Neat Tucks — With Neat Tucks, loose shirts at big meetings, games, or your wedding are a thing of the past. Look professional and impeccable all day long with Neat Tucks products, made in the USA.
New Mexico Officials Association — The NMOA is the officiating body for high school sports in the state, serving more than 46,000 student-athletes.
Louisiana High School Athletic Association — The LHSAA, organized in 1920, administers 27 championship sport programs, governs 390 member schools, and certifies the eligibility of nearly 90,000 athletes, 8,000 coaches and 6,000 officials annually.
Louisiana High School Officials Association — The LHSOA was formed in 2009 to provide officials for the interscholastic sports programs of Louisiana.
National Association of Sports Officials — NASO, the primary presenting sponsor of Sports Officiating Summits, is a non-for-profit organization of 30,000plus referees, umpires, judges, assigners and sport leaders.
New York State Public High School Athletic Association — More than 389,000 athletes participated in one of the 27 sports sponsored by the governing body for New York State.
National Basketball Association — Founded in 1946, the NBA is home to the highest level of one of the most entertaining sports. The league is composed of 30 teams and is the premier men’s professional basketball league in the world.
Notch — Made for referee assigners. Built for productivity. Notch is an all-in-one referee scheduler, assignment and payment solution to help solve the hardest parts of assigning sports officials for all competitions.
Officiating Collective — With more than 40 years of experience in the development and support of officials, the Australian-based organization provides support, education, training and professional development to all officials at various stages of their development pathway.
Referee Magazine — As the original magazine for sports officiating and the industry’s best-known publication, Referee has set the journalistic standard for developing educational materials for officials.
Ohio High School Athletic Association — The OHSAA co-sponsored the 2008 Summit. There are approximately 15,000 officials, 70,000 coaches and 400,000 athletes affiliated with the OHSAA.
Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association — Dating back to 1911, the OSSAA organizes secondary school athletics and activities in the state. It currently serves 482 member schools.
Oregon Athletic Officials Association — The OAOA represents all high school officials in Oregon. The OAOA works to enhance the quality, consistency and perception of officiating throughout the state.
Oregon School Activities Association — The OSAA serves 295 schools and more than 170,000 students in Oregon and served as co-sponsor and host for the NASO Summit in 2003 and 2013.
Precision Timing Systems — Since its inception in 1994, the world standard in “Whistle Controlled Timing Systems” as defined by FIBA. Its technology returns one minute or more of playing time to a basketball contest by stopping the clock instantly upon the sounding of the referee’s whistle.
Professional Association of Volleyball Officials — For more than 20 years, PAVO has operated as an independent, non-profit organization working to train and certify volleyball referees in partnership with USA Volleyball, NCAA, NAIA and NJCAA.
Professional Referee Organization — PRO is the organization responsible for managing the referee and assistant referee program in professional soccer leagues in the U.S. and Canada, working alongside U.S. Soccer and MLS, among others.
Purchase Officials Supplies — Purchase Officials Supplies is based in Ohio and offers officiating gear in nine sports. The company works with several states to provide officially licensed apparel.
QwikRef — QwikRef is an online reporting tool used by coordinators of officials to evaluate, train, and analyze conference officiating staff. QwikRef integrates every part of the officiating program and can be modified to meet new initiatives.
RefReps — Comprised of comprehensive officiating education courses and interactive training video packs, the RefReps Officiating Education System™ helps create a modernized educational experience. It equips organizations to teach officiating.
Refr Sports — Refr Sports sets a new standard for sports organizations, referees, and assigners, moving away from outdated systems and into a streamlined, efficient future.
Reveal Media — Reveal Media is the market leader in body-worn camera solutions and digital evidence management software. Its advanced body worn camera technology is used in multiple industries.
RF Audio — RF Audio provides communication systems including full duplex and digitallyencrypted transceivers and premium lightweight headsets made exclusively for RF Audio, as well as high-end custom built headsets for all applications.
South Dakota High School Activities Association Organized in 1905, the SDHSAA directs the operation of the interscholastic programs of its member schools.
Southeastern Conference — A pioneer in the integration of higher education and athletic competition, the SEC is a leader on the national landscape for intercollegiate athletics.
Sports Officials Care — Sports Officials Care is a nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring, educating, and uniting officials at all levels with the goal of giving back and creating positive change.
Summit Well-Being Anonymous Team — A group of anonymous donors that contributes annually to the NASO Summit.
Sun Belt Conference — Founded in 1976, the Sun Belt is one of 10 NCAA D-I FBS conferences. It offers 18 sports for more than 5,500 student-athletes.
Texas High School Basketball Officials Association The association, in conjunction with the state governing body, aids in the education and development of basketball officials in the state.
Ultimate Fighting Championship — Started in 1993, UFC is a professional mixed martial arts organization offering the premier series of those events.
Ump-Attire.com — The leading online retailer for sports officials’ gear and apparel.
UMPS CARE Charities — UMPS CARE Charities was founded by MLB umpires. UMPS CARE provides financial, in-kind and emotional support for America’s youth and families in need.
