Referee Magazine - October 2018

VOLLEYBALL

BACK-ROW ATTACK

BASKETBALL

MEET THE CAPTAINS

SOCCER

BASEBALL

FAKE FOUL

ABANDONMENT

OCTOBER 2018 // REFEREE.COM

pg. 50

DEE-CISIVE

GOOD STIFF BELT

ALL SPORTS

MAKE AN ENTRANCE

pg. 72

PLAYERTO-REF CAMP

SOFTBALL

THE PLATE IN 6 STEPS

THE RIGHT SPIN FOOTBALL

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pg. 18

OREGON MENTORS

$6.95

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CONTENTS

OCTOBER 2018 Volume 43, No. 10 Issue 504 50

FEATURES 18

FOLLOW MY LEAD

Oregon mandates local associations adopt mentoring programs.

38

TRANSITION GAME

Player-to-Ref camps aim to move former athletes into officiating.

50

DEE-CISIVE

Dee Kantner — 22 Final Fours, FIBA World Championships, Pan American Games, Olympic Games, NBA and WNBA.

72

HOT WIRED

NFL officials’ belts are packed with way more than just penalty flags and beanbags.

SPORTS 12

ON THE COVER Duane Heydt

22

Resides: Columbia, S.C. Officiating Experience: Has been officiating college football since 2006. He began in the South Atlantic Conference, then joined the Southern Conference staff in 2010 and was part of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) supplemental staff in 2011. In 2013, Heydt joined the ACC officiating staff full time. Key assignments include the 2014 Cactus Bowl, 2015 Citrus Bowl, 2016 Rose Bowl and 2017 Liberty Bowl.

32

44

FOOTBALL

Pigskin Precision: Ballhandling Makes Your Crew Look Sharp; Three Receivers, Lots of Possibilities; It’s a Foul Now or Later

BASKETBALL

COLUMNS 4

PUBLISHER’S MEMO

6

THE GAG RULE

8

See the 3, Be the 3: Simple Tips to Transition Into Three-Person Mechanics; Avoiding the Quicksand; Source Evaluation

VOLLEYBALL

Think Ahead to See Behind The Line: Anticipating the Back-Row Attack; Are We Biased? Yes, We Are!; One Last Check

SOCCER

Demonstration Effect: Lower-Level Players Can’t Always Copy Higher-Level Play; The Key to Sideline Management; Law 12, DOGSO and Misconduct

YONG KIM/KRT/NEWSCOM (KANTNER), KEN KASSENS (HEYDT), BOB MESSINA (VOLLEYBALL)

58

SOFTBALL

66

BASEBALL

74

ALL SPORTS

42

64

I Write the Songs

Letters: On the Ball; Survey Says; They Get It; Say What?

Young Umpire in Charge; 55 Years on the Track

78

FOR THE RECORD

80

LAW

81

CLASSIFIEDS

THE NEWS

Arrests Made in One of Two Attacks on Referees; Burks Named Big 12 Football Officials Coordinator; Police Officer Guilty in Referee Confrontation

GETTING IT RIGHT

Fund Created to Help Umpire Harvey; Umpire Stays at It Despite Cancer; Former Official Pens Memoir

PROFILES

Betita Earns AIA’s First Whelchel Officials Award;

82

NFL roster

Stop the Fight Before It Happens; Criteria for Criminal Conduct; Avoiding Alcohol Association Issues Camps/Clinics/Schools; Equipment/Apparel; Leadership Resources; Training Resources

LAST CALL

Basketball Saved My Life: Every time I walk out on the floor now, I take a look around and thank God for the gift of being there.

VOLLEYBALL HIGHLIGHT THIS MONTH

Step On It: Tips to Improve Your Plate Performance; That Rundown Feeling; Take a Peek at This Mechanic Abandonment: Runner Responsibilities in GameEnding Situations; When You Can’t Tell a Ball From a Strike Arrive And Shine: Let Your Entrance Onto the Court or Field Speak Volumes; Which Path Will You Choose?

Whether it is a legal or illegal play, the back-row attack can be one of the most difficult calls in the game.

FOR MORE, GO TO PAGE 32

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PUBLISHER’S MEMO Watch the video at referee.com/pubmemo

Chief Strategy Officer/Publisher Barry Mano

I Write the Songs According to our surveys, a majority of our readers know who Barry Manilow is. The heartthrob of a legion of those now with grey hair has been singing and selling songs for 54 years. And you reasonably might ask, what the heck does this have to do with anything?

We just completed the 36th Summit of Sports Officiating. It was held in New Orleans and it was historic. More than 1,400 high school officials participated in Officiate Louisiana Day. More than 500 attended the Summit itself, also a record. There were 90 Summit Support Organizations and more exhibitors than we have had in recent memory. All in all, it was spectacular, it was uplifting and it felt like a spiritual experience to me. The rooms brimmed with pride.

Officiate Louisiana Day had a stellar array of speakers and program topics.

They closed their day with a fun and energetic presentation by Fox Sports analyst and NASO chair Mike Pereira.

Mike made the audience feel energized, even at the end of a long day. It was fun.

Because of his duties for Fox Sports, Mike had to take an early flight the next morning back to Los Angeles. Fox was holding its annual gathering for on-air talent and Mike had to be on hand. He attended those sessions Sunday and Monday. Then he grabbed a red-eye just past midnight Tuesday morning, flew to Houston, got a connector and was back in the hotel at the Summit around 9:30 a.m. He was scheduled to make a Summit presentation starting at 11:15 that morning.

At the appointed time, Mike walked on stage to a huge round of applause.

Before that, he got word to a couple NASO staff members: “Make sure Mano is in the room when I start.” Every time I hear such a command, I have a rough idea of what might be coming.

Anyway, Mike began his remarks with a quick recounting of his travels over the previous two days. He gave the audience a thumbnail sketch of the Fox Sports gathering in Pacific Palisades, Calif. Then he mentioned that he had

a video to show the group. With that the two huge screens in front of the audience filled with a cellphone video taken by Mr. Pereira.

Mike was shown interviewing Joe Buck, lead NFL on-air talent for the network. The only question Mike asked Joe was this: “Do you know who Barry Mano is?” Joe, without a hitch answered (as if he was put up to it) saying: “I sure do. I have enjoyed his songs for many years and we have quite a collection of his albums at the house. They have meant a lot to me and my family.” Of course, before Joe is done answering, the audience in New Orleans is busting a gut. Yeah, Barry Mano or Barry Manilow! Hah, hah!

That night, we all gathered in the grand ballroom for the Celebrate Officiating Gala. This year we had much to celebrate. Former NFHS executive director Bob Kanaby was receiving our Mel Narol Medallion Award for service to NASO. Bill Carollo, Big Ten football coordinator, was receiving the Gold Whistle Award.

I am permitted a few minutes for remarks before introducing the Medallion video. I stepped to the podium and began: “First and foremost, I especially want to thank this audience for all the 78s, 45s, 33-1/3rds and cassette tapes you have purchased of my songs over the past 54 years. They have enabled Jean and me to live a modestly comfortable life these past decades.”

Then, I turned to my left where Mike was sitting and said to him: “And yes, I really do write the songs.” Touche’.

All this was a small part of an exquisite night in celebration of officiating.

We need nights like this. We can create nights like this in many far-flung places. The scale is less important than the vibe. Sometimes I get the feeling we are reticent to celebrate officiating, maybe even be a bit cynical about it.

Wash that away. Celebrate every chance you get, in ways small and big. Well deserved it will be.

Peace,

Chief Operating Officer/Executive Editor Bill Topp Chief Marketing Officer Jim Arehart Chief Business Development Officer Ken Koester Managing Editor Brent Killackey Assistant Managing Editor Julie Sternberg Senior Editor Jeffrey Stern Associate Editors Jason Palmer Dave Simon Scott Tittrington Copy Editor Jean Mano Director of Design, Digital Media and Branding Ross Bray Publication Design Manager Matt Bowen Graphic Designer Dustin Brown Video Coordinator Mike Dougherty Interactive Media Developer Michael Kielas Director of Audience Development Dan Olson Event Planner/Marketing Coordinator Nancy Short Comptroller Marylou Clayton Data Analyst/Fulfillment Manager Judy Ball Director of Administration and Sales Support Cory Ludwin Office Administrator Garrett Randall Customer Service Support Specialists Michelle Murray Lisa Burchell Transportation Services Assistant Bob Wemmert Editorial Contributors Jon Bible, George Demetriou, Alan Goldberger, Jerry Grunska, Judson Howard, Peter Jackel, Jay Miner, Steven L. Tietz, Tim Sloan These organizations offer ongoing assistance to Referee: Collegiate Commissioners Association, MLB, MLS, NBA, NCAA, NFHS, NISOA, NFL, NHL, Minor League Baseball Umpire Development and U.S. Soccer.

Their input is appreciated.

Contributing Photographers Ralph Echtinaw, Dale Garvey, Ken Kassens, Jack Kapenstein, Bob Messina, Bill Nichols, Ted Oppegard, Jim White Editorial Board Marcia Alterman, Mark Baltz, Ron Huffman, Wade Labecki, Cheryl McCarthy Chiari, John O’Neill, Brent Rice, George Toliver, Larry Warrenfeltz Advertising 2017 Lathrop Ave., Racine, WI 53405 Phone: 262-632-8855 advertising@referee.com REFEREE (ISSN 0733+1436) is published monthly, $46.95 per year in U.S., $81.95 in Canada, Mexico and foreign countries, by Referee Enterprises, Inc., 2017 Lathrop Ave., Racine, WI 53405. Periodical postage paid at Racine, WI and at additional mailing offices.

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• Handchecking • Pass-and-Crash • Eurostep • Offense-Initiated Contact • Defense Post Play Displacement • Goaltending/Basket Interference • Backcourt Violations

NEW FOR 2018

MAGAZINE SIZED PAGES

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$ 95 NASO MEMBER PRICE: $7.36 SIZE: 8” X 11” PAGES: 32

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THE GAG RULE WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

LETTERS On the Ball

SNAP SHOT

It is very poor sportsmanship in girls’ softball when girls in the dugout yell, “Ball, ball, ball, ball,” on a 3-and-0 count or even 2-and-0. Some coaches tell me they only do that to remind the batter what the ball-strike count is. I think it’s just telling the pitcher that the next pitch will be a ball — getting that into her mind. I think it is really bad for the younger players.

“V-8 moment” on the basketball court brought to you by Chuck Fraine of Lynnwood, Wash.

I Should Have Had A …

Nicholas “Clark” Madison Independence, Iowa

SAY WHAT? “To MLS, it would be better for this league — for the fans, for the owners, for the coaches, for the players — to hear from (referees) and hear their side of the story. Perhaps then we say, ‘OK, I see it.’

Maybe it happened a little fast. Maybe the guy in the booth, wherever the hell he is, watching this — you know, maybe he was watching ‘The Simpsons’ at the same time. I don’t know. I have no idea, but it’s not good enough to me.”

— Real Salt Lake Coach Mike Petke in a postgame rant following a July 15 game in which he was ejected for arguing that a call he felt should have gone to video review.

SOURCE: ESPN

Mike Petke

THEY GET IT “Meanwhile, managers should stop taking the easy way out and blaming the ref. Maybe it’s not the ref’s fault your team fell short. Maybe it’s yours. Maybe you’re just a poor manager.”

— Sportswriter Eamonn Sweeney in the Irish Independent

Retired NBA referee Bob Delaney officiated a one-on-one game between late night TV host Jimmy Kimmel and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz at Texas Southern University in mid-June. Cruz won, 11-9.

The event, which was later a segment on Kimmel’s show, raised more than $80,000 for two Texas-based charities.

SURVEY SAYS ...

Top 10 “Day-Job” Industries of Sports Officials

retired

22.85%

education – primary/ secondary (k-12)

15.74%

other

11.62%

government and public administration

finance and insurance

education – college, university or adult

scientific or technical services

10.68%

Charity Calls

9.11%

Tell Us What You Think

8.20%

health care and social assistance

7.00%

SOURCE: NASO 2017 SURVEY OF 17,487 SPORTS OFFICIALS

construction

5.45%

4.76%

4.59%

Send email to letters@referee.com Send letters to: Editor, Referee, 2017 Lathrop Ave. Racine, Wis. 53405 Opinions expressed in “The Gag Rule” are not necessarily those of Referee. Unless otherwise stated, letters sent to Referee are intended for publication and become the property of Referee.

DALE GARVEY

manufacturing

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THE NEWS Arrests Made in One of Two Attacks on Referees SAVANNAH, Ga. — Three people have been arrested and charged with simple battery and disorderly conduct after an attack on a youth basketball official during an early April game at the Jenkins Athletic Club in Savannah, Ga. Jake Simmons, Darius Little and Ranada Little are seen on video punching and kicking 33-year-old Marcus Fowles after they ran onto the court during a girls’ game.

Fowles was allegedly punched in the back of the head by Simmons, who is the coach of the GLA Shockers, and is later seen on video of the incident attempting to stomp on Fowles while he is on the ground.

It was the first of two high-profile incidents in Georgia during the travel basketball season in which officials were viciously attacked.

In July, two Atlanta-based officials were jumped on by several players from the Chicago Raw Athletics team at a basketball tournament in Emerson, Ga. In that case, no arrests have been made, but police are investigating. Video from the July incident shows a player attacking an official after he was given a technical foul in the waning moments of the game. The player, according to several witnesses, bumped the official and the two began a physical confrontation that quickly got out of control. Several Raw players are

Burks Named Big 12 Football Officials Coordinator

seen throwing punches and kicking at officials in a brawl that lasted nearly three minutes and was seen by millions after video of the incident went viral.

Fowles told Referee this is only his third year of officiating basketball and most of his games have been at the middle-school level or recreational basketball. Fowles said he was caught completely off-guard by the attack.

“I never had a parent just blatantly run out on the floor like that,” he said. “She came out of the stands and the thing about it is, I think it was her daughter who fell to the floor. So, I called the foul. She fell hard. I blew my whistle … like I was trying to explain, I can’t control how these kids hit the floor. It was a tripping foul. I called the foul and I was getting ready to go to the table to report the foul and she runs out of nowhere. If you watch the video, while she’s in my face and we exchange words, I’m trying to back up, the coach from the team that her daughter plays on hits me in the back of the head and her husband comes from the other side and attacks me.

He came from out of the stands.”

Fowles said he suffered concussion symptoms and bruises.

Because he undergoes dialysis several times a week while awaiting a kidney transplant, he has an arteriovenous

IRVING, Texas — Veteran Big 12 Conference referee and former Mountain West football officiating coordinator Greg Burks was named the Big 12 coordinator of football officials this summer. He succeeds Walt Anderson, who resigned to focus on his duties as a full-time NFL official.

“Greg brings both onfield and administrative experience to the post,” Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby said. “I am confident he will continue the trajectory of our officiating program as a national model.”

Burks headed up the Mountain West officiating program for the past three years and for the previous 24 years he was a top-flight onfield official, working Big 12 games from 1996-2014. He officiated 17 bowl games, four Big 12 title games and was also a referee for the first College Football Playoff National Championship game.

“I’m excited and honored to have this opportunity,” Burks said.

One of the strengths Burks says he brings to the position is

See “Attacks” p.11

See “Burks” p.10

Mexican Umpires Suspended for Call Two umpires in the Mexican Baseball League have been suspended for the remainder of the season for a call during a game between Diablos Rojos del Mexico and Algodoneros de Union Laguna in July.

Umpires Ulises Dominguez Solis and Rodolfo Pastrana Tejeda combined to call a pitch a ball in

the first inning after it appeared to everyone in attendance that the batter had clearly swung through the pitch. The video of the non-call went viral on social media.

Yahoo Sports reported that two other umpires not involved in the call also received a warning from the league for not intervening.

Calls for Greater Protection After Attack Evansville, Ind., officials are calling for greater state protections

for referees after an ugly attack of an umpire during a charity baseball tournament in July.

Gregory VanBibber, an assistant coach with a U14 traveling baseball team, was arrested on a count of battery after attacking umpire Rickey Cassitty after Cassitty called a game on account of time. VanBibber, who was allegedly taunting Cassitty all game, charged out of the dugout and attacked.

Davis Ford of the Evansville

Rural Baseball League said the incident was emblematic of the increasingly aggressive nature of parents and coaches on travel teams. Indiana does not have any laws specifically protecting officials.

Soccer Officiating Great Alcock Dies Former English Premier League referee Paul Alcock, 64, died in January after a two-year battle with cancer. He worked 94 top-

YOUTUBE, COURTESY OF THE BIG 12 (BURKS)

THE WIRE

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Honigs.com 800.468.3284 @honigsofficial

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THE NEWS

Police Officer Guilty in Referee Confrontation WICHITA, Kan. — Wichita Police Department Capt. Kevin Mears was found guilty of misdemeanor battery and disorderly conduct for confronting a teenage referee at a youth basketball tourney in January.

In July, the judge sentenced Mears to six months of nonreporting probation and ordered him to pay $450 in fines. Mears was put on paid administrative leave when the incident occurred. Each of the charges also carried a 30-day jail sentence, which the judge waived.

Mears, who plans on appealing his sentence, was found guilty of actions he committed at a Jan. 13 game in Augusta.

Video of the incident, which went viral, showed Mears, who was off-duty at the time, coming onto the court and getting into an argument with a 17-year-old female referee.

The footage later shows him shoving the official. He is also heard saying, “Get out of my way!” while walking off the court with a player, who was later revealed to be his son.

The official in question testified that Mears ignored her orders to leave the court and was shouting obscenities before he pushed her.

Mears alleges he wanted to help his son who was hurt at the time.

The judge acknowledged Mears had a legitimate concern but noted his

actions were out of line.

His initial court appearance was Feb. 13 and in June the judge heard hours of testimony from the referee, her partner official, the scorekeeper, a little league board member and the Augusta police sergeant who responded to the call.

According to policy, the Wichita Police Department will review the matter internally to determine if department policies were violated after the completion of the criminal proceedings. Mears is head of the Wichita Police Department’s East Patrol Bureau and is now on unpaid leave.

The original Facebook posting of the incident came from Craig Carlson.

“The official that was pushed is my buddy’s daughter and being an official myself, I thought I should share this with all my friends,” Carlson said. “… This is exactly why there is a shortage of officials in sports. This is unacceptable and should be seen.”

“It was an unfortunate situation,” the referee’s father said after sentencing. “We’re disappointed it had to come to a trial. An adult should never put their hands on a child or a sports official.”