United States Polo Association — The governing body for the sport since 1890, it sponsors programs for education and promotion of the sport in the U.S.
United States Tennis Association — The governing body for tennis, the USTA sponsors local leagues and tournaments and runs the U.S. Open, one of professional tennis’ four Grand Slam events.
University Interscholastic League — Since 1910, the UIL has grown into the largest inter-school organization of its kind. More than 785,000 athletes participate in UIL sports.
USA Cheer/STUNT the Sport — USA Cheer is the U.S. governing body for sport cheering recognized by the International Cheer Union serving the cheer, dance team, and spirit community. STUNT is a new female sport that incorporates cheerleading skills.
USA Hockey — With a membership of more than 525,000 ice and inline hockey players, coaches and officials, USA Hockey’s main emphasis is on the support of grassroots hockey programs.
USA Pickleball — USA Pickleball is the national governing body for the sport in the U.S. It was the world’s first national pickleball organization when it was formed in 1984 as the U.S. Amateur Pickleball Association. It became USA Pickleball in 2005.
Texas Association of Sports Officials — Formed in the 1930s, TASO is an independent organization of sports officials in Texas governed by officials.
USA Softball — Established in 1933, USA Softball, formerly the Amateur Softball Association, is the largest governing body for softball in the U.S.
From the Chair respect and esteem
By Robert Smith Jr.
This is my final column as chair of the NASO board since my term of serving on the board is soon ending. In my previous columns I made sure to indicate, in one way or another, how honored I am to serve all of you in this position. It has been an exciting and meaningful ride, and the experience has helped me grow as a person, learn as an official, and better understand my colleagues in this field. Thank you for allowing me to hold this important role.
Everything I’ve written previously has been something I’ve long considered, something I’ve wanted to share, something I believed would help all of us in the long run. Those columns have been leading me to this single point: That at the end of the day, officiating is work that, when completely understood by those outside the field, deserves significant respect. If the crowd, the armchair officials and even athletes, knew how much we love and concern ourselves with the management of the athletic contests, we would not have misunderstandings about calls and decisions. We’d have respect and esteem for the people who have worked exceptionally hard to earn trust, develop credibility, and put aside politics in the name of delivering an excellent contest for every individual involved. Allow me to explain.
Trust. Officiating works best when there is a high level of
trust — from those observing and playing, but also among those officiating. Our crews trust one another. There is no better feeling than knowing someone has your back. I didn’t believe I’d experience that past my days as a student-athlete. When you as an official are on the field or court, and someone steps up to offer information that helps you learn and/or get it right, that’s trust. When someone is willing to come out of their comfort zone and share information that helps you, they are taking a risk. But it happens all the time because we trust one another. It’s good for the game. If we did more of that in our everyday workplaces, we’d build strong and welcoming organizations populated by employees who strongly identify with the culture of that organization. It doesn’t get any better than that!
Credibility Our need for credibility is huge. People count on us to be fair, knowledgeable, decisive and above all, objective. That is ensured by requiring that officials maintain certain lifestyles, covering everything from our physical health to social media presence to money management. By living a certain way, we’ll do our very best to uphold high ideals across the board.
Environment without politics When an individual becomes an official, sliding into that striped shirt, they automatically become “one of us.” No one cares about political affiliation, identity, or national origin. We are a community that supports one another, period. Those stripes mean we care about the same thing: getting it
right. I don’t know any official who isn’t troubled when an athletic contest goes awry or has hiccups. We want to do right by the game, the athletes and the fans. We don’t walk into an arena or onto a field thinking about anything other than how we can make sure this contest is officiated fairly and consistently. I’ve learned in the community we know how to be respectful and embrace our differences. In order for us to be successful, we have to be on the same page. If we can do it in officiating, we can do it across our society — and create a better society.
As I sign off, I want to thank my colleagues on the board for allowing me to be part of such an esteemed board, and for trusting me to lead this organization. I also want to offer my sincere gratitude to two important individuals:
Barry Mano, the founder of Referee magazine and NASO, for his leadership and vision of bringing us together via this communication vehicle.
Bill Carollo for trusting my abilities in a field I’ve come to love. I would not be here were it not for Bill who has been both gracious and generous with his mentoring, time, and institutional knowledge.
Thank you again.
Robert Smith of Waterloo, Iowa, is executive director of the University of Northern Iowa’s Center for Urban Education. He has been a Big Ten football official for 20 years, officiating 12 NCAA bowl games and the 2011 and 2014 BCS National Championship games. He has also been a high school football and girls’ and boys’ basketball official for 30 years.
SPONSORS
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US Youth Soccer — The largest youth sport organization in the U.S. provides support and resources to help members fulfill their goals. It registers nearly 2.5 million players annually.
USA Volleyball — The national governing body for the sport in the U.S. and is recognized as such by the Federation Internationale de Volleyball and the U.S. Olympic Committee.
Vokkero USA by VOGO Sports — Vokkero USA by VOGO Sports is a company working to bring headset tech to officiating.