Burks

continued from p.8

that he still thinks of himself as an onfield official — one who has adapted to new duties and responsibilities.

He said it took him about two weeks to accept the Mountain West position but only about “two seconds” to take the Big 12 slot.

“I still dream of being a referee,” Burks told 247sports. com. “I love being in the center of that universe on Saturdays. It was the greatest thing out there. When you finish your career, you want to finish on top and you have to be lucky to do that.

“The opportunity to train young officials and have a role in the way college football is officiated was too attractive to pass on. Even though I (still) dream of being out there, my days are full.”

At a recent CFO West Clinic, Big 12 referee Reggie Smith told Go Pokes the conference made a great choice in selecting Burks.

“Greg is going to be an exceptional fit for this program,” Smith said. “There is no question he was the right man we wanted to be leading our program.”

CONTRIBUTING SOURCES: SPORTS.COM/GO POKES, WVNEWS. COM

CONTRIBUTING SOURCES: KAKE, KANSASCITY.COM, KSNT.COM

THE WIRE flight matches between 1995 and 2000, including one infamous one in 1998 when Paolo Di Canio pushed him over after Alcock showed him a red card.

“Paul enjoyed a distinguished career as a professional referee at the top level and was hugely respected by all involved in the game,” said Mike Riley, Professional Game Match Officials Limited managing director. “More recently, Paul had been helping to develop the next

generation of match officials.”

Alcock also raised money for charity after his retirement.

NFHS Simplifies Track Uniform Rule The NFHS Board of Directors further simplified the rules governing foundation garments for track and cross country athletes at its July meeting. The rule, long a subject of dispute and confusion throughout the country, now states that “any

visible garment worn underneath the uniform top and/or bottom is considered a foundation garment. A foundation garment is not subject to logo/trademark/ reference or color restrictions.”

A further amendment made it simpler for schools and teams to meet the requirement, stating “all relay and cross country team members must wear uniforms clearly indicating, through predominant color, school logo and color combination of all outer

garments worn as a uniform, that members are from the same team.”

Pennsylvania Man Charged for Threat A New Providence, Pa., man is facing harassment charges after allegedly threatening an umpire after a youth baseball game.

Donald Sterback, 63, is facing charges after a July 9 incident when Sterback allegedly challenged an umpire after a

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Attacks

continued from p.8

graft in his arm. That graft was almost stepped on while he was on the ground trying to defend himself during the assault. He says the headache from being punched in the head lasted two or three days after the incident.

The Savannah native is officiating part-time because it offers him a chance to stay around the sports he used to play, and work with the kids in his local community.

In addition to the criminal complaint he filed, Fowles has also filed a civil lawsuit against the director of the tournament and the individuals who assaulted him.

Since the incident, Fowles said he has been unable to officiate many of the tournaments in his area because event organizers are afraid to use him on the court. He said tournament directors have had him do the scorebook or operate the electronic scoreboard during games.

“A lot of the directors didn’t want to take the risk of me being on the floor, so I went to a different role.

It’s not because they had something against me,” Fowles explained. “The incident was so viral and got a lot publicity in the area. At one point in time, if someone was watching the news, they would approach me and say, ‘Hey you’re that guy who got attacked.’”

The Shockers, which touts itself as an AAU program, issued a statement apologizing for the incident: “We failed to be positive representations

youth game in Mountville. The victim told police Sterback grabbed a metal stake from his vehicle in an attempt to intimidate the victim before fleeing the scene. There were no injuries suffered in the incident.

Umpire Punched, Former Cop Charged Former Gaston (N.C.) County law enforcement official Brooks Wayne Luckadoo of Dallas, N.C., was charged with misdemeanor

Video of the July incident in the youth basketball tournament in Emerson, Ga., went viral.

No arrests have been made, but police continue to investigate.

for all youth present at the event. Our staff met following this incident and agreed entirely that such negative exposure will not happen again.”

The incident is part of an ongoing problem in deteriorating parental and coach behavior at youth sports events. According to NASO, there is at least one report of referee assault a week, with many other incidents going unreported.

In the second incident, several players from RAW Athletics were seen attacking an official, along with his father, who was officiating on another court and ran over to assist his son when he saw him being assaulted. Josh Miley, executive director at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center in Terre Haute, Ind., was the tournament director of the event in Emerson. He told Yahoo Sports he would not be inviting the team to any future events. He

assault of a sports official after disagreeing with a pitch call in a slow-pitch softball tourney on July 21.

Umpire Jonathan Paschal called a pitch a ball that Luckadoo threw. Luckadoo then swore at Paschal and Paschal threw him out of the game. That’s when Luckadoo charged Paschal, hitting him twice and leaving Paschal with a knot on the back of his head.

Paschal was treated at a

described the fight as “unfortunate, saddening and sickening” and feels sorry for the innocent people who were there.

“No adult, no kid should have to witness that,” Miley told the Washington Post.

The Emerson, Ga., tournament was not an AAU-sanctioned event.

The president of AAU released the following statement regarding what happened: “The incident at the non-AAU basketball event in Georgia is unfortunate,” said Dr. Roger J. Goudy, AAU president/CEO. “The AAU organization takes the safety and well-being of our athletes, coaches and officials very seriously.

Any such behavior is never tolerated at licensed AAU events and, for those groups who fraudulently represent themselves as AAU, we will pursue all legal remedies.”

CONTRIBUTING SOURCES: YAHOO SPORTS, WASHINGTON POST

hospital and released. Luckadoo left the scene but later turned himself in to police. He worked in law enforcement for 16 years before going into private business.

Team of Lawyers Assaults Referee A referee officiating a soccer game between teams representing the bar associations of Athens and Thessaloniki was physically assaulted after awarding a penalty kick. The

attack occurred shortly before the end of a match in mid-July in the northern Greek town of Kozani.

According to reports, the referee was assaulted by two lawyers who are members of the Athens’ bar, along with fans who invaded the pitch. The referee was taken to the hospital, where doctors said he suffered cuts and bruises.

CONTRIBUTING SOURCES: NFHS, EVANSVILLE COURIER, THE GUARDIAN, KWCH.COM, BLEACHER REPORT, THETIMESNEWS.COM, FOX43

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FOOTBALL

EDITOR: JEFFREY STERN

jstern@referee.com

RULES, MECHANICS, PHILOSOPHY

A thorough pregame meeting with ball assistants can help a game go more smoothly for a crew. Michael Carter, Mill Creek, Wash., goes over procedures with his helpers. Referee Michael Livingston, Seattle, is at left.

PIGSKIN PRECISION

By George Demetriou

I

t was the championship game for the local semi-pro league with a crew of six officials. A pass was intercepted and the down ended near the sideline. The side judge promptly called for a new ball, but the ball assistants were nowhere near to be found. After what seemed an eternity, they were located behind the team

area playing catch. Even the most thorough plan may go awry when youngsters are involved.

The following is a ballhandling procedure that is guaranteed to make your crew look good if it’s properly executed.

Having competent ball assistants and briefing them properly before the game is essential. In an ideal situation there are at least four footballs

available and four ball assistants, two on each sideline. It also makes it simpler if there is a league- or state association-mandated ball that is used by both teams. If each team has its own football, the procedures described below will have to be modified so that a particular team’s ball always goes out and comes in from its own sideline unless there is a ball assistant for each team on each sideline.

DALE GARVEY

Ballhandling Makes Your Crew Look Sharp

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When requesting a ball from a ball assistant, the official should establish direct eye contact with the ball assistant and then ask for the ball verbally and non-verbally (i.e. clapping hands together or placing hands in front of the body as to catch the ball). The ball assistant should be instructed to toss the ball to the official with an underhand toss only after the official has requested the ball.

The ball should be changed whenever it becomes dead outside the top of the numbers (nine-yard marks) or after any change of possession. If the ball becomes dead in the field of play, the old ball is left in place until the new ball is properly positioned at the succeeding spot. The new ball is brought in by the deep official on that sideline (six-official crew) or by the back judge (five- or sevenofficial crew) and thrown directly to the umpire, who should be mobile enough to range between the tops of the numbers. Ball assistants should be instructed to stay off the field to decrease the chance they’ll run on the field at an inappropriate time.

Balls that become dead outside the field of play should be left there for the ball assistants to retrieve. Not only is it unnecessary for an official to chase after the ball, doing so prevents the official from dead-ball officiating.

In many areas it’s customary for a ball assistant to put a ball behind a goalpost when a try or field goal is being attempted. It can be easily accessed when the try ends while the ball assistant retrieves the one used on the try or field goal.

When the ball becomes dead between the tops of the numbers, the umpire (in most cases) will be able to directly retrieve the ball himself.

On incomplete passes, a deep official must assist.

Inclement weather. If the field is wet, the ball may have to be changed more often than described. Wet ball procedures should include a towel (black is preferred) for the umpire.

The ball assistants should also have towels. Encourage them to cover the ball with the towel rather than enclose it like a mummy. It takes longer to unwrap when it’s needed, plus the ball will absorb more water

because it is exposed to more wet towel.

The umpire may wish to hold the ball and keep it covered between plays, then place it on the ground when the offense comes to the line.

The relay. When the ball is relayed between officials, it should always be thrown underhanded so that it can be caught waist high. Most officials cannot accurately throw the ball more than 10-15 yards. It takes more time to run 10 yards and then throw the ball another 10 yards than it takes to throw the ball 20 yards; however, when you consider there is a high probability the 20-yard toss will go awry and have to be chased, it’s quicker to get close enough to ensure a smooth toss. It also looks much better.

When the play ends out of bounds or in a side zone, the official tossing the ball should ensure players returning to their side of the line will not get in the way.

If players are still in the way, the official should hesitate until they clear the area, or the official should move a couple of steps to find a clear path. Never try to “thread the needle” between players or try to throw over their heads. Both officials and players have on occasion been hit in the head by errant tosses. If the ball ends up on the turf, it could be accidentally kicked, wasting further time. In the process the crew risks looking like the Keystone Kops and worse yet, injury may result.

When a team employs a hurryup offense, the umpire must range farther than normal to retrieve the ball. All other officials must be in position to observe the snap when the ball is spotted. That avoids creating the appearance the officials are holding up the game.

In summary, ballhandling has nothing to do with how accurately the game is called but will go a long way to enhance crew credibility and can appreciably reduce down time between plays.

George Demetriou has been a football official since 1968. He lives in Colorado Springs, Colo. 

DID YOU KNOW? Al Sabato was the first NFL official to work the Super Bowl at two different positions — Super Bowl I as the line judge, Super Bowl IX as the head linesman. Red Cashion (right), who was the referee for Super Bowls XX and XXX, was the first referee who had not worked a previous Super Bowl at another position.

GEORGE ROBARGE

THEY SAID IT “Officials really realize that the win when you’re an official is that you did right for the game. And when you’re an official, your job is to adjudicate and apply the rules as they’re written and designed for the betterment of the game. So that doesn’t always appeal to a fan who actually has a favorite team, or something like that. Those types of negative or ‘we only focus on the mistake’ kind of stereotype that officials get, it’s not really something that does affect officials.”

— Gene Steratore, who retired as an NFL and college basketball referee to become an officiating analyst for CBS, on how he thinks fans perceive officials.

SOURCE: AWFULANNOUNCING.COM

SURVEY SAYS …

The NFHS annually conducts a nationwide survey of coaches, officials and state associations, gathering input on important issues involving the game.

Among the questions asked and answered on the 2017 survey: Would you favor adding an automatic first down to the penalty for personal fouls by the defense?

coaches yes - 69%

no - 31%

officials yes - 64%

associations yes - 59%

no - 36% no - 41%

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FOOTBALL

TEST YOURSELF In each of the following you are given a situation and at least two possible answers. Decide which answer or answers are correct for NFHS and NCAA rules. Note: In kicking situations, K is the kicking team, R the receiving team. Solutions: p. 81.

1. A1 runs for a touchdown on the final timed down of the first half.

During the run, B2 is flagged for a personal foul. a. Team A must decline the penalty in order to keep the touchdown. b. Team A does not have the option of having the penalty enforced on the second-half kickoff. c. Team A may have the penalty enforced on the second-half kickoff or on the ensuing try.

2. Under no circumstances is it legal: a. For a team A lineman to receive a forward handoff. b. To have more than one player in position to receive a hand-to-hand snap from between the snapper’s legs. c. To use a punt as the free kick after a try. d. To have more than seven team A players on the line of scrimmage.

3. Quarterback A1 is under a heavy rush and scrambles toward the line of scrimmage. His passing arm and one of his feet are beyond the neutral zone when he throws a forward pass to eligible A2. a. Legal play. b. Illegal forward pass.

It’s a Foul Now or Later (But Not Never)

By Judson Howard

Y

ou observe movement in either line just as the ball is snapped.

You know it is a foul, but do you prevent the play from proceeding (dead-ball foul) or do you allow the play to continue (live-ball foul)?

Discerning between those two types of fouls is an absolute must for officials. Here is an example of something you do not want to happen.

Play 1: Before the snap, the right guard A1 abruptly comes out of a three-point stance. The linesman throws a flag but does not stop the play. B2 intercepts a pass and runs for a touchdown. The linesman reports illegal motion to the referee. Ruling 1: That movement is a false start, not illegal motion. Because false start is a dead-ball foul, the play never should have happened. Thus, the score is negated.

How would you like to be the linesman that has to tell the head coach that the proper foul is going to be enforced and your huge error cost

him six points?

That situation exemplifies the importance of knowing what are liveball and dead-ball fouls before, or fouls simultaneous with the snap (we’re not dealing with free kicks here).

Prevent the play from starting for dead-ball fouls. Your protocol for presnap infractions should be: • Blow your whistle.

• Throw your flag high into the air.

• Give the stop-the-clock signal.

(It’s a good habit to give that signal even if the clock isn’t running.)

Then there are the fouls that occur concurrently with the snap. That is, there is no foul until there is a legal snap. You might observe a potential illegal act, but it cannot be flagged until the ball is snapped because something might happen to prevent the snap or it could be corrected before the snap. The protocol for such fouls is: • Throw flag high into the air.

• Do not stop the play nor blow your whistle.

• Do not stop the clock.

• Cover the play to normal

4. Fourth and six from team K’s 10 yardline. With team K’s punt in flight, K1 is flagged for holding at team K’s 10 yardline. R2 makes a fair catch at the 50 yardline. After the whistle sounds, R3 is flagged for a personal foul. As a result: a. The fouls offset and the down is replayed. b. Only team R’s penalty is enforced. c. Only team K’s penalty is enforced. d. Both fouls will be enforced.

5. Fourth and seven at team K’s 27 yardline. Team K is in scrimmage-kick formation. Immediately at the snap, nose guard R1 contacts snapper K2.

Punter K3 takes the snap, fakes a kick and runs. He is downed at team K’s 30 yardline. a. R1 is not guilty of roughing the snapper because team K didn’t kick. b. R1 is guilty of roughing the snapper even though team K didn’t kick.

The team B player (left) entered the neutral zone, causing the team A player head-up on him to react. The team A player’s false start is excused and team B penalized.

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Y

completion. When the down ends, give the stop-the-clock signal and report the live-ball foul to the referee.

Illegal shift and illegal motion are among the live-ball fouls that occur at the snap (NFHS 7-2-7; NCAA 7-1-4b).

In NFHS, a shift is the action of one or more offensive players who, after a huddle or after taking positions, move to new set positions before the ensuing snap (2-39). NCAA defines a shift as a simultaneous change of position or stance by two or more offensive players after the ball is ready for play before the snap for a scrimmage down (2-22). NCAA adds that it is a deadball foul when all team A players never become set for a full second before the snap (7-1-2b-5).

Play 2: When the ball is snapped, (a) two backs are in motion, (b) a motion back is moving forward toward the line or, (c) A1, on the line, shifts to the backfield and is motionless for two seconds. He then runs parallel

to the line. Ruling 2: In both codes, it is a foul for illegal shift in (a) and illegal motion in (b). If the penalty is accepted, team A is penalized five yards from the previous spot. The act in (c) is legal.

Play 3: A1 and A2 are in motion at the same time. Before a snap, (a) team A calls timeout, (b) time in the quarter expires. Ruling 3: In both codes, there is no foul in (a) or (b), as there was no snap.

Play 4: All team A players are motionless for three seconds. Before the snap, two of them change their positions and both are moving when the ball is snapped. Ruling 4: Liveball foul for illegal motion. All team A players must come to a complete stop for at least one second before the snap.

The five-yard penalty is enforced from the previous spot.

Play 5: Team A breaks the huddle after the ready signal. Ten players See “It’s A Foul” p.17

CORRECTIONS The Test Yourself in the 8/18 issue contained two erroneous answers.

In question 3, team B trails, 17-16, and is out of timeouts. The game clock is running with 41 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. Team A is flagged for an illegal formation. In NCAA, after enforcement, either by rule or by the offended team’s choice, the game clock will start on the snap.

In question 4, R1 catches a punt at team R’s 40 yardline. He gives ground trying to shake pursuers but is downed at team R’s 35 yardline. During the run, R2 blocks K3 below the waist at team R’s 45 yardline.

In both NFHS and NCAA, the penalty is enforced from team R’s 35 yardline.

In the caseplay “Each Team Fouls,” team R is flagged for 12 players while a punt is in flight. R2 catches the punt at team K’s 45 yardline. During R2’s advance, R3 is flagged for a block in the back at team K’s 40 yardline. After R2 is downed at team K’s 30 yardline, K4 is flagged for a piling on.

The ruling for NCAA should be either team K’s ball fourth and 17-1/2 at its own 12-1/2 yardline (illegal block declined, too many men and late hit accepted), or team B’s ball, first and 10 at its own 35 yardline (too many men declined and illegal block and late hit enforced).

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FOOTBALL

CASEPLAYS Missed Field Goal Play: Fourth and five on team R’s 30 yardline. K1’s field goal attempt is short of the mark and the untouched kick goes (a) out of bounds on team R’s 10 yardline, or (b) into team R’s end zone. Ruling: Under NFHS rules, in (a), it will be team R’s ball on its 10 yardline. In (b) it’s a touchback, giving team R the ball on its 20 yardline at any point between the hashmarks. If the game is played under NCAA rules, in (a) and (b), it will be team R’s ball on its 30 yardline at the spot of the previous snap (NFHS 6-2-7, 6-3-1b; NCAA 4-1-3c, 8-4-2b, AR 6-3-4 III, AR 8-4-2 I-IX).

Touchback or Safety Play: First and goal for team A on team B’s 20 yardline. A1’s legal forward pass is intercepted

by B2 in his own end zone. B2 runs toward one sideline, then backtracks to the other, in an attempt to bring the ball out of the end zone. He is tackled with the ball never breaking the plane of the goalline. Is that a safety?

Ruling: That is a touchback. The force (NFHS) or impetus (NCAA) that put the ball in the end zone was the pass. Because the ball in B2’s possession never returned to the field of play, despite his attempts to advance, it is a touchback (NFHS 8-5-1, 8- 5-2; NCAA 8-6-1, 8-7-2).

Three Receivers, Lots of Possibilities T

he three-receiver, or “trips,” formation has become a part of almost every team’s modus operandi.

The keys shown in the MechaniGram are for an NFHS crew of five. The back judge favors the strong side and has the two widest eligibles. The linesman has the inside man. The line judge has the receiver on his side.

Although trips is generally considered a passing formation, officials should be aware of other options team A has when using trips.

For instance, the outside flanker may go in motion to the opposite side of the line. That changes the keys. In NCAA play, depending on whether and where he stops, his location may change what type of block the motion man may legally throw. Players outside the tackle box at the snap, or any time after the snap, or in motion at the snap may not block below the

waist toward the original position of the ball at the snap. Once the ball has left the tackle box, a player may not block below the waist toward his own end line.

Watch for the quarterback starting under center before shifting into shotgun formation or vice versa. The referee must observe that shift to ensure it doesn’t simulate the start of a play. From the shotgun, shovel passes to backs are common. The referee has primary responsibility for knowing whether the pass was backward or forward. Officials responsible for observing receivers must watch ends and flankers working pick plays downfield.

Those are just a few of the possibilities that can develop from one seemingly simple formation. It emphasizes the need to know rules, mechanics and keys. 

Period Extended?

Play: All team A players move to the line and are set. A split second after center A5 legally moves the ball to snap it, B2 times the snap perfectly as he reaches in and knocks away the ball from A5. The ball hits the ground and B6 recovers.

Ruling: In NFHS play, that is an encroachment foul on B2 because he touched the ball before the snap ended. Under NCAA rules, B2’s act causes the ball to remain dead (the snap is disallowed) and he is charged with a contact foul for offside.

Until the ball completely leaves the snapper’s hands, it is illegal for any team B player to touch it (NFHS 7-1-6; NCAA (2-23-1b-f, 7-1-5a1, AR 7-1-4 II).

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IT’S A FOUL

continued from p.15

settle into their positions and stop, but A1 never pauses and is still moving when the ball is snapped. Ruling 5: Live-ball foul for illegal shift in NFHS (7-2-6 Pen.). Dead-ball foul for false start in NCAA (7-1-2b5).

Illegal formation is another live-ball five-yard penalty from the previous spot (NFHS 7-2-5; NCAA 7-1-4a-4).

Play 6: Team A’s ball, third and 10 at its own 20 yardline. Before the snap, team A has six players on the line and five players in the backfield.

A1 receives the snap and throws a pass that gains 20 yards. Ruling 6: Live-ball foul for illegal formation. Team B will accept the penalty making it third and 15 at team A’s 15 yardline.

A player who enters the neutral zone may or may not foul, depending on the code and the status of the ball.

In NFHS, encroachment is a deadball foul that occurs when a player is illegally in the neutral zone during the time interval starting when the ball is marked ready for play and until the ball is snapped (2-8).

NCAA has an offside foul that is a live-ball foul on the defense (7-1-5b-1).

Play 7: B1 moves into the neutral zone without contacting any team A player. No offensive player reacts. The ball is snapped while B1 is still in the neutral zone. Ruling 7: In NFHS, that is encroachment as soon as B1 enters the neutral zone. The ball remains dead and team B is penalized five yards. In NCAA, play does not stop.

That is a live-ball foul for offside. Team B is penalized five yards from the previous spot.

Had there been contact, team B would have been guilty of a dead-ball foul for offside (7-1-5a-2). If a team B player enters the neutral zone and that act causes a team A lineman lined up head-on with the offending team B player or on either side of him to immediately react by moving, the team A player is not guilty of a false start and team B is penalized for offside (as seen in the PlayPic on pg. 14). A team B player may threaten a maximum of three team A linemen (7-1-2b-3 Exc., AR 7-1-3 V Note).

Play 8: While the quarterback is

The team A player at the top of the PlayPic is guilty of encroachment.

calling signals, (a) guard A1, or (b) defensive tackle B2 is lined up in the neutral zone. Ruling 8: As seen in the PlayPic above, in NFHS, in (a) and (b), the officials prevent the snap and assess five-yard encroachment penalties against the guilty teams. In NCAA, the ruling is the same as in

NFHS. In (b), play continues. After the play, team B will be charged with a five-yard live-ball penalty for offside enforced from the previous spot.

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. 

12th Annual

Tom Beard’s

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March 8-9, 2019 We are combining our efforts with great clinicians, supervisors and guest speakers to provide you with an excellent training opportunity.

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240-350-6810 REFEREE October 2018 |

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FO LOW MY EAD

By Jason Palmer

Oregon mandates local officials associations adopt mentoring programs.

T

aking a page out of corporate America's playbook in a bold, aggressive step to mitigate the officials shortage in the state, Oregon is implementing a mandatory rule for local associations that will require them to have a recruiting and retention program in place beginning with the 2018-19 school year. It is the first state association to try such an endeavor. The move comes after the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) last year formed a committee to look at the officiating shortage in the state. The idea was hatched by an OSAA administrator, who said nearly three-quarters of successful Fortune 500 companies have mentorship programs.

“We actually codified having

a standing committee whose sole purpose was recruitment and retention,” said OSAA Assistant Executive Director Brad Garrett. “We formed our committee in a unique way … we created a committee that

from five to 10 years and three people with 10-plus years. We’re trying to make sure that as we move forward, these young referees who are involved in their first three or four years of officiating can give feedback to this group. We didn’t want to put a bunch of 30-plus-year people on a recruitment and retention committee because we’ve already recruited and retained them. We’re trying to figure out why we are losing people in years two and three.

And who better to tell us that

“WE’RE TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT AS WE MOVE FORWARD, THESE YOUNG REFEREES WHO ARE INVOLVED IN THEIR FIRST THREE OR FOUR YEARS OF OFFICIATING CAN GIVE FEEDBACK TO THIS GROUP.” – BRAD GARRETT, OSAA was varied in experience level and age. We had three different groups represented: coaches, athletic directors and officials associations. We had three people from zero to five years’ experience as an official; three

than the people who are going through it at that time?”

Helping to sell the idea to the local associations is Jack Folliard, who serves as the executive director of the Oregon Athletic Officials Association

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(OAOA). Folliard said most of the associations in the state are on board with trying something new. He said associations are watching their own numbers plummet, so they know something is wrong and must be done.

“In general, not only do the associations think this is a good idea, they are pleased they have been provided with structure to the mentorship program, so they don’t have to invent the wheel from scratch,” said Folliard, who is also a member of the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame. “Obviously, this is new, so we haven’t had the feedback from everyone, but the commissioners (who are also assigners in Oregon) at that meeting, they were all enthusiastic and embraced the concept.”

A big focus of the recruiting process will be concentrated on getting younger people into the field. Folliard said older officials are retiring or leaving because of job transfers, changing family dynamics or do not want to work a full schedule because they want to see their own kids play.

“I think we have more of a problem getting new people to come in than we are losing people too soon,” Folliard explained. “You’re always going to have some attrition, but the tank is emptying faster than it can be filled. Our average age

COACHING  Task

oriented  Short term  Explicit feedback  Develops skills  Driven by coach  Shows you where you went wrong

“I THINK WE HAVE MORE OF A PROBLEM GETTING NEW PEOPLE TO COME IN THAN WE ARE LOSING PEOPLE TOO SOON.” — JACK FOLLIARD, OAOA is in the high 40s and obviously a lot of the officials are older than that. Depending on the sport, it’s getting more difficult physically when you get into your 50s and 60s.”

Garrett believes he has a two-fold solution to address both of those issues: by doing outreach into communities that don’t have a strong tradition of officiating, he introduces them to the industry and creates a welcoming and supportive environment where young people can take the next step and join an association.

“We want to increase the number of our female and minority officials. We want to get you into a locale, make you feel supported and hopefully you’ll find passion for this job, because we need you in officiating.” Garrett said. “I know it is intimidating for a young female basketball official to roll into some of our local association meetings where they’re staring at 45 white guys that are 40 years old. They’re asking is this really the place for me? The answer is if we had another female who was already

MENTORING  Focus

on progress  Longer term  Intuitive feedback  Develops capabilities  Driven by mentee  Helps you work it out for yourself

The chart to the left explains the subtle differences between coaching and mentoring officials.

Oregon's new recruiting program is based on longterm success over shortterm gains.

in that locale, who has worked her way through and is willing to take a lead role with one of these younger officials, we know that person is more likely to stay.”

As a part of the retention process, Oregon officials are also trying to convince current officials to consider adding another sport or two. Garrett said approximately 33 percent of current officials do more than one sport. Increasing that number to two-thirds would be a tremendous boost. He explained how devastating it is to the officiating corps when it loses a multisport official to retirement or another state.

“If we lose one of those officials, it’s not like we’re losing one official, we’re losing three officials if they are a three-sport official,” he said.

Folliard added while there are no empirical studies that show outdoor sports like baseball and football are losing officials faster than those who work indoor sports, volleyball in Oregon has had the least drop-off in terms of numbers, even though there is still a shortage. Many former basketball and football officials are adding volleyball in Oregon as a second or third sport. A poll that appeared in the 7/17 issue of Referee asked officials which sport they currently are not officiating would they most like to add. Volleyball was first, garnering 20 percent of the vote, followed by lacrosse with 17 percent.

In June, during his presentation to OAOA about how to build a mentorship program, Garrett said it is important that veteran officials

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FOLLOW MY LEAD

UNIQUE REGISTRATIONS 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

FOOTBALL

SOCCER

WRESTLING

VOLLEYBALL

BASKETBALL

BASEBALL

are mentoring and not coaching new officials. He said knowing the difference between the two is essential in the retention of new officials.

“Coaching is typically seen as short term, gives explicit feedback, is task oriented and shows you where you went wrong. Whereas mentoring focuses on progress over time, gives intuitive feedback, develops capabilities and gives help to the mentee to work it out for themselves.”

Garrett added that having “a shoulder to lean on” and building a system that will allow a mentee to have things explained to them, along with connecting them to the proper resources, are all parts of a viable mentorship program.

He is looking forward to the feedback he gets from the

The graph above illustrates the drop in officials over the past eight years in the state of Orgeon.

mentees after the first year. He said the program is designed so the OSAA can hopefully follow the career of new officials for their first four years. That way it can get an indication of how successful the process is.

“Most of the people who leave officiating, leave during their second or third year. We’ve found that if you can get a person to that fourth year, they are much more likely to stay with it,” Garrett explained. “It’s not just about evaluating how they are doing on the court. It’s providing a crutch and having a welcoming culture into a local association.”

For now, the first step will be making sure that every association has a mentorship program that meets the new requirements. A secondary step is making sure the associations

4000

4500

5000

SOFTBALL

have enough tools to use within their own individual recruitment programs. Garrett expects there to be several changes after the first year when each association finds out what works and what does not work for it. The plan is to keep an annual record on each program so the adjustments can be tracked. He acknowledges recruitment and retention is complicated but believes Oregon’s pioneering framework could become a template for other states in the future.

Perhaps the best chance for success could be with a natural approach. Garrett is seeking to appeal to people’s innate tendencies and passions.

He said all humans need the social connection of belonging to a group and one of the

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greatest appeals of officiating is the camaraderie. He believes fulfilling that primal need, by nurturing newer officials and most importantly, making them feel welcome to the ranks, will increase retention rates, not only among newer officials, but from veterans as well.

“I think another byproduct of the mentorship programs, while they are great for these mentees, is that the mentors are also developing leadership skills in this process,” Garrett said. “We also have an obligation to develop leaders within the current ranks of our officiating community.

It gives veteran officials the

opportunity to give back to their membership and puts them in leadership roles and allows them a renewed sense of belonging. Maybe we can retain them for a couple more years as they get to the end of their careers. So, (with) something like this we are getting multiple positive outcomes if we implement it correctly.”

Jason Palmer is a Referee associate editor. 

Working in a more personal oneon-one or small-group scale has been more effective in retaining officials.

MENTOR–MENTEE PAIRING FORMAT

GROUP TRADITIONAL

PEER TO PEER

TEAM

REVERSING THE TREND...

While most officiating organizations are seeing their numbers fall and the average age of members go up, one group in Portland, Ore., is seeing the opposite. Steve Scott is commissioner of the Portland Basketball Officials Association (PBOA). He reports that over the past five years he has been at the helm of PBOA, it has had a net gain of five officials and the average age of officials is on a downward track. He attributes the changes to a 23-page document the organization began to produce in 2015 titled “Road to Success.”

“We cover a number of things in this book from organizational ethics guidelines to how to advance to varsity status,” said Scott, who officiated for 42 years and now assigns more than 12,000 games a year. “We go over the basic requirements of being an official, how probationary members are evaluated, offer pregame topic recommendations and even how to navigate our online assigning software.”

Five years ago, PBOA formed a

committee to focus on recruiting and retention. The co-chairperson of that committee was Jeff Lindholm. With assistance from fellow members Joel Schuldheisz and Celeste Grover, they came up with the concept of a book to help newer and younger officials navigate the organization and reverse a disturbing trend. They presented the document to the executive board, revisions were made, and the book was produced later that year in both print and electronic form.

“It’s for everyone in the organization but we specifically target our new members and people who are new to officiating.

It’s on our PBOA.org website so anyone with a Reftown account can access it,” Scott said.

The response has been very good. Scott said younger officials prefer to look at things electronically instead of calling someone on the phone. PBOA also updates the document annually. Scott said the document has helped with retention rates as on average, PBOA loses 44 people a year, but

Steve Scott, commisioner of the Portland Basketball Officials Association, has found a formula for recruiting officials.

has been able to keep up with those losses. The association currently has 296 members.

“This is not the norm in officials associations. My feeling is that this document has helped us … because it gives newbies information that they would have a more difficult time finding if they had to do it on their own,” Scott said. “We update the information annually for things like organizational bylaws, (and) new rules and mechanics in order to keep it fresh.”

Scott said the new people joining the ranks come from a variety of backgrounds and ages. The youngest member is 14. Thanks in part to a state program, where people under the age of 18 can begin working games, and a partnership with the Catholic Youth Organization, PBOA is able to start developing young officials and bring them along each year. It has proven to be effective.

“The key is getting to them early and keeping them involved with mentoring programs, which we also have,” Scott said.

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BASKETBALL

EDITOR: SCOTT TITTRINGTON

stittrington@referee.com

RULES, MECHANICS, PHILOSOPHY

SEE THE 3, BE THE 3

By Bill Kenney

W

ith more high school leagues, tournaments and playoffs switching to threeperson (3P) officiating crews, the demand for officials experienced in 3P techniques is increasing.

Unfortunately, the transition can be difficult because many officials have the opportunity to work only a few games a year in 3P. Inexperienced officials may find themselves more worried about where they are positioned than focusing on

actually officiating in the new primary coverage areas (PCA) that come with the 3P system. This is obviously detrimental to achieving the advantages of 3P crews.

For high school officials there are two 3P mechanics manuals in use: IAABO and NFHS. They are different. Each contains dozens of diagrams aimed at covering every specific situation the officiating crew may encounter, especially when a foul is called. This makes it very difficult for newer officials to assimilate, and become confident in,

the new techniques. Step one is to find out which manual governs in your area.

One of Albert Einstein’s lesser known quotations was, “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.” This article will boil down positioning to a few simple, easily assimilated principles that can also serve as a basis for the crew’s pregame conference. With experience, the details of 3P coverage will become second nature. Officials should strive to work as many 3P games

VICTOR CALZADA

Simple Tips to Transition Into Three-Person Mechanics

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administrated at the correct spot and pointing out the throw-in spot at the time of the call is very important in 3P. • Throw-ins are administered by either the lead or trail, using the same techniques.

• The official administering a throw-in never puts the ball in play until his partners are correctly positioned.

One other key point to remember is double-whistle discipline. There are often more double whistles in three-person games, especially by less-experienced crews. Be aware of the double-whistle and avoid conflict.

The transition from working two-person mechanics to a three-person game requires a few small adjustments.

However, the biggest key is to remember to focus on play-calling. From left, Fred Morales, Michael Sanchez, David Ramirez, all of El Paso, Texas.

as they can in summer leagues and camps even if it is necessary to split two-person fees three ways to make that happen.

Unchanged two-person principles Some principles presumably fully integrated in the techniques developed in every official’s twoperson experience are still operative after the transition to 3P. These include: • Throw-ins will always be

Simplified three-person positioning rules The principles behind all of the specific cases shown in the manuals covering all the rotations and switches are these: • Rule 1: Always know where your partners are. Communication among team members is critical to optimizing 3P coverage.

• Rule 2: Always position the trail and the lead on the side of the court where the ball is (ballside) for throw-ins and when the ball settles in play on that side of the court.

(Settles is the key word.) Once one crew member is properly positioned, the other spots are defined.

• Rule 3A: According to the IAABO manual, the official who calls a foul always goes to (or stays at) the side of the court opposite the table; the official who was opposite the table switches with the caller.

The third official holds position.

For penalties where shots are awarded, and for throw-ins tableside, the foul caller will be the center at the appropriate end of the court.

For throw-ins on the side of the court opposite the table, the caller’s position depends on the direction of play. If play is going to the other end from the foul spot, the caller becomes the new lead; if play will stay at the same end, the caller will become the new trail. The caller has all the information needed to make a quick decision.

QUICKTIP With the tipoff of the 2018-19 season just around the corner, now is the time to make sure your uniforms and officiating equipment are in order.

Do your pants, shirts and shoes still fit and fit properly? You don’t want to assume, only to discover that the extra 15 pounds you are carrying compared to last year (or even better, the 15 you lost!) has caused a last-minute issue.

Is your equipment bag packed and ready for opening night? Does it have all the essentials, including several whistles, two of everything in case something rips or splits, a towel, ibuprofen, your rulebooks and pregame chart with magnets?

Remember, failing to prepare is preparing to fail. Don’t be that official who doesn’t have the uniform/equipment details down come the first game of the season.