Washington Interscholastic Activities Association Founded in 1905, the WIAA governs high school sports for nearly 800 schools in Washington.
Washington Officials Association — Founded in 1946, WOA provides officials for WIAA-sanctioned events and works to promote, recruit, educate and retain officials in the state of Washington. WOA officials are members of NASO through a partnership begun in 2018.
West Coast Conference — First formed in 1952, the WCC has evolved to become a nationally recognized and competitive force in intercollegiate athletics, with 15 league-sponsored sports.
Time to Get to Work?
There never seems to be enough hours in the day. So how do you, as an association leader, find the time to take care of association business? Try some of these tips to effectively use your time to the association’s benefit.
Maximize meetings. As an association leader, your role during meetings differs from that of the rank-and-file members. Yes, you can still use some time to socialize, but you don’t have the luxury of tuning out when business is being shared or heading home as soon as the last piece of public business is addressed. Stay engaged throughout the meeting so that you have a grasp of all relevant information. Also, show up 30 minutes early, stay 30 minutes late, and suddenly you have an extra hour to work on the details with which you’ve been entrusted.
Take a night off. Are you not just an association leader, but a working official? If so, you need to keep your officiating priorities straight. Rather than taking an
extra game during the week, use the 3-4 hours that you would have devoted to that assignment to take care of business that benefits your entire association instead.
Stay organized. Nothing is more frustrating than making a conscious effort to devote time to a specific task, and then not having the tools needed to complete that task. Keep all of your association business in one place and organize it in a system that works for you.
Don’t procrastinate. Don’t
ASSOCIATION ADVANTAGE
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PLATINUM & PLATINUM SHIELD
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Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association
The WIAA serves more than 500 schools and more than 300,000 students by developing and organizing high ideals of good citizenship and sportsmanship.
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ZebraWeb by VantageSportz — ZebraWeb offers a state-of-the-art officials association management system, officials assigning system, full data reporting capabilities and officials game film exchange system.
put off until tomorrow that which can be done today. If you wait until tomorrow, something else will come up, causing even greater delay. Take care of business as it comes and stay on schedule. Meet your deadlines. As a side benefit, you’ll discover you actually have more time, as you’ll eliminate all of the wasted minutes spent thinking about business, only to kick that can down the road until some later time, when at some point you will have to finish the work anyway.
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NASO Partners With USA Pickleball
USA Pickleball, the national governing body for the sport of pickleball in the U.S., announced in May a new partnership with NASO that provides resources and benefits to USA Pickleball’s nearly 1,000 officials.
USA Pickleball officials are joining NASO under NASO’s group membership program that provides reduced membership fees and enhanced benefits, including a dedicated pickleball webpage through NASO’s “Say Yes to Officiating” program. Additionally, USA Pickleball is providing financial support to the annual Sports Officiating Summit presented by NASO and will be among the nearly 100 Summit support organizations at in Atlanta, July 28-30.
“On behalf of the NASO Board of Directors, I want to
recognize the commitment of USA Pickleball in providing the best support possible for their officials,” said NASO President Bill Topp. “Not only does this partnership provide unparalleled educational resources and the best officiating insurance in the nation, it speaks to the commitment that USA Pickleball has to supporting its sports officials and by extension to supporting the sports officiating industry as a whole.”
As an educational non-profit organization, NASO advocates for excellence in officiating, provides education and support to sports officials, and leads the way with its comprehensive officiating insurance protections — including liability coverage, assigning and game call insurance, assault protection insurance, and legal and informational consultation
National Survey Says … Officials Use Devices for Pre/Postgame
Fifty-one percent of respondents to NASO’s 2023
National Officiating Survey powered by Referee. com use their cell phone or other mobile device as a tool for their pregame and postgame discussion (sometimes, frequently or always). The use of technology is enhancing our game preparation, not only at association meetings but at game sites.
Conducted during the spring and summer of 2023, the National Officiating Survey was completed by more than 35,000 sports officials from all levels and all sports. The data is available for research, study and analysis to anyone interested in the sports officiating industry at naso.org/survey
service for members.
“We are thrilled to partner with NASO, the leading advocate for sports officials across the country, to provide our pickleball officials with the increased resources and benefits that come with membership in such a respected and longstanding organization,” said Tom Tadler, USA Pickleball managing director of officiating. “We’re a fastgrowing sport, and our national officiating program is evolving. This partnership will be an integral part of that program, and our officials will benefit greatly as we develop relationships across the officiating industry through NASO.”
sports section
Get Better a Step at a Time
By Tim Sloan
So you’ve got a good slate of assignments this year, but you’re hoping for the big rivalry games in the future. Or you’ve worked the wings, but you’re aspiring to make crew chief. Last year, you got firstround postseason assignments and this year you’d like to go deeper in the playoffs.
If you’re already at this point in your officiating career, it shouldn’t take too much more effort to achieve your next goal. To advance, you should always have an eye on developing as an official. Focus on incremental steps each season and you are more likely to reach your potential.