THEY SAID IT “You can say something to popes, kings and presidents, but you can’t talk to officials.

In the next war they ought to give everyone a whistle.”

— Abe Lemons, legendary college basketball coach

SIDELINE Pugh Recognized for Distinguished Service The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) honored Bob Pugh with the 2018 Steve Bamford Award for Distinguished Service to ECAC Basketball Officiating.

He received the award at the 85th Annual All-Met Haggerty Awards Dinner on April 25.

Pugh served as the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) high school basketball interpreter for 18 years, has been an NCAA D-I official for the past 25 years and was the ECAC coordinator for men’s and women’s Region XIX basketball for 10 years. He is currently the coordinator for the New Jersey Athletic Conference Division III men’s basketball officials.

REFEREE

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BASKETBALL

TEST YOURSELF In each of the following, there are at least two possible answers. You are to decide which answer or answers are correct for NFHS, NCAA men’s and NCAA women’s rules, which might vary. Solutions: p. 81.

1. A1 is assessed a technical foul.

When may substitute A6 replace A1? a. Before team B’s first free throw. b. Between team B’s first and second free throws only. c. After team B’s final free throw. d. Before team B’s first free throw or after team B’s final free throw.

2. Following the final horn to end team B’s 30-second timeout, team A players are on the court and ready to begin team A’s throw-in. The team B players choose to huddle on the playing court after the timeout has ended. The officials shall: a. Issue a team warning for delay to team B. b. Place the ball at the disposal of team A for the throw-in. c. Issue a resumption of play warning to team B. d. Assess a technical foul to team B. 3. Both teams are notified with three minutes remaining in the halftime intermission. Team A has the possession arrow and is ready for the alternating-possession throw-in to begin the second half when the horn sounds to end the halftime intermission. Team B is still in the locker room. The officials shall: a. Issue a team warning for delay to team B. b. Place the ball at the disposal of team A for the throw-in. c. Assess a technical foul to team B. d. Have the official timer begin a one-minute time interval.

4. Which is true regarding illegal contact? a. Illegal contact with a swinging elbow below the shoulders must be a minimum of an intentional (NFHS), flagrant 1 (NCAAM), or unsportsmanlike (NCAAW) foul. b. Illegal contact with a swinging elbow above the shoulders must be a minimum of an intentional (NFHS), flagrant 1 (NCAAM), or unsportsmanlike (NCAAW) foul. c. Illegal contact with a swinging elbow, regardless where the contact occurs, must be a minimum of an intentional (NFHS), flagrant 1 (NCAAM), or unsportsmanlike (NCAAW) foul. d. Illegal contact with a swinging elbow, regardless where the contact occurs, contains some judgment as to what type of foul shall be called.

• Rule 3B: According to the NFHS manual, with two exceptions (see below) the foul caller goes (or stays) tableside; the official originally tableside switches with the caller. The third official holds position.

For penalties that involve foul shots, the caller will be the new trail.

For throw-in penalties where play will stay at the offensive end, the caller will be either the trail or center depending on the location of the throw-in. (Rule 2).

For situations where play will be going to the other end with a throwin penalty, the location of the throwin is critical. For a tableside throwin, any caller becomes the new lead.

For a throw-in on the opposite side from the table, neither the trail nor the center will go tableside. Either caller will remain opposite the table and become the new lead. The old lead will administer the throw-in per Rule 2.

However, if the lead makes this call, he or she will go tableside, become the new center and switch with the old center who will administer the throw-in.

Despite these complications, these six principles should be easier to assimilate than memorizing the 15 diagrams in the manual.

• Rule 4: Have patience. The ball is dead and the clock stopped on a foul. There is time for the crew to fill any empty spot as unobtrusively as possible, but remember not to put the ball in play until the court is covered properly.

In its pregame, the crew needs to emphasize taking its time and diligently applying Rules 1 and 2.

A little hesitation from time to time will go unnoticed. The key point is to focus on officiating in the proper PCA. Some hints for when things go awry Some of the instinctive reactions formed over years of officiating in two-person crews can promote mistakes in 3P coverage, especially if rapid transition is required.

For example, suppose both the trail and the center instinctively respond to a steal by the defense

and sprint to cover a contested layup at the other end of the court.

The result is two leads.

Having two officials covering a rapidly moving, competitive matchup going to the basket is not a bad thing provided the discipline of the double whistle is observed.

If the shot is successful, there is a moment to find which side of the court the old trail is on (Rule 1) and for the appropriate lead to adjust to the center position (Rule 2).

On a miss, that process has to be accomplished quickly, particularly if the rebound is recovered by the offense on the side of the court opposite the trail. The players running to catch up with the original play make it too dangerous for the trail to cross the court.

Fundamentally the officials are back to two-person court coverage until the opportunity to follow Rule 2 presents itself.

Always remember to stay where the action is and referee the play.

Having the center and the trail on the same side of the court is another typical foul-up caused by two-person habits. An inexperienced 3P trail could instinctively move up the other sideline from the lead as play starts toward the other basket.

Since the trail should be behind the play, it may be safe to swing across the court when wisdom sets in.

Alternatively, the center might be able to communicate with the lead and trade positions.

Summary As evidenced by the points under Rule 3, the effort to simplify 3P positioning is not perfect. There are some cases where the crew may have to think for a moment to remember where to go. There is plenty of time to do that. Also, there will be times when the officiating crew fouls up in adjusting to the new techniques.

Calmly use Rules 1 and 2 to recover.

Bill Kenney, Florham Park, N.J., teaches the cadet class for IAABO Board 168 and was a longtime high school and college official. 

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HOME

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the quicksand, the lead must go back to where he or she came from because the rotation was not completed before the shot was attempted and continuing the rotation could put the rest of the crew in wrong positions.

In the MechaniGram, if the lead stays put, he or she is straightlined on all rebounding angles. Instead, back out and create a good rebounding angle, while also putting the rest of your crew in good position to perform its duties. 

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C VISITOR

ngle over distance … it’s one of the first axioms we learn as officials. Being right on top of a play does you no good if you don’t have an angle to see what is actually happening.

For basketball officials, a great example of this principle is the “quicksand” area directly underneath the basket. Whether working the two-person or three-person system, a youth game or an NCAA contest, nothing good happens for a lead official working in that area, because while you are close to the action, you can’t actually see anything.

The lead can get caught in the quicksand when initiating a rotation and moving ballside as a player takes a shot. Now, the lead must get out of the quicksand to develop an angle to see rebounding action. When caught in

SCORER & TIMER

Avoid the Quicksand A

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BASKETBALL

CASEPLAYS

Ten-Second Violation Play: Team A is in control in the backcourt for seven seconds. A1 throws the ball toward A2 in the frontcourt. B1 jumps from team A’s (a) frontcourt, or (b) backcourt and while in the air bats the ball back to A1 in A’s backcourt. Does this give team A 10 more seconds to get the ball to the frontcourt?

Ruling: Yes, in (a), a new count starts because B1 had frontcourt location when touching the ball, thus giving the ball frontcourt location. In (b), the original count continues as team A is still in control and the ball has not gone to the frontcourt (NFHS 4-4-2, 4-3, 4-35-1; NCAA M/W 9-10).

Illegal Screen Play: A2 sets a screen for teammate A1 with one foot on the endline. B2 collides with A2 with enough force to knock both players to the floor. Ruling: A foul should be called on A2 for illegal contact. The contact is illegal because A2 does not have legal position on the floor (NFHS 4-19-1, 10-7-11; NCAAM 4-35-2c; NCAAW 10-5-2c).

A good, thourough evaluation, delivered postgame in the officials’ dressing area, is a key tool in helping less-experienced officials know what they need to work on to progress and improve their ranking in an association. From left, Jim Stegman, Shoreline, Wash.; Tom Knorr, Seattle; Lincoln Missner, Bothell, Wash.

Source Evaluation

By Joe Erwin

W

hen it comes to officiating basketball, the one thing sure to get an official’s attention is the formal evaluation. Most officials appreciate the feedback and insight an evaluation provides and use it to work on their game in an effort to get better at their craft. For some officials it’s a rude awakening when their evaluation suggests they won’t be working the NBA Finals anytime soon.

Here are a few insights from an evaluator’s perspective that may help you the next time you’re being evaluated.

First Impression You know the old saying that you only have one chance to make a first impression. This can’t be more true when it comes to being evaluated. As an evaluator I always make it a point to be at the game prior to warmups to see how the officials take the floor and to see if they are on time. I also look to see if they are in the correct position during pregame warmups and are observing their assigned teams. First impressions are so important and it’s

critical for the official to start the game off on the right foot.

Appearance Matters This can be a touchy one, but appearance is certainly part of the evaluation. When those jackets come off and the official takes his or her position on the court, everyone’s watching, including the evaluator.

Things I look at include physical fitness, athleticism and speed; is the official wearing the proper uniform, is he or she well groomed and is the official’s weight properly proportioned?

I know we are all unique when it comes to our height, weight, body types and physical attributes, however, basketball is a fast-paced athletic game and those officials who are athletic and able to keep up with the players are going to score well in this area.

Judgment Is this the most critical element of an evaluation? Not necessarily, but it certainly carries a greater percentage of the evaluation points. I tend to give the official the benefit of the doubt on judgment unless there are obvious calls being missed. While I’ve never missed

DALE GARVEY

Alternating-Possession Mistake Play: Team A has the alternating-possession arrow in its favor. Following a held ball, the officials mistakenly award the ball to team B for the throw-in. Team A is playing excellent defense during the throw-in and thrower-in B1 is having trouble completing the throw-in. Right before the administering official reaches the five-second count, B1 calls for and is granted a timeout. During the timeout, the officials realize team A should have received the alternating-possession throw-in.

Who shall receive the throw-in following the timeout? Ruling: A throw-in mistake of awarding the throw-in to the wrong team can be corrected up until the throw-in has ended. The throw-in does not end until the passed ball is legally touched by another player and B1 called a timeout before team B’s throw-in ended. Therefore, the mistake shall be rectified and team A shall receive the throwin after the timeout has ended (NFHS 4-42-5, 7-6-6; NCAA M/W 7-6.5, 7-6.13).

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a call from the stands, I’ve certainly missed a few on the court and there are different vantage points an official has that others don’t. The most important thing I’m looking for here is, does an official handle his or her primary area?

If you can’t take care of your primary, then you’re most likely not going to score well in this area of the evaluation.

Professionalism Many times I’ve witnessed an official who does all the right things until the game gets going. How an official acts throughout the game is really a big one. I’m looking at officials’ demeanor, how they interact with coaches and players. Do they have proper emphasis on their calls, signals and mechanics and how do they handle themselves when things get tough on the court? Officials who can master this category generally show strong leadership skills and the ability to keep a game under control.

A high score in this category goes a

long way toward receiving a good evaluation.

Other Considerations Other parts of the evaluation include knowledge and feel for the game (no game interrupters); court coverage, awareness and positioning; signals and mechanics; consistency; and communication. What about the rules? You bet! If you kick a rule or don’t properly enforce a rule this will certainly drag down your evaluation. These areas can really improve your overall score and compensate for other areas in which you may not score as well.

The Delivery When meeting with the crew after the game I always try to start with the positives, especially after a tough game. I ask them how they felt they did in an effort to gauge their own self-critique. I ask about certain plays and calls and to give the time and quarter references (i.e. 4:14 in

Q2) to help jog their memory. If I saw it differently I’ll tell them, but I’m careful not to get into a prolonged debate or embarrass an official in front of his or her peers.

Healthy and honest discussion is good for both the official and the evaluator and there’s been many times where I’ve changed my score after hearing the official’s perspective on a call. If you’re being evaluated, be open to what the evaluator has to say, defend your calls yet don’t get defensive and don’t be afraid to admit a mistake. Lastly, take a day or two to reflect on the evaluation and talk to the evaluator if you have concerns or feel something was missed. Hopefully these points will prepare you for the next time you’re being evaluated.

Joe Erwin is a basketball evaluator in Florida and serves as president of East Coast Basketball Officials Association in Palm Beach County. He is a two-time Florida Official of the Year and has worked nine state basketball finals. 

playing defense A high school basketball coach in Georgia made news during the 2017-18 season when he was caught on video acting as an extra defender by standing in the coaching box and raising his hands high above his head, in effect cutting off the inbounding player’s sight line.

In a subsequent interview with a local television station, the coach claimed that such actions were legal “as long as you don’t interfere with the ball and as long as you don’t talk to the opposing player.”

We at Referee beg to differ on the coach’s interpretation of the NFHS rulebook when it comes to the legality of his actions.

While the exact situation may not be spelled out either by rule or by caseplay in the NFHS rulebook materials, officials would clearly be within their rights to penalize this coach according to rule 2-8-1, which states, “The officials shall penalize unsporting conduct by any player, coach, substitute, team attendant of follower.” The officials may make this decision in conjunction with rule 10-6-1, the head coach’s rule, which details the legal coaching duties a head coach may fulfill while standing in the 28-foot coaching box. Those duties do not include making a travesty of the game by using unsporting behavior to distract an opposing player.

So what’s the penalty? According to the NFHS rulebook, a first violation shall be a warning to the head coach unless the offense is judged to be major, in which case a technical foul shall be assessed.

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Oh Captain, My Captain

By Scott Tittrington

O

fficiating is a relationship business.

Relationships with your partners. Relationships with coaches. Relationships with players.

They are all important and all must be cultivated in order to have a positive experience on the basketball court.

When it comes to players, the best way to create a connection and foster an atmosphere of mutual respect is during the pregame meeting with team captains. This is the only time where you will have the undivided attention of two or three players and can lay out a blueprint for how you and the officiating crew you represent are going to interact with the captains

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and the players they represent.

In a perfect world, all captains meetings would be created equal.

The players would be figurative Boy Scouts, everyone would know exactly how to behave and the expectations for doing so and we’d all be able to quickly move ahead to the game at hand. But as officials, we need to prepare for and expect the unexpected and our captains’ meetings are a good time to deliver any necessary messages to the participants — from the usual to the unusual.

A good captains’ meeting should, at the very least, include the following: • Introductions by each member of the officiating crew to each captain of each team.

• A directive to engage in

fair play and to practice good sportsmanship.

• Strong eye contact and succinct, clear communication that fosters mutual respect and understanding for what your role will be as an officiating crew that night.

For some captains’ meetings, that’s all it takes. It could be as little as 15 seconds. It could be as long as a minute. Each crew chief who conducts a captains’ meeting will tailor the wording as he or she sees fit.

The important thing to remember is, while your captains are a captive audience, they are focused on physically preparing themselves to play in the game that’s supposed to start in 10 to 15 minutes. Don’t take away from

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DALE GARVEY

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A good captains’ meeting should be short and sweet, with an emphasis on fair play and sportsmanship. Jillian Quinn, Burien, Wash.

that preparation by droning on and losing their brief attention.

Where we sometimes need to go off script is a matter of game awareness. At the start of a new season, you may want to briefly address new rules or points of emphasis to make sure the players are aware of differences from a season prior. If you have two teams with a “history,” you may need to more sternly address the issue of sportsmanship and their need to simply take care of their own teams. If you notice myriad uniform issues while the two teams are warming up, you may need to enlist the captains’ help in getting their teammates legally adorned to compete in that night’s game.

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The more you work as a crew chief and take charge of a captains’ meeting, the more you will develop your own voice for the occasion.

The more you work as a U1 or a U2, the more you’ll see how that night’s referee conducts said meeting and will be able to steal phrases or tips that work for you when it’s your turn to hold court.

Find what works for you and don’t forget to wrap things up in a positive manner.

“Good luck.”

“Put the ball in the hole.”

And, most importantly, “Have fun.”

Scott Tittrington is Referee’s associate editor and is a high school basketball, football and baseball official. 

8/22/2018 11:33:39 AM

VOLLEYBALL

COORDINATOR: MARCIA ALTERMAN

malterman@referee.com

RULES, MECHANICS, PHILOSOPHY

Calling the back-row attack properly involves several skills: seeing if the ball is completely above the height of the net at the time of contact, watching where the attacker’s feet are and making sure the attacker is an eligible back-row player.

THINK AHEAD TO SEE BEHIND THE LINE

By Pati Rolf

I

am sitting with referees from four countries (Poland, Russia, Turkey and USA). All of us are fortunate enough to be assigned as referees at the FIVB Federation Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) Volleyball Nations League (VNL). We are talking about how to anticipate back-row attacks. The kind of play we are discussing is when a backrow player is intentionally set and must jump from behind the attack line to be legal. Even experienced

referees who work this very high level of play must work extremely hard on this responsibility.

The challenges for the referees are to know which players are on the back row and then anticipate the play early enough to see the back-row attacker’s takeoff point, so we can judge the legality of the attack. More teams at all levels of play — high school/club through national teams — are including sets to a back-row attacker as part of their offensive system. That being the case, all referees need to begin

thinking about how to anticipate this play.

In the United States, it is much more difficult to keep track of the positions of the players when you have the possibility of 12 (USAV), 15 (NCAA) or 18 (NFHS) substitutions.

It is difficult for most people to remember the positions of the players on the court during play when they are changing so often. Even if high school referees track the players on their lineup card as second referee, you can’t refer to it during play. As first referee you don’t even have the

BOB MESSINA

Anticipating the Back-Row Attack

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COURTESY OF PAVO

option of having a lineup card with you.

My fellow FIVB referees agree that for entry-level officials it is not easy to remember all the player positions.

We agree the best course of action in the first stages is to remember just two players of each team — the setter and the player opposite the setter.

Knowing whether the setter is in the front or back row will often help you figure out the position of other players. And if you know the setter is in the back row, you will be more likely to catch back-row faults from blocks or attacks by the setter when the pass is near the plane of the net.

Typically, when the setter is in the front row, the player opposite the setter plays defense in the right back position. So, if you’re aware the setter is in the front row, and the attack comes out of the right back, you can easily recognize that the attacker must be behind the attack line at takeoff.

As you gain experience and familiarity with the game, you can begin to recognize additional players.

Some referees like to add the player who follows the setter next. Another suggestion is to add the libero’s location to your recognition pattern.

Since the libero cannot attack, that eliminates altogether one player as a back-row attacker, allowing you to focus on the only two other possibilities. Only you know how many numbers you can keep in your head. So, remember what you can remember — two, three, four or six player numbers. Just do your best.

Fatigue, distraction level and the number of matches in a day can all affect your ability to track player positions.

At many FIVB matches and other advanced levels of play, we are extremely fortunate to have tablets, which are similar to iPads, attached to each net pole. Referees can glance at their tablet prior to each serve and note the player positions, as the lineups are advanced with each rotation. This makes it very easy for the referees to keep track of all the players. Also, at the international level, there are only six substitutions per team allowed, which makes it

much easier to track positions since fewer players are entering the game.

Even with those advantages, once play begins and players are moving all over the court, referees must be very alert to track positions.

At the beginning of each rally, make a mental note of who is serving. In the few seconds before the service authorization, look for the setter for each team and note whether he or she is in the front or back row, and then look for the player opposite the setter; for many teams, that player is often getting set to attack out of the back row. Realizing when the libero is in the back row with the setter means there will only be one possible player who might be intentionally set to attack out of the back row; it typically comes from the middle-back.

The discussion with my fellow international referees ended with a couple of final thoughts about attackers who are on the back row.

Be patient with yourself, repeat the pertinent player numbers to yourself after every rally and rely on your co-official to assist with this difficult call. As second referee, the challenge begins when the rally ends. After centering with your first referee, look to the benches immediately to see if they need a timeout or substitution. Then focus as quickly as possible on the two teams on the floor and note the locations of the two, three or four players — whatever you can remember. This will help you get a head start on overlaps as well. You will then be more prepared to assist your first referee with back-row faults during play. As first referee, you have a variety of things to pay attention to during a dead ball, but in the end, find your players, mentally note their positions, do your final scan and authorize the next service.

Pati Rolf, from Milwaukee, is an FIVB official and a member of the Professional Association of Volleyball Officials Hall of Fame. She also spent 25 years in collegiate coaching, including serving as the head coach at East Carolina (2009-12) and Marquette (2002-09). 

THEY SAID IT “I’ve been blessed with guidance from some wonderful mentors.

Without their support, I would have never had some of the amazing opportunities that have been presented to me.”

— NCAA Division I referee Christina Fiebich, on how mentors have played an important role in her officiating career. She began officiating after playing in a volleyball recreational league with another official.

DID YOU KNOW Beach volleyball is one of the fastest-growing sports. Last season the sport was sponsored by 69 NCAA institutions in three divisions, culminating in the spring with the NCAA Women’s Beach Volleyball Championship in Gulf Shores, Ala. Teams consist of five pairs of female student-athletes observing standard beach volleyball rules, with the five pairs playing best three-out-of-five-set matches.

ESPN and the NCAA reached a multiyear agreement to telecast the championships through 2022 on the ESPN family of networks.

Additionally, the Interscholastic Beach Volleyball League consists of 47 girls’ high school teams in California.

TOOLS Tachikara Gauge If you want to make sure you have the ball inflated to 100 percent accuracy, the Tachikara digital air pressure gauge is a good place to start. The bleeding valve and inflating needle housing are made of brass. The outside of the gauge is coated in rubber for protection against drops. It is powered by a CR2032 model battery.

You can adjust the pressure with the relief valve. The Tachikara digi-gauge retails for $19.99 and can be found at Kohl’s and other retailers.

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VOLLEYBALL

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. Team A designated A8 as the libero on the lineup sheet for the first and second sets but did not designate a libero on the lineup sheet for the third set. During a dead ball in the third set, A8 enters the court as the libero, replacing player A2. How should the officials handle this situation? a. Team A cannot use a libero in this set, since no libero was designated on the lineup sheet.

Team A should be assessed a delay sanction (unnecessary delay). b. In NCAA rules only, the libero can be added to the lineup at this point. c. Team A can add a libero after the set begins but will be charged with a timeout. d. Team A can add a libero after the set begins but will be charged with a substitution.

2. Which of the following are not true regarding an exceptional substitution? a. An exceptional substitution is not counted as a team substitution. b. A disqualified player may be replaced by exceptional substitution. c. A player replaced by exceptional substitution may not return to that set. d. The libero may be used as an exceptional substitute if no other starter or substitute is available.

3. Which of the following individuals can legally request a timeout? a. Playing captain. b. Head coach. c. Assistant coach. d. a and b. e. a, b and c.

4. A team is charged with a substitution to correct the situation when the submitted lineup includes a number that is not worn by any member of that team. a. True. b. False.

Are We Biased?

Yes, We Are!

By Marcia Alterman

S

ports officials always try to be fair. We try to do our job with impartiality and neutrality.

However, it is probably a fact that none of us are without bias. The NCAA is also recognizing this human trait and has included the topic in this season’s NCAA clinics for volleyball. Biases can have negative or positive consequences depending on which side you are on.

Bias as defined in the dictionary is “a prejudice in favor of or against one thing, person, or group compared with another, usually in a way that’s considered to be unfair.”

There are two types of biases: Explicit bias (also known as conscious bias) refers to the attitudes and beliefs that we have about a person or group on a conscious level. Implicit bias (also known as unconscious bias) refers to social stereotypes about certain groups of people that individuals form outside their own conscious awareness.

It is important to note that everyone has implicit biases — unconscious beliefs about various social and identity groups. This article isn’t intended to “cure” you of your biases as if they are character flaws. The purpose is to raise your sensitivity about your own biases with a little introspection and increase our understanding about how these biases might affect or influence our lives as officials.

Certain scenarios can activate unconscious attitudes and beliefs, according to Dr. Renee Navarro, vice chancellor of diversity and outreach for the University of California San Francisco. Biases may also be more prevalent when multitasking or working under pressure, adds research from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Officials can certainly relate to both of those situations.

Implicit bias occurs when our

brains make quick judgments and assessments of people and situations without us even realizing it. Our implicit biases are influenced by our background, cultural context and personal experiences. We may not even be aware of these views and opinions, or be cognizant of their full impact and implications, according to studies.

Let’s just take a few minutes to examine some of the areas of possible bias that we might be dealing with when we officiate. As officials, these biases might come into play as we deal with coaches, but also with our co-officials.

Remember that biases can be either positive or negative in nature.

For example, let’s consider age. For coaches that you don’t know, do you equate older coaches negatively, as a “has been,” or perhaps positively, as “experienced and wily”? Perhaps in your mind you consider younger coaches as “inexperienced” in the negative, or are they “energetic and vibrant” in the positive? What about our officiating partners? Does age influence you as a first impression when you work with someone new?

Sports in general are relatively diverse. But some sports, like volleyball, have a rather homogeneous culture. Does the fact that our sport is not very diversified allow implicit biases about ethnicity to surface when coaches, participants or co-officials are of a different ethnicity?

For some, physical appearance creates a predisposition. Does a coach’s (or co-official’s) body size or body type touch on an implicit bias for you? When you enter a gym with unfamiliar coaches, and one is tall, lean and looks like a former player, and the other is shorter and heavier, is there an implicit, more positive reaction to the first?

Gender bias is being discussed at all levels and in every environment today, from professional

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JIM WHITE

advancement to politics. Perhaps we all need to consider whether gender affects our interactions or decisions.

Does a male referee sometimes interact differently with male coaches than he does with female coaches? Some female coaches certainly feel that is true, based on an informal (and anonymous) survey by PAVO. One female responder (an experienced Division I coach) said: “Yes, I do feel there is some bias.

I feel even with 30 years of coaching experience (as a head female coach), male officials don’t like being wrong to a female coach. If I stand or raise my voice, I have received warnings, yellow cards and red cards. Yet I can watch a male coach stand the entire match, yell constantly and nothing happens to him. I feel this comes mostly from male officials, but I have also seen it from female officials.”

Of course, the opposite is just as likely to be true. Perhaps female referees are treated more “mildly” by male coaches than their male counterparts. This is a complex and difficult topic that is societal in nature. In many areas of our culture, gender creates an implicit bias on a regular basis.

Even more closely tied to the potential implicit biases of officials are issues like: • In-conference versus out-ofconference — are we sometimes biased toward a familiar coach who we know we’ll see frequently?

• Home versus visitor — is it true what the media and public have said all along, that officials are influenced by the home court or home fans?

There is some data available to support this view. Tobias J. Moskowitz is the Fama Family Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago and L. Jon Wertheim is a senior writer for Sports Illustrated. They conducted a study in which MLB pitch data revealed “bad” calls usually favor the home team; in soccer, penalties in the penalty area favor the home team … unless the stadium is poorly attended; football data showed calls like fumble decisions, holding

One Last CHECK

B

efore the beginning of every set, referees and/or line judges should do a final check of both antennas. There are two things officials should look for: making sure the antennas are vertically straight and in alignment with the outside edge of the sideline and making sure the antennas are secured tightly to the net. When an antenna is misaligned, it means a ball that should have been out can be ruled in and vice versa. An antenna that is not secured properly can cause a safety hazard to players if the antenna comes loose during play. The two most common antennas used are those that are secured with a Velcro sleeve and those that are attached using a double clamp to the top and bottom of the net.

Familiarize yourself with both types. On some occasions, the antennas may need to be adjusted during a dead ball.

Terry Miller Dayton, Ohio

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VOLLEYBALL

CASEPLAYS Player Uniforms Play: Between sets 2 and 3, team B changes from its original red jerseys to black jerseys. All players wear the same numbers worn during the first two sets. Ruling: In all rules codes, changing uniforms is allowed, if the new uniforms meet all required specifications and the player numbers remain consistent (NFHS 4-23; NCAA 7.1.2.8; USAV 4.4.2).

Interval Between Sets Play: During the interval between sets, team A players warm up with practice balls on their own playing court. Ruling: Under NCAA and USAV rules, warming up with practice balls is allowed in the interval between sets (NCAA 5.2.2.3; USAV 4.2.4).

This action is not allowed in NFHS rules (12-3).

Potential Interference Play: A team A player tries to save a teammate’s errant pass, but one of the ball retrievers gets in the way, preventing the team A player from making the play. Ruling: In all rules codes, the referee may direct a replay.

If a ball retriever or speed wiper interferes with a legitimate effort to play the ball, a replay may result (NCAA 4.2.4; USAV 17.2; NFHS 9-8-1f).

Captain’s Actions Play: The right front of team A goes up and smashes a ball over a collective block attempt during an attack that lands on the intersection of the sideline and endline on team B’s side.

The line judge calls it out, which is what team B’s libero sees and who begins celebrating with his teammates. The first referee overrules the line judge and awards a sideout to team A. The libero for team B, who is also the floor captain, approaches the first referee to ask what the call was. Ruling: In all rule codes, this is a legal action. The captain can be the libero and may approach the first referee to ask for clarification on a ruling if a signal was missed (NCAA 12.1.1, 5.2.3.4; USAV 5a, 5.1.2.1; NFHS 6-3-1, 6-3-2c).

and pass interference (the most controversial calls) favor the home team, and basketball data shows that block/charge calls favor the home team.

We’re not insinuating that any official is doing this on purpose — remember we are talking about unconscious/implicit bias. But we must respect the data.

It is also possible officials hold an implicit bias regarding a highly successful coach versus a “rookie” counterpart. Anecdotally, coaches have expressed their opinion that officials sometimes treat a wellknown, often victorious, coach differently than an inexperienced opponent.

So if you believe that everyone has implicit biases, what can we do about them? Without a doubt, officials do not consciously make decisions with conscious prejudice or unfairness. So how do we try to mitigate the implicit biases?

Recognize and accept that you have biases. And remember, knowing that you have biases does not make you a bad person. Biases can affect your relationship and interactions with players, fans, coaches and your fellow officials.

Develop the capacity to shine a flashlight on yourself. Reflect carefully on the pre- and post-match interactions with coaches and your

officiating team. In the pre-match conversations, do you find yourself developing expectations or concerns based on some of the biases we’ve covered? And do you bring your biases to the post-match with your crew? Can you try to acknowledge and control those biases?

Practice “constructive uncertainty.” Since our biases are often fast and almost reflexive, we must take a moment to wonder and reflect about our work — that is practicing constructive uncertainty.

In other words, introspection is healthier with a degree of selfdoubt.

Surround yourself with positive role models. Recognize those officials that you work with who seem to avoid biases — those who make the tough calls consistently in challenging venues, without seeming to be affected by gender/ age/ethnicity/body type.

This topic and these exercises are not comfortable steps to take.

However, to be the best official you can be, please go through the process of honest introspection about your own implicit biases. Do your best to control those biases so they don’t become explicit behaviors.

Marcia Alterman is Referee’s volleyball coordinator. *

USAV Rules Advisory Commission – New Structure and Function

By Julie Voeck

T

he USA Volleyball Rules Advisory Commission was recently restructured to reflect changes to the Operating Code of USA Volleyball that were adopted in May 2018. Similar to other rules governing bodies, USA Volleyball develops rules on a two-year cycle.

USA Volleyball is currently in the second year of the 2017-19 cycle, thus

there are no new rule changes for the upcoming season. The commission currently plans to meet in the coming months to consider potential rule changes for the 2019-21 season that will begin in September 2019.

The basic mission/ responsibilities of the commission are to: a. Review the Federation Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) Rules of Play and make

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VOLLEYBALL recommendations for play in the United States codified in the Domestic Competition Regulations (DCR). FIVB is the international governing body for the sports of indoor and beach volleyball. b. Identify and implement the testing of changes to the rules where the commission may see a compelling need for differences from the international level. c. Recommend a publication format for the DCR that includes: i) FIVB and World ParaVolley (WPV) rules with safety notations and translation commentaries; ii) Modifications for outdoor, developmental recreational and other play; iii) Modifications for special categories of play to include Co-Ed, Reverse Co-Ed and other rules as requested by member organizations; and iv) Modifications for USA Volleyball nationally-sanctioned championship events. d. Send a member to represent the commission at the meeting of the rules committees of the NCAA, NFHS and of any other organization deemed appropriate by the commission.

The USA Volleyball CEO appoints the chair for the commission. Recommendations from the commission are directed to the CEO for review and action. Pati Rolf, the USA Volleyball director of officials development, serves as the liaison for the commission to USA Volleyball.

Appointments to the commission are made by the chair and approved by USA Volleyball. In addition to the chair, the members of the commission consist of voting members, non-voting representatives and invited guests.

The composition of the committee is also designed to balance input from the representatives of the three disciplines that USA Volleyball rules cover: beach, indoor and sitting volleyball.

The voting members of the commission include a representation of individuals to represent the three volleyball disciplines as well as

Oct_18.indb 37

representation for junior girls’ and boys’ volleyball, and representation from the USA Volleyball regional volleyball associations. Specific commission members must be approved by USA Volleyball.

Here are the proposed representatives that make up the voting members of the USA Volleyball Rules Advisory Commission: USA Volleyball Rules Advisory Commission Chair: Julie Voeck FIVB Rules of the Game Commission Representative: Pat Powers USA Volleyball Indoor Regional Volleyball Association Representative: Kevin Wendelboe USA Volleyball Beach Regional Volleyball Association Representative: Cindy M. Compoc Junior Indoor Girls Representative: Walt Weaver Junior Indoor Boys Representative: Aric Anderson Junior Beach Representative: Lisa DiGiacinto World ParaVolley: Joe Campbell USA Volleyball Indoor Rules Interpreter: Bill Stanley USA Volleyball Beach Rules Interpreter: Glenn Sapp The commission also includes non-voting representation from the NCAA, PAVO and NFHS. These organizations develop rules and educate officials for volleyball competition that are not based on FIVB rules. The proposed members of the commission representing these organizations are: NCAA Women’s Representative: Anne Pufahl NFHS Representative: Lindsey Atkinson PAVO Representative: Brian Hemelgarn In addition, the commission seeks to gain widespread input across volleyball constituencies that utilize USA Volleyball rules as a basis for competition.

Julie Voeck is the chair of the USAV Rules Advisory Committee. She is also an active NCAA referee with postseason experience, the president of PAVO and a retired international referee. She resides in Wauwatosa, Wis. 

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TRANSITIO DEBBIE WILLIAMSON

TIA GIBBS

NCAA OFFICIAL

NCAA OFFICIAL

KINA BROWN

LOUISVILLE

WESTERN MICHIGAN

GUARD

FORWARD

2010-14

KEVIN DILLARD SR.

JEN WASHO

1992-95

MARYSSA CLADIS NORTH CENTRAL

GUARD

2011-15

NADIA BIBBS NORTHWESTERN

GUARD

2005-08

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ION GAME PAUL FERKING NCAA OBSERVER

Player-to-Ref Camps Aim to Move Former Athletes Into Officiating Former college basketball players get a taste of officiating at a Player-to-Ref camp at DePaul University’s gym.

The camp is run by Debbie Williamson, a former college baskeball player and the coordinator of women’s basketball officials for several D-I conferences, including the Big East.

SHANTE’ CLARK ROBERT MORRIS

COURTESY OF DEBBIE WILLIAMSON

FORWARD 2008-10

BRITTNY WHITE CHICAGO STATE

GUARD

2008-09

By Scott Tittrington

B

asketball has taken Ka-Deidre “Didi” Simmons around the globe. After a stellar collegiate career at Seton Hall University that saw her graduate as the program’s career assists leader and No. 2 all-time leading scorer, she spent the summer of 2015 in training camp with the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun, traveled overseas to Finland and Iceland in 2016 to continue her professional career, and moved on to Romania in 2017.

Being a basketball nomad had its advantages. It allowed Simmons to immerse herself in new cultures while getting paid to play the game she loves, a dream she had from the moment she first picked up a ball in elementary school.

“It was a great experience,” she said. “(But) I didn’t want to play overseas. I’m a Jersey girl.”

Which got her thinking about her interactions with Debbie Williamson, the coordinator of women’s basketball officials for a handful

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transition game

of NCAA Division I conferences on the Eastern Seaboard. While Simmons had the innate ability of all great athletes to tune out officials when it suited her needs, she recalled a handful of occasions where Williamson casually mentioned to players that a career in officiating might be a great way to stay in the

former D-I player at Louisiana Tech under storied head coach Leon Barmore — appealed to the players’ desire to remain a part of the game long after no one wanted to pay them for their ability to sink a jump shot.

“Just remember, there are only 13 people on the floor. So your next step is going to be to

“JUST REMEMBER, THERE ARE ONLY 13 PEOPLE ON THE FLOOR. SO YOUR NEXT STEP IS GOING TO BE TO PUT STRIPES ON.” — DEBBIE WILLIAMSON game once their playing days came to an end.

“I remember a couple of times when they would call for the captains at the center circle (and mention it),” Simmons said. “I always said maybe, but nothing ever came out of it.

“I had a lot of time to think.