Here are some of the little things you can do right now that can help turn into noticeable improvement in the next year:
Get better at your rulebook. At the basic level, that seems like a no-brainer, but it’s not about doing better on next year’s test. We’re certainly not trying to make you notable for calling more fouls, either. Getting to know the rules more intimately has an unquestionable effect on your confidence. The game in front of you becomes less of a blur and the more you feel like you can handle anything that comes up. Don’t try to memorize all the rules because there’s a difference between retention and understanding.
Take a look back at some of the situations that gave you pause last season and focus on them in your study. Think about how the wording of the rule applies to what you had to deal with. Then take what you’ve learned or reviewed and imagine similar situations that could come up. Work on it every week and you’ll quickly notice a difference.
improve by learning from others.
Get better at looking the part. Imagine watching three guys working a basketball game. One wears blackish cotton pants with a black belt. The second has polyester pants that show 1.5 inches of sock while the third looked like a model for a uniform supplier. Spending a few bucks more on the high-end stuff is
Getting to know the rules more intimately has an unquestionable effect on your confidence.
Get better at relationships. How an official interacts with players and/or coaches is very important. So much of your progress as an official has to do with the confidence the people writing the checks have in you. Coaches don’t always know the rules, but they certainly can pick out the officials with whom they can communicate and who they trust to take care of business. If you don’t think some hostility is part of the game, read one of former NFL referee Jerry Markbreit’s books. Try a good self-help book to learn about developing relationships. If you’re getting into pickles,
a shrewd investment. If you come out onto the field or floor looking like Jed Clampett, some people will form an opinion you might not like.
The other element of looking the part is your body shape. Some of us remain thin from birth to death, whether we exercise daily or never. Others add a pound at the mere thought of a juicy hamburger. Coaches and players naturally size up people’s physical appearance. If you think you’re on the heavy side, somebody else probably does, too. Eat a little less and exercise more.
Get better at knowing your territory. Some of the most interesting evenings in my career had something to do with being unprepared. I walked square into the jaws of Coach Beelzebub one time because I hadn’t heard why everyone else was turning down games with him. Think about how you can become better informed about the places and personalities you’re dealing with. If the people in your association tend to gather somewhere after Friday’s game, drop in sometimes. If your association has regular meetings, attend as many as possible. The more you can discuss your avocation and the forces in it, the better off you’ll be.
FOOTBALL
Crew Chief Leadership Skills
By George Demetriou
Football officiating positions are almost as varied as the player positions themselves. While many attributes are common to all positions, such as solid rules knowledge, other skills are at a premium for certain positions. An example is exceptional people skills are a prerequisite for sideline officials and not the highest priority for umpires and back judges.
Disorganization breeds confusion. If you don’t have a plan when you get to the game, everyone will just do their own thing.
Take ownership and responsibility. The military mantra applies here: The crew chief is responsible for all the crew does and fails to do. Your crew has to know you’ll be there for them through the good and the bad times. That doesn’t mean you absolve people from making mistakes or ignore sloppy mechanics, but it does mean you take responsibility for the big picture.
Get better at managing your time. The busier you get, the more likely you’ll have home, work and travel pressures to keep straight. When you start showing up without your shirt in your bag or your spouse starts teaching you new signals when you leave for a game, those are signs your system’s breaking down. Officiating isn’t worth it if you have more stress off the field than on it. Start making lists. Put apps on your iPad that make it easier to remember important info. Above all, put the people you love first, your job second and officiating third. It will improve your performance.
Following through on the aforementioned strategies and the effect it will have on your officiating depends on how far up the ladder you already are; opportunities for improvement become minutia as you become more accomplished. If you have things to fix, get after them. It takes more than osmosis. It takes a conscious effort to get where you want to go
This article was adapted from an article in a previous issue of Referee magazine.
The referee position is also the crew chief and that belies certain leadership skills. Not everyone is or wants to be a leader; however, being a leader is more than having the title of one and leadership has many different forms. There can be more than one leader on a crew and that’s no different than in any business organization. It’s important to understand how people lead.
Lead by example. That is the single most important skill to leadership. “Do as I say, not as I do” just doesn’t work. You can’t be a loner, someone that’s never around and incapable of getting your hands dirty. If for no other reason, personally showing how it should be done answers the question of how.
Passion. A leader without passion is just a taskmaster. Passion and enthusiasm inspire others. Successful coaches such as Vince Lombardi are a great example, albeit some go overboard. You don’t have to be a constant rabble rouser, but you’ve got to believe in what you’re doing and convey that to the crew.
Be organized. Disorganized leaders cannot lead effectively; they’re likely going in circles.
Communicate effectively. No one can lead without communicating properly. It’s important the crew chief relates to crew members how their work contributes to the bigger picture. Constructive criticism is necessary and so is praise. Some compliment is always warranted. If the game was a success, everyone had a contribution of sorts. People crave affirmation; they want to know they did a good job and that their work is appreciated. Someone has to tell them.