I reached out to Debbie, then when I came back to the States she told me she was thinking about doing a Player-to-Ref camp. I wouldn’t say I nagged her, but just letting her know if she was going to have this camp, I wanted to be a part of it.”

The idea became reality in the summer of 2016 when Williamson made good on her informal discussions, creating the inaugural Playerto-Ref camps designed to help former collegiate basketball players transition into the officiating world. That first year, Williamson sent out invites for anyone interested to join her at team camps at Villanova University in Philadelphia and DePaul University in Chicago for a crash course, basically a Basketball Officiating 101.

“No one funds this. I charged them $25 just to make sure they would come,” said Williamson with a laugh.

When it came to her sales pitch, Williamson — herself a

put stripes on,” she would tell prospective recruits.

She was also quick to point out that step doesn’t necessarily have to immediately follow the last ones taken as a player.

“I did not start officiating until after I coached nine seasons, had three kids and was completing my doctorate degree. It wasn’t until then that I realized that officiating would allow me to be involved in the game I loved so much and still raise my family and pursue my career in academia,” Williamson said. “Unlike coaching and playing, I wasn’t tied to a team so I could say no to basketball when my family needed me and no one knew the difference.

How often I officiated was my choice and afforded me more flexibility while allowing me to be on the floor and in the game I loved.”

The initial turnout for Williamson’s first Player-to-Ref camp, while not overwhelming, was encouraging. About 15 campers showed up for the first camp at Villanova, and another eight showed up at DePaul.

The camps opened with two hours of classroom work, where Williamson and her camp staff covered the basics of officiating, including rules, mechanics and floor coverage. After taking

a break for lunch, the new charges were handed stripes and a whistle, and it was out to the floor to work camp games and get an initial feel for being a part of a basketball game from a completely new perspective.

“That way, when they leave us that day, they have already made connections with the staff that I have in those cities,” Williamson said.

“They have a great feel for the game,” she added. “They know the game in a way that someone who has never played doesn’t.”

What they don’t know immediately — and in many cases, don’t know they don’t know — is how to translate what they have been taught and practiced as a player into becoming an official and performing that distinct role on the floor.

Take Simmons for example, who despite being a basketball lifer had, by her own admission, an eye-opening experience when she arrived at the Villanova camp.

“This was the first referee camp that I ever went to. I entered the camp with no experience at all,” Simmons said. “I didn’t know the proper mechanics; I didn’t know where to stand on the court. I’ve played the game since second grade, but you never pay attention to the refs.”

She proved to be a quick study. And just as important, she was immediately hooked.

While she did return overseas for that one final season as a player in Romania, the evolution had begun from Didi Simmons, basketball player, to Didi Simmons, basketball official.

A series of basketball officiating classes began about a month before Simmons returned from Romania, so she worked overtime to hone an understanding of the rules and mechanics before passing a test

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NEW FOR 2018

the video you need Former college basketball players (from left) Ivy Abilona, Marcelyn Williams, Tahira Johnson and Nicole Jimenez receive feedback from D-I referee Joe Vaszily at a Player-toRef camp at St. John’s University.

that allowed her to officiate summer AAU basketball. She made a strong enough impression on the summer circuit to secure a couple dozen high school varsity girls’ games and four state playoff contests during the 201718 season as a member of IAABO Board 33 in New Jersey, while also working several freshman and junior varsity boys’ games. And due to her proximity to New York City, she also worked some games in the Empire State.

“I like going to New York to work games to get experience so that when I go to the camps I am already aware of NCAA women’s rules,” Simmons said.

Through it all, Simmons has remained in steady contact with Williamson, firing off emails when she has questions, and discussing possible camp opportunities in the future that will help her reach her goal of one day not only working collegiate basketball, but also at the professional level.

“It drives me,” said Simmons about her long-term goal. “That’s what I want to do, get to the professional level. Back to the professional level, just a different side.”

Of course, not every former player who trades a jersey for stripes will

reach the pinnacle of the officiating world. There is a constant need for qualified officials who have a passion for the game at all levels, and that is where Williamson and her camps continue to fill what is still a very specific niche.

In 2017, two Player-to-Ref camps were again offered, at DePaul and at St. John’s University in Queens, N.Y. The original plan was to congregate at the same sites again in 2018, but there was such strong interest in the St. John’s camp that Williamson decided to funnel all her resources into that one camp rather than splitting them among two locations.

“I know there is a bigger demand for more than just the two I’m doing,” Williamson said. “I haven’t really had the time to build it as much as I need to. … It really is my favorite camp of the summer. It’s like coaching. You’re coaching referees who just have to decide if they want to do it. It’s really pretty funny to see them discover the game in a totally different way. It turns the page on their basketball career, just a new chapter.”

Scott Tittrington is an associate editor at Referee. He officiates high school baseball, basketball and football. 

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GETTING IT RIGHT

INSPIRATION, MOTIVATION, ELEVATION

By Steven L. Tietz

N

CAA baseball umpire Randy Harvey governed games for decades throughout the Southeast with skill and heart.

Although he can no longer hold himself upright without help, Harvey still stands tall, especially in the eyes of his longtime NCAA partner Dennis McComb.

“I’ve known Randy since he was 19 and now he’s 57,” McComb said.

“So, this was easy to do.”

Adapting to a new life without legs, former NCAA baseball umpire Randy Harvey is getting moral and financial help from a great many friends in the officiating industry.

McComb and fellow umpires are raising funds to help Harvey after an infection in January required the amputation of both of Harvey’s legs above the knees.

“It’s been a challenge, but it’s also a part of life,” Harvey said. “If I wanted to live, I had to do it.”

After rehab, Harvey moved into a handicap-accessible apartment in May. His brother is there to help and he also has a home health care aid. Health issues still abound.

But he is adapting to his new reality, which includes the end of his officiating career. He is also learning to walk on prosthetic legs.

“It’s like I’m a baby again,”

he said, “but I want some independence.”

Help has come in a big way from McComb and Josh Miller of the Florida Collegiate Umpires (FCU). Miller put out a nationwide email blast to about 2,500 umpires in March asking everyone to chip in to the “Randy Harvey Support Fund.”

The goal is to raise $30,000 and the FCU is guaranteeing all funds will go directly to Harvey.

The response has been impressive. Recently another fundraiser, one that he was able to attend, was held in Harvey’s hometown of Sanford, Fla. “This has been amazing,” Harvey said. “Just wonderful. I’ve always been one to believe in the Golden Rule. Treat people like you want to be treated yourself!”

As of late June, McComb said the fund was at about “80 percent” of its goal, with a wheelchair, a transfer chair and a transfer board having been purchased.

Harvey worked for various conferences in his career, and his impressive resumé includes both the NCAA D-I and D-II World Series. His attitude remains positive despite thrice-weekly dialysis.

“Do I miss it (officiating)?”

Harvey said. “Sure, I do, but I have to deal with it. My life is changed for good, but I’ll always be a part of baseball.”

The “Randy Harvey Support Fund” has been established at the TD Bank, 351 E. New York Ave., DeLand, FL 32724.

Harvey will be forever grateful to his officiating brethren.

“My grandpa always told me, ‘As you’re climbing the ladder of life, don’t forget those who you passed because they’ll help you get where you’re going,’” he said.

Steven L. Tietz is a longtime sportswriter from Milwaukee. 

Umpire Stays at It Despite Cancer Georgia baseball and softball umpire Terry O’Rear isn’t letting a little thing like cancer get in his way. O’Rear was diagnosed with stage four cancer in 2013.

It has affected his colon, liver and lungs, and he has had four surgeries to treat it. It went into remission, but now it is back. Still, despite having to go through regular rounds of chemotherapy, he continues to work, having been interviewed

by WMGT Channel 41 in June while officiating a Macon-area charity softball tournament.

“Did my chemo this morning and came back today,” he said at the time. “I like to do this.”

Tourney officials admired the way he kept everything in control. He tries not to dwell on his illness too much. “Keep moving, keep active, don’t let it get you down,” he said.

Former Official Pens Memoir Dana Senders, former NCAA women’s basketball official and conference assigner, writes about her career and her fight with multiple sclerosis in her book, Rise Up: Growth of Women’s Sports, Officiating Basketball, Living with a Chronic Illness. The 125-page book, published by LitFire, chronicles Senders’ years as a prep and collegiate athlete before moving into the world of basketball officiating in the 1970s. She eventually became an NCAA D-I women’s basketball official in the Pac-10, Western Athletic and West Coast conferences, and worked several NCAA women’s tournaments. After being diagnosed with MS in 1990, Senders worked four more years as an oncourt official before becoming coordinator of officials for the WCC. The book intersperses Senders’ memories of her childhood, career and illness with first-person observations written by fellow officials, supervisors and NCAA women’s basketball coaches.

Have you heard an inspirational or motivational officiating story?

JOSH MILLER/FLORIDA COLLEGIATE UMPIRES

Fund Created to Help Umpire Harvey

Send your ideas to GettingItRight@referee.com

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N AT I O N A L AS S O C I AT I O N

OF SPORTS OFFICIALS

VISION ACTION IN

Exclusive Free Resources Through the NASO Members App

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id you know that Referee magazine comes in a digital version that you can read on your phone or tablet?

It does. But currently the only way to access it is through membership in the National Association of Sports Officials (NASO). It’s one of the many exclusive benefits of NASO membership and its one of the many great free resources you can access through the NASO Members app.

The app is completely free to NASO members and is available through a special arrangement between NASO and the publishers of Referee.

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NASO members can also download 16 pages of additional Referee content through their exclusive It’s Official newsletter.

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SOCCER

EDITOR: DAN HELDMAN

dheldman@referee.com

RULES, MECHANICS, PHILOSOPHY

High school or college players who observe professional matches might try to copy things they saw — but some things may not be appropriate for their level.

DEMONSTRATION EFFECT

By Dan C. Heldman

T

he “demonstration effect” occurs when people see something done in one context and they match or copy the behavior in a different context. If the behavior in the original context is new, surprising, appears to be pleasant or fun (or “cool”) and is seen to be accepted, it is more likely for observers to attempt the same behavior in what

they feel are similar conditions.

We gripe about this all the time. In our case, it happens both top to bottom and sideways. By “sideways,” we mean the tendency of players to copy the behavior of their contemporaries observed elsewhere or at other times (e.g., in the game just before theirs, at a tournament, their opponents in one of their games, etc.). By “top to bottom,” we mean copying

the behavior of players in games at higher competitive levels — particularly when seen on television or as a spectator and when the game and/or the teams and/or certain players are considered prestigious (World Cup, MLS, collegiate and similar high-level matches). But “top to bottom” can occur just as easily observing an older sibling or simply attending a high school match.

For younger, less experienced

DALE GARVEY

Lower-Level Players Can’t Always Copy Higher-Level Play

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players, it is one of the ways in which they pick up tricks, techniques, ploys and different methods of play. Unfortunately, these things being learned can, when copied, turn out to be inappropriate for that player’s match level, either because their current physical talents are not adequate for the job or because what the younger player is “demonstrating” is not exactly the same thing as what they think they saw. Also unfortunately, the younger player tends to expect the same results, both in terms of his or her own performance and how the referee responds to the action.

This produces the dreaded, “But this was OK in the X vs. Y game on TV last night,” when the player gets whistled and/or carded. And what we would like to, but won’t, say is, “And you’re not Ronaldo.”

Yes, the “demonstration effect” can get very bothersome. When refereeing at a lower level and seeing a player trying something out that we’re sure he or she picked up watching WC, MLS, adult amateur or NCAA games, it’s easy to think that our refereeing life down here would be so much easier if those referees “up there” just called the game “the way they should” and not provide bad examples of player behavior to go publicly unpunished. All this does, so the argument goes, is give younger players the notion that such behavior is acceptable … so why not do it themselves? And if we call them on it, they think we are inept and got our badge out of a cereal box. Obviously.

The point, though, is that if referee A were to officiate, say,

an MLS match the way referee B would referee a U16 game, referee A would be doing the MLS players a disservice — just like referee B would be doing the U16 players a disservice if referee B officiated them the way referee A would an MLS match. This can get very confusing when referees A and B are the same person.

Some might express shock at this and say, “But the offenses are the same. Shouldn’t they be treated the same?” And the answer is that, with some exceptions, the offenses may be the same but how you handle them can differ greatly. The games are different, the players are different, the incentives are different and the entertainment aspects are different. In an MLS match, for example, there might be “writhing on the ground” and some of it may be a serious attempt to gain a beneficial but unearned call from a distracted referee, while at other times it’s merely for show and all parties know it and act accordingly. A caution for such simulation or fakery is unnecessary because no benefit was gained and no participant (player or referee) was fooled. What the casual observer is missing is the brief eye contact, the referee smile, and a silently mouthed “not this time.”

Does that sometimes make the job of officiating a local recreational youth or weekend adult amateur match difficult when the players are trying out things they learned from “the big boys”?

Yes. Dan C. Heldman is Referee’s soccer coordinator. 

FRED KFOURY III/ICON SPORTSWIRE/NEWSCOM

The Key to Sideline Management

By Drew Merritt

D

epending on your level of training and experience as a referee, communication may not seem

to be a top priority for officiating games. However, behind knowledge of contest rules and game mechanics, referee/coach communication may be one of the most important tools for

DID YOU KNOW? Werner Helsen, professor at KU Leuven University in Belgium, is considered one of the key reasons the video assistant referee (VAR) was introduced to the recent World Cup. Helsen and his team analyzed referee decisions in nearly 1,000 professional soccer matches where VAR was used. They found the accuracy of decisions increased 5.8 percent to 98.8 percent in matches using VAR and a “key” error, affecting the outcome of the match, was only made in one out of 19 matches. In matches without VAR, a key error was made in one out of every three matches. When that information was presented to IFAB officials in March, soccer’s lawmakers were sold on VAR. SOURCE: FORBES

QUICKTIP At the World Cup level or for your tournament final or high school championship match, you are liable to be a part of extra pageantry. There may be an exchange of memorabilia, team pennants or just sporting handshakes. Increasingly, teams are coming to shake the referees’ hands during pregame or postgame ceremonies. Do not be surprised. Know what to expect.

Talk to the event organizers to determine if there are any pregame festivities. Factor those activities into your timetable so the kickoff starts as scheduled.

THEY SAID IT “Essentially, the referees are trained as if they were the athletes participating in the games.

Referees, obviously, have to be physically fit enough to go the entire 120 minutes plus penalties, if necessary. You really treat your body like many of the athletes do.

It’s a combination of strength and physical-endurancetype workouts.”

— Sean Hurd, assistant referee at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil

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SOCCER

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 IFAB, NFHS or NCAA rules, which might vary.

Solutions: p. 81.

1. What is the definition of “playing distance”? a. The distance within which a player can play the ball. b. The distance within which the referee judges the player can control the ball. c. Six feet. d. Distance which allows a player to touch the ball by extending the foot/leg. e. Not officially defined.

2. A player commits a reckless foul and then, as the player is being cautioned, commits dissent. The proper procedure is to: a. Show a yellow card, show a second yellow card, then show a red card. b. Show a red card without having to show the yellow cards, but report the details and classify the red card as being for committing a second cautionable offense. c. Show a yellow card, then show the second yellow card and a red card together. d. Show a yellow card and then a red card.

3. A player spits at a teammate in that player’s penalty area but misses. The correct decisions are: a. Red card and an indirect free kick. b. Red card and a direct free kick. c. Red card and a penalty kick. d. Caution and an indirect free kick.

4. A person runs onto the field during a match and the referee stops play. The restart could be: a. A dropped ball. b. An indirect free kick. c. A direct free kick. d. A penalty kick. e. Any of these depending on who the person is.

game management. As with all types of communication, the only reality that matters is the perceived reality.

The Pregame Conference First impressions are everything.

The coach/referee conference is an opportunity to demonstrate confidence, organization and professionalism. It’s shocking to hear that some officials choose to skip this meeting altogether, and some coaches report having to initiate it themselves. If possible, it’s best to call both coaches together for a common conference, putting everything out in the open and ensuring that they receive the same message.

Coaches may have different “wish lists” for the conversation before the game, but certain standards are a must at every level. All coaches want to see a crew that is organized and professional. They understand that referees are human and that mistakes may happen. At the high school level and below, most coaches are also able to accept that referees have varied levels of training and experience. What coaches cannot abide is evidence that a referee may have preconceived notions about a game before it begins.

Coach Logan Minshew of Fredericksburg (Texas) High School remembers a playoff game where a referee disclosed that he “normally (called) boys’ games.” This referee may have been used to calling for boys instead of girls, but the perception of the coach in that moment was that the referee was disinterested in the game that he was about to call. “I understand that it’s a completely different game,” Minshew said, “but I would never go to my team and say, ‘I normally coach boys, but I got assigned girls.’”

As an official, be careful not to say anything before the game that may be viewed as bias. John Brockway, head coach at Taylor (Texas) High School, put it this way: “The referee telling me that he knows something about the other team, or that he knows something about my team before the game, really turns me off.” Though you may have done your research in preparation for the game, it’s not

advisable to discuss your viewpoint with the coaches. Coaches want objectivity from referees.

Coach Cory Maxwell of Marble Falls (Texas) High School also stressed the importance of addressing all procedural issues before the game begins. “Are your kids equipped?

Where’s your administrator?

Do we have an ambulance? Do we have water? Do we have the national anthem? Do we have roster announcements?” These are questions that Maxwell is impressed to hear from a referee before the game. “It’s the guys who lay it all out before the game starts … (that) make you feel more comfortable,” he said.

Building Relationships Introducing the crew to both coaches shows that the center referee is the leader and mentor of a wellorganized group. Most coaches will respect a leadership mentality, being leaders themselves, and they want to see cooperation and respect from all three referees.

When asked about the No. 1 factor that creates respect for a center referee, Coach Robert Lopez of Lonestar Soccer Club said, “The first thing is they organize their crew. I see them working and communicating … and they’re helping and educating their crew.” If it’s clear that a positive relationship exists among the members of the referee crew, a coach’s level of respect for that crew is likely to increase. If there is a lack of cooperation or signs of dissent among the referees, it adds fuel to any conflict that may arise during the game.

Brockway speaks about the value of a referee who is willing to build a sense of “kinship” with the coaches. “When a referee asks, ‘How’s your year going?’ or, ‘Is there anything I should know about the team?’ you can tell that he has some knowledge … and has some kind of soccer background.” Brockway notes that playing experience is an important element that allows coaches and referees “to have more of an understanding throughout the game.”

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Coach Freddy Drago of Angelina College further stresses the bonds that develop between a coach and a referee who both have experience as players. The opposite is also true.

Drago recalls a pregame conference before a college game where common ground was in the works until he made the comment, “You know, we’ve all played.” At this point, one of the ARs spoke out and said, “No, man, I used to do rodeo.” Admitting lack of playing experience can be an especially destructive comment at higher levels of play. A referee who hasn’t played at the level he’s calling can still have potential, but it’s another reason for doubt from the coach’s perspective, and it’s something that should probably go unsaid.

It’s important not to cross the lines of familiarity with coaches or players. Address coaches by their professional titles, avoid calling players by name and do everything possible to appear objective. Though you may be aware of reputations involved, speaking openly about them only sows the seeds of doubt in a coach’s mind. Even as you remain impartial, the coach’s perceived reality is that the contest may not be called solely according to the Laws of the Game.

The Impact of Emotion Though it can be tempting to shut down or to fire back when being hounded by a coach, a successful communicator and relationshipbuilder is willing to pause for a moment to address a coach’s concerns. Don’t ignore a coach who is asking a question. Even if it is as simple as saying, “Coach, I hear you, and I will do my best to watch that,”

Communication with coaches may not always seem like a priority, but it’s a critical part of game management. Jesus Hernandez-Balk, Kirkland, Wash.

a referee should acknowledge the coach on the sideline.

Minshew mentioned the importance of being willing to discuss a critical call. “I think there are some times when you have a question about what they saw. I try to be as professional as I can, but I need to be able to address that information with my players.” Referees should realize that coach comments are not always personal challenges or dissent. Some coaches are just trying to collect information for their own game-management purposes.

Remember that it’s not about you, it’s about the teams. Show empathy for the players. An awarded penalty, a red card or a close offside decision

can have an enormous impact on a game. Always strive to keep the game in check without drawing attention to yourself. Think about de-escalation so that you become a calming influence on the field.

There’s never a reason to threaten cards or to tell coaches how to do their jobs. There’s never cause to point a finger or to place blame.

Take on the role of the peacekeeper and see how it will improve the experience for all parties.

Drew Merritt, Austin, Texas, is a former football and soccer referee and current head coach of the varsity girls’ soccer team at Taylor High School in Taylor, Texas. *

Law 12, DOGSO and Misconduct T

DALE GARVEY

he 9/18 issue of Referee included a summary of some of the 201819 changes and clarifications in the Laws of the Game that most directly affected most officials. A few topics were not covered (such as the Video

Assistant Referee program) because they affected only the highest level national and international competitions while others (the “sin bin” initiative, for example) have yet to be adopted in the United States.

One topic, however, resulted in some controversy, which has only recently been resolved. It involved the publication of a separate, new section of each Law dealing with “frequently asked questions” (FAQs)

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SOCCER

CASEPLAYS No Corner Flags Play: As you arrive at the field for an adult amateur match, you note that, although the field has been marked correctly and the goals are in place and safely anchored, there are no corner flags — nor will there be because the person who brings them is not coming. Can the match be played? Ruling: Yes. Although flags are required under all codes, the IFAB has clearly stated that the game (generally, if it is below the top competitive level) can be played “with the agreement of the teams” but the absence of the flags must be included in the match report (Practical Guidelines and FAQ 1.2).

NCAA agrees both that the match can be played and that the absence of the flags must be reported (Rule 1.8 Pen.). NFHS Rule 1.3 requires corner flags, but provides no guidance on what to do if one or more is missing. Referee recommends notifying the home coach of the matter, but allowing the game to proceed and including these facts in the match report.

Outside Interference Play: At the taking of a penalty kick, an outside agent (a dog or a spectator, for example) enters the field and interferes with the ball while it is on its way toward the goal. How is this handled?

Ruling: All three codes agree that the penalty kick must be retaken if the ball is prevented from entering the goal. IFAB added a nuance in 2017-18 that the referee should allow the goal if the ball entered the net and the interference did not prevent either the goalkeeper or any defender from playing the ball (Law 14.2). NCAA rules distinguish between interference which stops a ball from going into the net (dropped ball where the outside agent made contact with the ball, 10.4.1.b) and specifically where the contact occurred in an extended time penalty kick situation (retake the penalty kick, 14.4.b). There is no language in the NFHS rules directly pertaining to this scenario. However, NFHS 14.1.7 suggests that “an unusual situation that causes a temporary suspension in play” after the penalty kick is properly taken but before the ball reaches the goal would result in a retake regardless of the outcome, and 14.1.7 Situation specifically refers to a spectator throwing an object that stops or deflects the ball.

that was not originally included in the initial international distribution of the Law changes. Readers can find these FAQs posted at the end of each Law in the section of the IFAB website that presents each Law separately. They are also not in the IFAB Lawbook that is published and distributed in the United States.

The issue involved a scenario that combined a “denial of a goalscoring opportunity” (DOGSO) with the possibility that the denial was caused by a defender’s action which was not a foul but solely misconduct and then complicated by whether the event occurred inside or outside the penalty area. FAQs 11 and 12 clearly outlined the actions that should be taken by the referee.

In both cases, the scenarios assume that the DOGSO has been denied solely by a cautionable misconduct offense (e.g., shouting to distract the attacker) or by an indirect free kick foul (e.g., impeding with no contact or a dangerous play).

FAQ 11 states that, if the denial

occurred outside the penalty area, the correct response if play is stopped is a red card for the DOGSO misconduct and an indirect free kick. This should cause no surprise because it is consistent with the Law as written as recently as 2015-16 but dropped from the Law thereafter.

FAQ 12 states that, in a scenario otherwise exactly as above but occurring in the penalty area, the correct action is exactly the same (red card plus indirect free kick) even though the current language of Law 12 would seem to say otherwise.

In deciding whether the DOGSO offense should be red-carded or only cautioned, one of the apparent requirements was the commission of a direct free kick foul. As IFAB noted, a penalty kick restores the “goal-scoring opportunity” lost by the offense, which denied it. Since an indirect free kick restart does not restore the opportunity (precisely because the restart is indirect), a red card should be given instead of a caution. *

Warning Ahead

By Al Baer

W

arnings done correctly can be very useful, but if they are used in the wrong situation, they can hurt more than they help game control. I had an instructor who would frequently say, “If you warn a player, the guy he just knocked down is going to think that, if all the player gets is a lecture for sore ribs, I will do that too.”

The reason that a referee may want to talk to a player is that showing cards too often diminishes the value of the caution, so a warning can save you from cautioning. The comment above is saying that warnings should be used only for offenses that are just a bit over the limit.

In a game I witnessed, goalkeeper A1 comes out and fields a bouncing ball near the top of the penalty area. Striker B7 runs at the

goalkeeper, veering off at the last second and not making any contact.

The referee took no action. The purpose of this was to intimidate the goalkeeper.

This goalkeeper did not intimidate well. B7 did the same thing a couple of minutes later. As he ran close to the keeper, the keeper grasped the ball in both hands and stuck out his elbow and B7 now has sore ribs. This is allowing the players to control the game, just like asking the devil to protect you from evil.

The referee could have shown a card for unsporting behavior.

I suggested that, after the first incident, the referee tell the goalkeeper to just hold the ball for a moment. Go to the attacker and quietly suggest he not do that again because it is likely to cause problems in the game and he is not going to be allowed to intimidate that goalkeeper with such tactics.

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The goalkeeper may not know exactly what is being said, but he should understand that the referee is addressing the issue. Such warnings tell both players that the event was more than you wanted and things need to settle down. It may also tell a player that he is committing too many fouls (thus approaching “persistent infringement”).

The line between where you would show a card and just give a warning depends a great deal on the temperature of the game. If the game is well under control with few fouls and no or only a few cards, you would be more likely to warn rather than card.

If fouls are coming quickly at a rate faster than they should and/ or are overly hard and you have already shown three or four or more cards, the game is heating up too much and it is too late for a warning.

And if the foul was hard or tactical,

a warning is not going to be seen as adequate for the victims.

If the game is having serious control problems and the yellow card is not getting respect, you may want to up the ante. A comment loud enough to be heard, saying something like, “You guys are not paying attention to the yellow card but I have a red one too” may get them to become more attentive.

There are some different ways to give warnings. The “quiet word” is just a brief, private conversation, perhaps as you go by the player, letting him know that what he did was more than you want and he needs to calm down. If the game has not gotten too hot, this can be very effective.

If the foul was harder and/or things have heated up, you may want to take a few moments and talk to the player more publicly to let both sides know something is being

done. If what is being said is quiet, it allows you to say things you would not want to say publicly. I know one fellow who said after hard contact, “I don’t think you did anything wrong, but the other team expects me to do something.” Perhaps something like, “That wasn’t as bad as it looked, but let’s tone it down” is better.

If the foul was quite bad, you may want to be louder. Some referees like to use firm gestures along with a conversation when they feel a public warning is the better way to handle the incident. You must make it clear to everyone that better behavior is needed.

Use these or variations to keep the game on the right track.

Much depends on how serious the incident was and some on how you communicate with others.

Al Baer, Nashville, Tenn., is an administrator for Tennessee referees. *

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Find out how to stay connected today.

Contact us at 800-576-2799 or visit arbitersports.com

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DEE-CISIVE 22 Final Fours, FIBA Women’s World Championships, Pan American Games, Olympic Games, NBA and WNBA.

By Peter Jackel

I

n Dee Kantner’s perfect world, her body of work would have said all that needs to be said about her life. She didn’t need this story, nor did she necessarily want it, but she did come around to accepting the idea of being profiled. A woman who has pretty much mastered anything she has taken on during her 58 years on this planet — her friends called her “Champ” when she was a kid in Reading, Pa., because of her winning nature and she has certainly taken it from there — is supremely satisfied in her own skin.

The first few times Referee magazine knocked on her door for a feature story, it was politely rebuffed with a, “Thanks, but no thanks.” Nothing personal, understand.

It’s just that her officiating resume, which includes 14 NCAA women’s championship assignments and globe-trotting gigs throughout her 35-year career, is there for anyone interested in seeing it. Enough said.

Dee has nothing to hide, but that doesn’t mean her officiating excellence should make her life an open book.

Because of her resume and the fact that she has been a trailblazer in officiating, Referee kept Dee on the list of people it would most like to profile.

And then, what the hell, why not? Dee opened her door for a conversation, and

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what a conversation it turned out to be. An assumption based on her previous reluctance to talk could have been made that Dee would be guarded, choose her words carefully and force the writer to struggle to come up with some kind of narrative for these pages. On the contrary, she was a Fourth of July display of fireworks as she gleefully talked from a cell phone on the back porch of her home in Charlotte, N.C., pausing in mid-sentence at one point to scold a pair of hummingbirds to play nicely and doting over the bees that this certified beekeeper lovingly manages. Nearby was her faithful rescue dog, Addison, a black Labrador mix the animal lover adores (she’s a hard-core vegetarian, incidentally). And as Dee continued, quite a person revealed herself on her own terms. She donates her time to Meals on Wheels. She has visited every state except Alaska, which is on her bucket list, and has an affinity for motorcycle excursions (she owns three motorcycles, two of which are Harleys).

She is financially set at the age of 58, and could step away from officiating at any time, but what would be the point of that? Dee still feels she services the game well and, almost as importantly, she still enjoys it. Even during the offseason, it’s necessary to catch her in the small windows of her busy schedule because she’s seemingly always off working at some

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VE camp and sharing the limitless reservoir of expertise that long ago elevated her to elite status.

Life has been not a total bowl of cherries for Dee. She has a family history of heart issues — she lost her father and one of two brothers to heart attacks well before they turned 50 — and she’s on cholesterol medication despite her healthy lifestyle. There was some sadness relating to her family, especially her father, in her younger years.

And a woman who has excelled in everything she’s taken on once had to endure the agony of being fired by the NBA — and trust her, it was agony — five years after being a pioneer female official in that league.

But to hell with brooding. Dee would much rather fire up one of her Harleys or maybe watch a doe and a couple of fawns peacefully wander into her backyard and dine at her birdfeeder rather than expend energy on the negative stuff. What this woman is all about is taking a morning swan dive into life with a smile on her face and a playful gleam in her eye because, here’s the truth: Life is about as good as one makes it out to be.

And she has made the most of her life.

“I’m entertained the whole damn time because I’m just entertaining myself in my head,” she said. “I’ll see something that I think is absolutely hysterical and that little gleam will come into my eye. I mean, life is fun! If you pay attention, there’s a lot of fun things going on out there.

People get all encumbered with their, ‘Woe is

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me,’ and I’m like, ‘No! There’s fun things out there! Amazing things!’”

As for this business of being reticent, here’s the deal with that: Dee reveals her spectacular personality in routine interactions with her numerous friends.

Otherwise, she will proudly refer you to her officiating resume, which started with grade-school assignments in 1982, while she was earning an engineering degree from the University of Pittsburgh, and continued on a jet-propelled trajectory that has covered 22 Final Fours, FIBA Women’s World Championships, Pan American Games, Olympic Games, the WNBA and that stint in the NBA. She also served as the WNBA’s supervisor of officials for 15 years.

“I just like letting my work talk for itself, quite frankly,” she said. “I’m very dedicated to being the best official I possibly can be and to servicing the game as well as I can. I’m very blessed with a great group of friends and I’m kind of private otherwise. I’m just not one to want everyone to know everything about me. I just like being kind of private, to be honest.”

But there is a reason why Dee finally agreed to allow this story to happen and her decision was based on her love for a profession she has no plans to leave any time soon.

“The real reason I acquiesced is that I do want to encourage more young women to become referees,” she said. “And maybe if I get my story out there about how fun it is and how much I just love it, they just might be tempted to try it — especially former players.”

Dee Kantner played high school basketball for Exeter Township High School in Pennsylvania.

The Kantner family in 1960: Dee, who is three months old, along with her father Neil, mother Janet, and siblings Doreen, David and Darryl.

Growing Up There was a time in her earlier years when Dee was nowhere near this joyous, which heralds quite a backstory. Denise Ann Kantner was born May 3, 1960, in Reading, Pa., the last of four children born in five years to parents Neil and Janet.

Janet was just 23 when Dee was born and Neil would gradually diminish as a presence with his family until he was but a memory. By the time Dee was 3, her parents were separated, although they did not divorce until the early 1970s, when Neil remarried. Dee was on the verge of re-connecting with her father just before she graduated from high school in 1978, but a tragedy would forever leave her with lingering questions (more on that later).

Despite an unsettled family life, Dee created a fulfilled childhood for herself. From an early age she set her mind on being an achiever, both in the classroom and in athletics.

Don Bickel, Dee’s eighth-grade history teacher at Exeter Middle School in Reading, can recall his prized student instantly thumbing through a textbook whenever he imparted a lesson in class. It was as if Dee wanted

to verify for herself what was being taught and perhaps take yet another morsel of knowledge to another level in her fertile mind.

“She was very driven, very intelligent and when I had her in class, I couldn’t just say anything that she was going to take as gospel,” said Bickel, who was given Dee’s Final Four watch accompanied by a touching personal note from Kantner not too long ago. “I remember she was always very inquisitive and if I said something about history, she would follow it up and, I guess, expand on anything I might tell her. She would always sit in front of the class. She was always taking notes and was very attentive. Who knew she was going to be a referee and become one of the best in the profession? But you knew whatever she chose to do, she was going to be successful.”

A short distance from her small bedroom on the back of the Kantner’s house on 3420 St. Lawrence Ave. in Reading was a large playground where Dee developed her supreme athletic skills. This was a generation before video games began depriving so many youngsters in this country of the joys of the outdoors and Dee zealously

COURTESY OF DEE KANTNER

DEE-CISIVE

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DARRELL WALKER/ICON SMI/NEWSCOM

played whatever game was going on. Her passion was basketball, although she confesses to never developing much of an outside shot. She ran track, reluctantly joined the eighth-grade cross country team as a favor to Bickel, who was starting a program, and received a scholarship from Pitt to play field hockey. This young lady burned with a desire to succeed, which foreshadowed her drive to become one of the finest basketball officials to ever run a court.

“She was very competitive,” said Jean Frey, Kantner’s basketball coach at Exeter Township High School. “She was very willing to improve herself athletically and skillwise and she was a very good team player.”

While Dee’s three siblings, Doreen, David and the late Darryl, were more inclined to test the limits of what they could get away with, their kid sister generally behaved herself.

Oh, she got on her mother’s nerves on occasion — “When I heard, ‘Denise Ann!’ it was definitely time to go in another direction because this was not going to be good,” she said — but that was rare. She even laughingly passes the buck a little when reflecting on one of the times she caught the most hell from her mom.

“When I was really young and I’d hang out with my big brother, David. We were supposed to be home by 6 o’clock and we’d be running late and he’d just tell me to turn my watch back,” she said. “I did everything my big brother told me to, so I turned my watch back. I’d tell my mom, ‘Wait a minute! It’s only 10 to 6.’ My brother would just laugh and walk away and I’d be the one in trouble because I turned my watch back.”

That was about the extent of Dee’s major childhood breaches of conduct. Otherwise, she was the star of the Kantner family.

“She was always out there pushing herself, running up the biggest hill she could find and going to the event that she needed to do,” said Doreen, Dee’s eldest sibling. “She was very quiet and to herself, but she was always determined. We didn’t have the best situation, but we all turned out OK. She has excelled much more than we have and I’m so proud of her that you don’t even know. She got me out of a situation and brought me to North Carolina so I could get out of that situation.

She gave me a better life (Doreen declined to elaborate on what her situation was). I’m so grateful for her that you can’t even imagine.”

Stephanie Huesgen, whom Kantner describes as, “my bestie since we were about 7,” recalls a girl who separated herself from the pack with her passion for any challenge.

“From a very young age, she was just fearless — ‘can’t’ was not in her vocabulary and I always knew something great was coming from her, because no one worked harder,” Huesgen said. “She was persistent and amazing from a young age and I saw that. I’m

Dee Kantner has a discussion with Roy Gulbeyan during a first-round game of the SEC women’s basketball tournament in 2010. She has worked numerous conference and NCAA tournaments, including 22 Final Fours.

not surprised at what she is doing now.”

The father Dee never really got to know was still out there, keeping track of his daughter’s glowing accomplishments in a manner she would one day realize. Midway through the spring semester of her senior year of high school in the spring of 1978, she made the difficult decision to re-connect with him. This was a personal matter that Dee discussed with some reluctance.