Precision is necessary. Insecure leaders will often ramble; uninterested leaders cut things off too quickly. You have to figure out how much to say and in what order. Be specific and concise and get to the point quickly.
Be brave and honest. Cowardly leaders will shy away from any number of situations that crop up regularly during the season. If you have to talk to someone about a recent lack of effort, do so. Be as polite and tactful as you can; don’t be a jerk. You have to learn how to present things in an honest but balanced manner. Ignoring a problem won’t make it go away and will likely make it worse.
Great listener. A large part of being a great communicator is being a great listener. If all you want to do is talk, you’re not a leader. Keeping people motivated means listening to them and understanding their issues. When you ask questions and listen to the reply, you can respond more effectively and get to the crux of the matter much quicker.
Know your people. You have to know your crew. You don’t have to be best friends with any of them but you do have to know what makes them tick. You need to know something about their personal lives because their lives outside football have an impact. Those that are struggling to make a living won’t be able to go to camps. Shift workers have very little flexibility and they may be frequently late.
Be a follower. Trying to lead and doing your own thing makes you a dictator. Being a leader-follower means being fully immersed in all activities. The crew will be open to you and you’ll always know the issues. Don’t underestimate the value of a postgame in a pub.
George Demetriou has been a football official since 1968. He lives in Colorado Springs, Colo.
VOLLEYBALL
Zone In
By the Referee editors
The libero replacement zone can be a busy place during the course of a match. Throw in a few substitutions to go along with those replacements and it’s easy for a referee or scorer to become confused or distracted, not to mention the players themselves. Getting back to the basics is an easy way for referees and scorers to avoid the chaos.
First, in all codes, all libero replacements must take place through the libero replacement zone — along the sideline in front of the team bench, from the attack line extension to the endline extension. Once in a while, a libero may run from the team bench or the warmup area (NCAA/USAV) across the endline to replace a teammate. Referees must be alert to that and use preventive officiating to immediately correct the replacement by having the libero and the replacement go through the replacement procedure properly. If a team or libero repeatedly uses improper replacement procedures, an unnecessary delay (NFHS) or a delay sanction (NCAA/USAV) may be assessed.
Secondly, libero replacements may not take place during a timeout. The six players who were on the court when the timeout was called must return to the court at the end of the timeout, and only then may a libero replacement take place. The assistant scorer/ libero tracker must be alert and notify the second referee if a replacement occurs during the timeout. A good technique is for the assistant scorer/libero tracker to signal to the second referee after the timeout has been taken to notify the second referee the location of the libero for each team. This way, the second referee can quickly glance at the assistant scorer/libero tracker and know if the libero needs to be on the court at the end of the timeout and can use preventive officiating if noticing liberos are not where they are supposed to be. Again, referees may use preventive officiating to correct an improper replacement during a timeout, but repeated improper replacements should be sanctioned.
All NASO members get an exclusive 10% discount as a benefit of NASO membership. Members are able to use the discount on Ump-Attire.com’s 850+ o ciating gear and apparel and qualify for free shipping o ers and free returns. Registered NASO members will be able to access the discount automatically without using a coupon code or having to call to place an order.
Perhaps the most challenging aspect of libero replacements involves a substitution in conjunction with a libero replacement. That often happens when the libero is currently on the court, his or her team has won a rally and is rotating. Let’s say the the libero is on the court for number 1. The libero and number 1 exchange through the libero replacement zone while player number 2 enters the substitution zone to substitute for number 3. That creates a lot of action along the sideline, so it is imperative the second referee and scorers communicate clearly to ensure the replacement and substitution(s) are recorded properly. If the wrong numbers are written down on the scoresheet, it could cause several issues going forward in terms of libero replacements and illegal serves. And once things get to that point, it can be a headache to try to fix the problem. This is why communication between the second referee, the scorer and the assistant scorer/libero tracker are vitally important to make sure all of these replacements and substitutions are recorded properly and accurately.
a smooth flow to that process. This is why it is so important to make sure replacements are always taking place in the libero replacement zone and do not occur inside the substitution zone. Especially at lower levels of play, players often mistakenly move into the substitution zone on libero replacements and it is critical second referees correct this behavior through forcing the players to come back and properly exit through the replacement zone and/ or assessing an unnecessary delay/delay warning. This early correction and warning should hopefully correct the behavior going forward and allow both replacements and substitutions to be executed in a smooth, controlled manner.
The key to remember: If there’s a tag attempt, the runner’s evasive movements cannot go more than three feet to the left or right of a line directly to the base to which the runner is headed. If the runner goes beyond three feet, he is out. The rule is as simple as that; it’s assessing the ever-changing basepath and the runner’s movements within it that can be challenging.
A good basis for judgment regarding the three-foot parameter: If the fielder is in the basepath and cannot touch the baserunner with a step and a reach, it’s very likely that runner has exceeded the three-foot limit.
BASEBALL
When You’re in a Pickle
Similarly, when the libero is already on the court and then rotates to serve next for his or her team, the result is two nonlibero teammates exchanging through the replacement zone while the libero remains on the court and moves to the serving position. That replacement may be confused with a substitution since two non-libero teammates are involved. It exemplifies the importance of ensuring the libero replacement zone is used properly during the match, that libero replacements follow the prescribed procedures, and that the scorers and second referee communicate clearly to ensure
Rundowns create a number of challenges for umpires beyond the immediate difficulties of maintaining a good angle to view the potential tag. Umpires must be on their proverbial toes for rules situations related to basepath, obstruction and interference.
Basepath. NFHS rule 8-4-2a outlines that a runner is out if he runs more than three feet away from a direct line between bases to avoid being tagged. The basepath is established when a play is being made on the runner, and it is directly between the runner’s position and the base toward which the runner is moving. Not only does this mean the basepath is not merely a direct line between the two bases, but also that the basepath is not static — it can shift during the rundown as the runner moves and changes direction.
Obstruction. As the rundown progresses, more fielders are likely to descend upon the play. Well-coached teams are taught specific procedures involving fielders rotating in and out of the rundown as throws are made and the runner is chased down. It’s easy for one of the fielders who just made a throw to fail to get out of the way quickly enough to avoid the runner changing direction.
NFHS rule 2-22 states a fielder without possession of the ball cannot deny access to the base the runner is attempting to achieve. A fielder without the ball who hinders a runner is guilty of obstruction, and the ball becomes dead at the end of playing action. Rule 8-3-2 outlines the obstructed runner will be awarded a minimum of one base beyond his position on base when the obstruction occurred. So even if a runner trapped between first and second was headed back to first at the time of the obstruction, the runner will be awarded second base.
It’s also important to note that contact is not required for obstruction to occur. If the runner must deviate from his
intended path because of a fielder without the ball, it is most likely obstruction.
Interference. Although probably less commonly encountered than obstruction in rundown situations, umpires must remain ready for interference. Frustrated runners may intentionally attempt to knock the ball out of the glove of a runner or use part of their body to intentionally interfere with the flight of a throw from one fielder to another. If so, the ball is immediately dead, the runner is out and all other baserunners must return to the base occupied at the time of the infraction (2-211, 8-2-9, 8-4-2g, r)
The preceding was been adapted from Plays You Gotta Get Right: High School Baseball.
SOFTBALL
Ins and outs of the infield fly
By the Referee editors
The infield fly rule was initially introduced into baseball in 1895 by the NL in response to infielders intentionally dropping pop ups to get multiple outs by forcing out the runners on base, who were pinned near their bases while the ball was in the air. At that time, the rule only applied with one man out. In 1901, the existing rule came into effect and was implemented into softball rulebooks as well. Yet, in the 120 years since the rule was adopted, players, coaches, fans and even umpires still misapply the rule or simply don’t understand the rule, even though it is relatively simplistic. Umpires must understand the basic elements of the infield fly and its purpose in order to correctly rule on them when they occur. Here are some basic
tenets umpires should follow when it comes to dealing with infield fly situations and a plan on how to rule on these situations.
1. Learn the purpose and intent of the infield fly rule. The purpose and intent is to prevent the defense from getting an easy double play when there are runners on first and second or the bases are loaded when there are less than two outs (NFHS 2-29, 8-2-9 ; NCAA 11.16; USA Softball 1-Infield Fly, 8-2I and J; USSSA 3-Infield Fly, 8-17H).
2. Study the infield fly rules and casebook plays. Too often, umpires use the MSU (Make Stuff Up) rulebook and that is where confusion occurs and myths are spread. Stick to the verbiage in the rulebooks and caseplays.
3. Learn when an infield fly can occur and be prepared for the unexpected.
4. Learn the signals, mechanics and which umpire will take the lead in calling the infield fly.
5. Remember the rule is to protect the offense from having an undeserved double play forced upon it. Err on the side of caution to protect the offense.
6. Employ umpire-to-umpire signals to alert your crew when an infield fly is possible and then use crew signals to “wipe off” the infield fly when an infield fly is no longer possible.
7. Don’t try to focus and track the ball on pop ups; instead, watch the fielders and glance at the runners and your partner to see what they are doing. Know approximately where the ball is and quickly flash your eyes periodically on the ball and be ready to call, “Infield fly” if necessary to protect the offensive team.
8. Notice whether the fielders seem relatively relaxed or stressed, rushed or unsure as
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they move about. Remember, it doesn’t have to be an infielder that catches the ball and the ball doesn’t have to remain on the imaginary “infield” portion of the field. The rule simply states the ball must be able to be caught by an infielder with ordinary effort.
9. As the ball descends, see if a fielder is settled comfortably under the ball or is confidently moving under the ball in a manner that an average player for that level of play could catch the ball with ordinary effort.
10. If it looks like an easy catch, it probably is an infield fly.
11. When you are sure, call, “Infield fly, the batter is out!”
12. Watch the fielder as she makes the catch.
13. If the catch is made, realize that runners can tag up and advance the same as on any other fly ball.
14. Should the ball drop, realize that no force-outs are possible and any runners in jeopardy must be tagged. Remember, the batter-runner is already declared out on the infield fly. If the ball drops, that does not erase the out. Likewise, if the ball is dropped, the runners do not need to tag up. They may advance at their own risk, but they do not need to go back and retouch the base before advancing.
15. Should an untouched ball drop and bounce foul between home and first, or home and third, realize it is an ordinary foul ball and the batter is not out. This is why it is important to say, “Infield fly. If fair, batter is out.” If the ball is in the middle of the diamond, that qualifier is not necessary. However, when the ball is near a foul line, it is important to say it.
16. Realize that if an untouched ball drops in foul territory between home and third, or home and first, and it
bounces fair and is first touched over fair territory, it is an infield fly as that meets the definition of a fair ball.
17. Know that if an untouched infield fly strikes a runner on base, she is not out and the ball is live or dead depending upon the location of the nearest fielder.
18. Your rule of thumb for No. 17 is if the fielder is behind the ball, the ball is dead and if the fielder is in front of the ball, the ball is live.
19. Realize the intentionally dropped ball rule cannot be called once an infield fly is declared. Since runners are not forced to run on an infield fly, an intentionally dropped ball in this case does not put the runners in jeopardy. It is their responsibility to know they are not forced and if they choose to advance, they do so at their own risk.
20. A bunted ball or a line drive cannot result in an infield fly.
There are more intricacies to the rule, but understand these basics and you’ll be in great shape to rule on 99.9% of infield fly situations you’ll encounter in your game.
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BASKETBALL
Foul Following Goal
Play: After A1’s successful try, B2 is holding the ball out of bounds on the endline for the ensuing throw-in. Prior to B2 completing the throw-in, A3 holds B4 near the endline where B2 is making the throw-in and is assessed (a) a common (NFHS and NCAAM) or personal (NCAAW) foul, or (b) an intentional foul
(NFHS and NCAAW) or flagrant 1 foul (NCAAM). Team B is not in the bonus. How is play resumed?
Ruling: In (a), since team B is not in the bonus, team B shall receive a throw-in for A3’s personal foul along the endline. Since team B’s non-designated spot throw-in had not ended when the foul occurred, team B shall maintain the privilege to run the endline during this subsequent throwin. In (b) for NFHS and NCAAM, B4 shall receive two free throws for A3’s intentional (NFHS) or flagrant 1 (NCAAM) foul with the lane cleared. Following the free throws, in NFHS, team B shall receive a designated-spot throwin along the endline at the spot nearest A3’s foul. In NCAAM, since team B’s non-designated spot throw-in had not ended when the foul occurred, team B shall maintain the privilege to run the endline during this subsequent throw-in (NFHS 7-5-7b, 10-7 Penalties 1.a and 4; NCAAM 7-4.6.a.1, 7-4.6.a.2, 10-1 Penalties a.1 and d.2). For NCAAW, any team B player shall receive two free throws for A3’s intentional foul, and team B shall receive a throw-in at the division line following the free throws (NCAAW 7-4.6.a.1, 10-10 Penalties a.1, 10-13 Pen.).
BASEBALL
Welcome Help
Play: B1 hits a foul fly ball near the dugout steps. F3 remains in live-ball territory as he makes the catch, but his momentum would have carried him into the dugout and dead-ball territory had several of his teammates on the bench not supported him. Ruling 5: A legal catch and the ball remains live. Nothing prohibits players or spectators preventing a fielder from falling down or stepping into a dugout
or other dead-ball area (NFHS 2-9-1; NCAA 6-1d2; pro 5.09a1 Cmt. 2).
Limited Chat
Play: The visiting coach goes out to talk to his pitcher. While the mound conference is taking place, the third-base coach calls for the batter to meet him halfway. Ruling: In NFHS, the offensive conference is legal and is not charged, provided it concludes when the defensive team ends its conference and the game is not further delayed. In NCAA, the offensive conference is legal and charged, unless the defensive team makes a pitching change. In pro, the conference does not count as the batter’s one allowed timeout (NFHS 3-4-5; NCAA 6-5f4; pro Interp.).
FOOTBALL
Ineligible Catches Pass
Play: Third and seven at team A’s 34 yardline. Defensive lineman B1 rushes the passer and tips a legal forward pass, which continues in flight. After the tip, ineligible A2 catches the ball at team A’s 38 yardline. Ruling: Under both codes, that’s a legal catch. All team A players become eligible when team B is first to touch the pass (NFHS 7-5-6b; NCAA 7-3-11).
Too Many Players
Play: Team A lines up for a two-point try attempt. Team B has 11 players in its defensive formation. B12 runs onto the field just after the ball is snapped. A1 takes the handoff and carries the ball into the end zone. B12 did not participate in or influence the play. Ruling: In NFHS, B12 is guilty of a live-ball foul illegal substitution. Team A scores two points and will accept the penalty from the succeeding spot
(3-7-6). In NCAA, that is a live-ball foul for illegal substitution. Team A will decline the penalty and keep the two points (3-5-3b, 8-33b-1, AR 3-5-3 VI).
SOFTBALL
Defensive Conference?
Play: Team A completes its turn at bat in the top of the first inning. As team A takes the field in the bottom of the first inning, the pitching coach stands behind the pitcher and watches her throw her warmup pitches. After the final warmup pitch, the coach heads to the dugout. Ruling: Legal in all codes. Provided the coach does not delay the game, he or she may be out on the field during warmups as conferences don’t become effective until the ball is made live or the coach delays the start of an inning (NFHS 3-7-1; NCAA 6.12.7; USA Softball 5-7B, R/S #9A; USSSA 4-8a).
Bat Attachment
Play: In the top of the first inning, the base umpire notices the on-deck batter has a Pow’R Wrap softball bat weight attached to her bat in the on-deck circle. Ruling: Legal in NFHS, USA Softball and USSSA play as attachments must be designed for softball, commercially manufactured, be securely attached and take the general shape and size of a bat (NFHS 1-5-3, 1.5.3C; USA Softball 3-2e; USSSA 2-12). Illegal in NCAA play as attachments are not allowed in the on-deck circle. The piece of equipment shall be removed from the game and the on-deck batter shall be warned. Should the previously removed object appear in the on-deck circle, the on-deck batter shall be ejected (3.5 and Eff.).
SOCCER
More Serious
A1 is on the attack just outside the penalty area. Two defenders are running diagonally toward A1. B2 grabs A1’s shirt to stop a promising attack (SPA). Just as the referee is about to blow the whistle, B3, who is now the last defender other than the goalkeeper, trips A1, who loses control of the ball. Ruling: The referee stops play and awards a direct free kick to team A for the tripping foul and B3 is ejected for denying an obvious goal scoring opportunity (DOGSO). The referee’s duty is to punish the more serious of the fouls which would be the ejection (NFHS 12-92d3; NCAA 12.7.4.4.2; IFAB 12.3).
Two Handed Goalkeeper
A1 shoots on goal. Goalkeeper B2 deliberately parries the ball to the ground to prevent it from entering the goal. B2 then dribbles the ball with the feet around the penalty area to waste time. Since the ball is on the feet, this is not an infraction. After 10 seconds, A3 runs towards B2 attempting to gain possession. B2 picks the ball up with the hands while still in the penalty area. Ruling: The referee should stop play and award an indirect free kick for team A at the point where B2 picked the ball up. The deliberate parry is considered a hand possession. The goalkeeper cannot pick the ball up a second time (NFHS 12-8-2; NCAA 12.3.2; IFAB 12.2).
Offside (No) Goal
A1 takes a shot on goal from the left side of the field and just inside the penalty area. A2 is in an offside position on the right side of the goal near the outside edge of the goal area. Goalkeeper B3 makes the save with his hands with the ball ricocheting off the
IT’S OFFICIAL - august 2024
crossbar. A2 runs to the ball, shoots and scores. Ruling: Offside (NFHS 11-1 Diagram 10; NCAA 11.2f; IFAB 11.2).
VOLLEYBALL
New Ball in Play
Play: Team A is the home team. After team A serves during the third set, the volleyball becomes lodged in a rafter above the court on team B’s side of the net. Team B has used two of its allowable three contacts when the ball becomes stuck. The head coach for team B throws a ball from team B’s bench to the server for team A. The first referee blows the whistle and calls for a replay and then beckons for serve. Ruling: Incorrect procedure in all codes. The replacement ball is one that should be approved by the first referee and be
provided by the home team in the match for NFHS. In NCAA and USAV, the first referee inspects the ball prior to the match and determines the balls to be used in the match, which must meet the set requirements for play. Unless using ball retrievers, the replacement balls are kept at the scorer’s table and the second referee will grab the replacement ball and roll it to the server (NFHS 3-2-2, 5-4-1b; NCAA 19.2.3.1; USAV 23.3.1.1).
Unsporting Conduct
Play: In the first set, team A’s assistant coach verbally challenges a call made by one of the line judges. Upon hearing the assistant coach’s comments, the second referee, using preventive officiating, informs the head coach the assistant coach’s behavior is unsporting and approaching the sanctioning level.
Later in the same set, a different, unidentified team member on team A’s bench rudely yells across the court about a call. The first referee assesses a red conduct card to the head coach of team A. The head coach now loses the option to stand and coach from the coaching zone (NFHS)/ libero replacement zone (NCAA/ USAV). Ruling: Correct procedure for NFHS. The head coach is responsible for all team members at the team bench area. If a red conduct card is issued to the team bench, the head coach shall remain seated for the remainder of the match (NFHS 12-2-5, 12-28d Pen.). Incorrect for NCAA and USAV. The head coach is assessed the sanction when the person who committed the rude conduct cannot be identified. The head coach is not required to sit for the remainder of the match (NCAA 6.1.2.2, 6.1.3; USAV 21.2.1).
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