“I made this decision because as I was graduating from high school, I was class president, so I had that speech to give,” she said. “I was salutatorian, so I had that speech to give. I was the No. 1 athlete, so I got an award for that. So I was really psyched because I knew my father came to my siblings’ graduations. I’d see him in the stands, but I never talked to him. So, I made the decision with Dad coming to graduation that, ‘I’m going to talk to him.’”

And then Neil died of a heart attack that March at the age of 45, forever leaving behind a broken bond and unanswered questions. And a woman who is so full of life 40 years later was suddenly washed out emotionally as she struggled to come to terms with a loss that was so distant, yet so vital in her life.

“I was like, ‘Son of a gun!

How did that work out?’” she said. “I went to his funeral and every one of his friends said, ‘Oh, he was so proud of you. He has a scrapbook.’ It was just too much. It was overwhelming. The same day of the funeral, I went to class. I went to track practice.

I remember the assistant track coach saying, ‘I want to talk to you,’ and I said, ‘I’m not talking. I’m running. Just let me practice.’ I didn’t even talk to my mother about it.”

This much can be said with reasonable certainty: Had Neil Kantner lived to see what his

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DEE-CISIVE

daughter would go on to accomplish, he would have several bulging scrapbooks today.

Future NFL Hall-ofFamer Dan Marino was still throwing spirals for Pittburgh when Dee graduated with a degree in engineering in 1982 and started a yawn-fest of a job in her intended career.

Her first position was specializing in pipe stress analysis for an engineering consulting firm and, as she noted in her inimitable way, “I learned the art of falling asleep with my .5mm Pentel pencil poised.” Dee had dabbled in some lower-level basketball officiating during her senior season at Pitt, but it took a chance encounter for the real presence she would become on the court to start revealing itself.

While working part-time for a health club in Pittsburgh, Dee encountered a Westinghouse executive who eventually helped her land a sales engineer position at the firm. By 1984, she was transferred to Asheville, N.C., where her career gained real traction.

“They needed women officials,” Dee said of her new location, “and Jo Kafer — she’s passed on now — was the supervisor of officials in the Southern Conference as well as some other conferences. She called me — I don’t even know who from Pittsburgh called her — and said, ‘I hear you’re a young official and you’re athletic. Come to this meeting in Atlanta if you want to work in the Southern Conference.’

I didn’t realize the Southern Conference was Division I, but I said, ‘Sure!’”

June Courteau, now the NCAA national coordinator of women’s basketball officiating,

Dee’s bees.

Kantner is a certified beekeeper off the court.

Dee Kantner looks at the instant replay monitor during a 2011 SEC women’s basketball tournament game.

became Dee’s mentor at the Atlanta camp and presented her new pupil with tough love during an early assignment at Tennessee-Chattanooga during the 1984-85 season.

“June handed me seven pages of notes after the game,” Dee said. “I thought, ‘Well, I suck!’ I looked at her and said, ‘Really? Seven pages of notes?’

Well, she writes big, so that was a positive thing. But she looked at me and said, ‘Here’s what I’m going to tell you. What you have, I can’t teach you. You have an amazing feel for the game. Your feel for the game is incredible.

Now, everything else is awful!’

It was my mechanics, my positioning, whatever. So if you give me seven pages of notes, I’m going to read every one of them and try to implement every one as soon as possible.”

She was on her way, but there were some bumps along the way. With those trying experiences came the wisdom that Dee passes along to the young officials she spends so much energy trying to teach.

“I remember when I was 25, I had the opportunity to referee No. 1 vs. No. 2 in the country and it was Texas vs. Tennessee in a two-person-crew game,” she said. “I still remember that because it took me I say jokingly

about eight hours to get out of the bathroom before I could even ref it. I was just mortified. I didn’t think I was ready for that caliber and I’m sure I wasn’t. But I survived. Once the ball went up, it was a basketball game.

“I remember the two coaches got into kind of an adversarial situation. Jody Conradt and Pat Summitt, those were two hall-of-fame icons in our game.

I was working that game with June Courteau and I just looked at June and said, ‘How do you handle this? I don’t know how to handle it! You deal with it! I’m only 25 years old!’”

The heat would become so much more intense. And this time, Kantner was on her own against Summitt, Tennessee’s late legend who would go on to develop a deep respect for Dee. “A year later, I had Tennessee at N.C. State and Tennessee was losing,” she said. “I called an offensive foul against Tennessee and Pat met me at midcourt yelling, ‘Kantner, you don’t have it to make it to the big time!’ I assessed a technical foul and she stayed there and I said, ‘You need to get back. I will throw you!’ And then in my head, I’m going, ‘Oh, please go back! I can’t throw Pat Summitt out of a game!’ Fortunately, she went back.”

COURTESY OF DEE KANTNER, DARRELL WALKER/ICON SMI/NEWSCOM

Battle Tested

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Dee kept moving forward, and at a rapid pace. Take the 1992 national semifinal between Western Kentucky and Southwest Missouri State (now Missouri State) at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena. Western Kentucky won, 84-72, after 63 fouls were called.

“At that time, CBS covered the women’s games and we had a noon tip, which translated to 7:30 a.m. locker room arrival,” Dee said. “Artie Bomemgen was my partner, he was the crew chief, and June Courteau was actually the alternate. June and I started singing songs and Artie joined along. Then the game transpired and I think we’re still in the record books for the most fouls in a Final Four game. It was just an allout battle. We called 63 fouls, we could have probably called another 20 and it was one of the most difficult games I refereed. I was thinking, ‘If this is what the Final Four is like, I don’t know if I want to do this again!’”

A Better Referee Oh, she did more Final Fours. Time after time. And Dee would become such a master at her craft that she joined Violet Palmer as the first two female officials hired by the NBA in 1997. It was a personal triumph that disintegrated into a setback five years later when Dee was dismissed. Stu Jackson, the NBA vice president of basketball operations, was quoted at the time as saying, “There are times in a referee’s development that we find a referee is not making

The 3/98 cover of Referee magazine featuring Dee Kantner, taken

by Barry Mano, was among the photographs displayed in a touring Smithsonian Institute exhibit in 2001 celebrating women in sports.

Dee, who enjoys motorcyle excursions, is pictured with her brother Dave in the Grand Tetons.

sufficient progress in her own development and sometimes a change is needed.” And Dee, who had succeeded in pretty much anything she took on throughout her life, was devastated.

“It was tough,” she said.

“It was personally devastating because I’m not used to being told I failed. I didn’t sleep for a few months. It was one of the most difficult things I ever had to go through in my life.

But I really believe it made me a better person, it made me a better referee and, going back to that cliché that everything happens for a reason, I think I ended up exactly where I belong. And I love where I am. How many people can say that?”

There’s even some consolation more than 15 years later, not that the life Dee has made for herself needs much of that. Ed Rush, the NBA’s director of officiating from 1998-2003, believes Dee deserves to be thought of as among the best officials to ever work.

“Her playcalling, her work ethic … she’s the full package,” Rush said. “She knows how to communicate with coaches. You get to a

point where there’s hardly a Final Four that she’s not there and deservedly so because she’s the best.”

When asked about her termination from the NBA, Rush said, “It was a tough moment for a lot of people when she wasn’t there anymore.”

Two years from her 60th birthday, Dee has no plans to go anywhere even after she accomplished pretty much everything she can in her profession. She’s just so damn good and she still has so much to offer.

“Dee takes the game to the extreme and she doesn’t take a night off,” longtime college official Eric Brewton said. “She will run as hard as she can run and she will take care of the game. She will not allow anything to happen in her game that shouldn’t occur.

She will not allow you to be embarrassed or the crew to be embarrassed. Bottom line: You know you missed a call when her right eyebrow goes up.

“I always say to people, ‘If you want to measure yourself to a great official, it’s Dee Kantner.’”

Peter Jackel is an award-winning sportwriter from Racine, Wis. *

REFEREE, COURTESY OF DEE KANTNER

DEE-CISIVE

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SOFTBALL

RULES, MECHANICS, PHILOSOPHY

STEP ON IT

By Jay Miner

E

veryone wants to be known as a good plate umpire. When coaches think about preferred and non-preferred lists of umpires for postseason playoffs, they think about your performance as a plate umpire.

Effective use of the six steps of calling a pitch will dramatically improve your accuracy behind the plate: 1. On the rubber. Watch the pitcher while standing comfortably behind the plate in a relaxed, upright position, in the slot, between the batter and the catcher. Be alert for when the pitcher

steps on the pitcher’s plate and prepare for the pitcher to begin her motion.

2. Get set. Drop to a balanced and comfortable set position as the pitcher starts her motion. For the popular heel-toe-heel-toe stance, use a base that’s wider than shoulder width apart, with an imaginary line drawn from the heel of the catcher’s inside foot, to the toe of the umpire’s slot foot. A second imaginary line can be drawn, from the heel of the umpire’s slot foot, to the toe of the back foot that’s behind the catcher.

The umpire’s ear that’s nearest home plate should be lined up with

the black on the inside corner. The slot foot is pointed directly at the pitcher and the back foot is angled 45 degrees away from the catcher to provide the necessary clearance between the catcher and the umpire. The umpire’s chin should never drop below the top of the catcher’s helmet as the umpire bends at the knees rather than the waist. An upside down “V” should form at the umpire’s crotch with 80 percent of the body weight forward.

The umpire’s buttocks should never drop below his or her knees. The umpire should hold his or her hands in relaxed fists or lock the hand nearest

BOB MESSINA

Tips to Improve Your Plate Performance

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The pitch is in the catcher’s glove, so Tim Kohut, Santa Monica, Calif., can either rise out of his stance to signal a strike or remain down to announce a ball. That is the last of the six steps umpires must perfect to correctly call pitches.

home plate on the upper back of the hamstring muscle.

Develop a personal locking mechanism to prevent you from dropping too low in your set as the game progresses. If necessary, ask your base umpire(s) to monitor your head position throughout the game.

3. Track. Try to pick up the ball as it comes out of the pitcher’s hip area.

The sooner you see the ball the better.

Track the pitch with both eyes and your head motionless as the ball heads to the plate. Plan to track the ball with your eyes all the way into the catcher’s glove. It is imperative you avoid tunnel

vision. Tunnel vision means an umpire is looking down the tunnel to the pitcher’s release point and not tracking the ball to its destination. To avoid dreaded blinking behind the plate, lean slightly into each pitch as if you are going to catch the ball with your eyes.

4. Read. Reading the pitch means analyzing the pitch as it nears the plate.

Remember that you are now an umpire and no longer a player. Batters must read the pitch well in front of the plate to have time to start their swing when the ball arrives. An umpire must not read a pitch too soon, as a batter would do, and cannot make a final read until the ball smacks into the catcher’s glove.

Consider each pitch a strike until it proves itself a ball.

5. Hold. The hold mode is vitally important. Don’t be in a hurry to rise from your set position stance as you see the pitch. While some umpires painfully hold their calls to the point of frustration, a vast majority of amateur umpires call pitches too quickly. At the end of your hold position, determine the final status of the pitch.

6. Call it. The calling phase is different from the hold and should not be combined. Develop a consistent method of announcing the status of each pitch. Call balls from the down position. Strikes may be called from either the down or upright positions but choose a method of announcing strikes and be consistent. It’s best to signal strikes from an upright position.

Many top umpires use a third-strike signal that’s different from their strike one and strike two signals. That way a coach cannot misconstrue your thirdstrike signal with an out signal.

Philosophy. Visualize your strike zone one last time as you brush the plate before the start of the game.

Clean any dirt off the black border of the plate and bevel the dirt three inches on each side of the plate. That makes the plate appear wider.

Can you call one pitch correctly?

If so, continue to call each pitch as the one and only pitch of the game.

Establish your game early by not missing any strikes. Expecting to call every pitch correctly may not be realistic but vow never to miss strikes.

Jay Miner was a longtime umpire and instructor from Albany, N.Y. 

DID YOU KNOW? In its early years, softball was known by different names in different parts of the country.

In some places it was kittenball while others called it diamond ball. Not only were the names different, but the rules of the game varied as well. That presented many problems when teams from different states competed in tournaments. In 1932, one tournament in Milwaukee had 40 teams and almost all of them used different rules. An international joint rules committee gave the sport one set of rules in 1933.

QUICKTIP When you work the plate, you likely appreciate catchers who catch or block the ball, thus preventing potential injury. You can return the favor by giving the catcher some recovery time if she’s shaken up. You don’t have to draw attention to the situation; there are a couple of subtle acts you can perform to give the catcher some recovery time. Dust the plate (whether it needs it or not) or walk a few slow steps toward the mound to give the pitcher a fresh ball. Once back in your position, ask the catcher if she’s OK. You’ll be surprised how many catchers will thank you.

Better yet, some will dawdle in a similar way if one gets past them and you are struck.

BY THE NUMBERS Umpires inducted into the Tyler (Texas) Softball Association Hall of Fame during ceremonies June 10.

5

Combined years of

129 experience for the inductees.

Years of service by Henry

30 Asberry and Van Jordan.

Eric Kunzman’s years of

27 service.

24

Allen Steele’s years of service.

18

Don “Doc” Jones’ years of service.

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SOFTBALL

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. Runners on first and second with one out. B4 hits a pop up on the infield. F1 and F3 call for the ball. The umpire declares, “Infield fly.” The fielders, hearing the other call for the ball, abandon their attempt to catch the ball, which falls untouched in fair ground. R2 advances to third, R1 advances to second and B4 is standing on first. a. The umpires should leave things as they are. b. B4 is out, R2 returns to second and R1 returns to first. c. B4 is out, R2 remains at third and R1 remains at second.

2. With no outs, R3 on third, and all defensive players in normal position, B2 hits a slow roller to F3. B2 has reached the three-foot runner’s lane but is in fair territory by the time F3 has fielded the ball.

F3’s throw home to try to retire the runner attempting to score hits B2, who is running in fair territory. B2 continues to first base safely. a. B2 is out and R3 scores. b. B2 and R3 are out. c. B2 gets first and R3 is out. d. R3 scores and B2 gets first.

3. B1’s ground ball is fielded by a diving F3. F1 hustles over and stands on first base. F3 is unable to make a throw but manages to touch the glove with the ball in it on F1’s foot on the base before B1 arrives. a. B1 is out. b. B1 is safe.

4. The batting order is Abel, Baker, Cook, Davis, Edwards. Abel comes to the plate and strikes out. Cook then comes up to bat and strikes out. Baker comes to the plate and hits a double. The defense then properly appeals before the next pitch that Baker batted out of order. a. Davis, the proper batter, is declared out and the inning ends.

Edwards leads off the next inning. b. Davis, the proper batter, hits with Baker on second. c. Baker bats again and the batting order is re-established. d. Davis is skipped in the batting order and Edwards bats. e. Baker is declared out. Davis is skipped in the batting order and Edwards leads off the next inning.

It’s Just About the Right Time for a Time Play

By Leon Tetle

A

s individuals travel through life they sometimes find that timing is everything. That is also true in softball. Timing plays are very important because they always involve the last out of an inning and may determine whether or not a run scores.

Timing plays and live-ball appeals are closely related, and I learned some important lessons about both from past experience.

The idea for this article sprang from watching the highlights of a game on ESPN. A situation occurred in the bottom of the ninth with runners on second and third with one out and the home team trailing by one run. On a deep fly to left field, the runners from second and third properly tagged and tried to advance. The left fielder, seeing he had no chance at throwing the runner out at the plate, threw to third and the runner was tagged out on a close play as he dove into third base.

The runner from third was a half step away from touching home plate when that happened. Since he had not scored prior to the third out of the inning, his run, which would have put the game into extra innings, did not count.

You should always be aware of when a timing play is possible. That means any time an inning ends with an out on the bases by either a tag play or live-ball appeal, which is not a force out, the run does not count if the runner does not cross the plate before the third out is made. Here are the most common scenarios: • Any time there is a runner on second base with two outs, be alert for a timing play on a base hit where the batter tries for that extra base or gets caught in a rundown. That may also happen with an extremely fast runner who was stealing at the time of the base hit.

• A fly ball to the outfield with one out, multiple runners and the lead runner on third. Not only can you have a play like the one I saw on ESPN, but

also if the runner from third properly tags, but the runner from second leaves before the ball is touched by the fielder making the catch. Should a live-ball appeal (i.e. they throw right to second base and appeal the runner left too soon) be made before the runner crosses the plate, the run does not count.

• Two outs and runners on second and third. A ground ball is hit behind the bag at third, forcing F5 to dive to the right. As a result, F5 does not have a chance for a play on the batter-runner at first. That situation may develop into a tag play or rundown with the runner advancing from second base. Runners from third who do not hustle may not cross the plate prior to the runner from second being tagged out.

• Runners on first and third with two outs. The pitcher may throw to first base and get the runner in a rundown between first and second.

Or a situation could occur in which there is a double steal with the throw going through to second. Remember, if the runner from third scores prior to the other runner being tagged out at second or tagged out in the rundown, the run counts.

• With runners on first and second, a runner passes another runner. The passing runner is out for the third out of the inning. Any runner who has not crossed the plate before that occurs does not score.

With two outs, make your partner aware. The most common mechanic for that is simply tapping your wrist as if you were tapping your watch.

If you are the plate umpire and leave the plate area to assist in a rundown, don’t forget to look back and see if the run scored prior to the out being made on the bases. If it is an important run (i.e. the tying or winning run), stay home because remember: Timing is everything!

Leon Tetle, Ballston Spa, N.Y., has been a softball umpire for more than 35 years. He formerly umpired high school and college baseball. 

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Plate umpire Jerry Forkner, Duvall, Wash. (background) and base umpire Josh Francis, Woodinville, Wash., work a rundown.

That Rundown Feeling I

DALE GARVEY

t is unusual for a rundown to last more than three or four throws.

Defenses that execute the situation properly rarely need that long. It takes a dropped throw, a fielder who tosses the ball either too soon or too late or a wild throw to save the runner.

Key points for umpires to remember: • Stay approximately 12-15 feet from the rundown and move parallel to the baseline.

• Know where the ball is at all times.

• Move quickly to maintain a good angle.

• Be alert for obstruction or interference.

• Don’t forget about other runners

(the rundown may be an attempt to distract the defense so another runner can advance and/or score).

If two umpires are involved, they can “bracket” the play by taking each end of the play. One umpire should be outside the diamond and the other inside. In a rundown between first and second, the plate umpire would take the inside-the-diamond position closest to first base and the base umpire the outside-the-diamond spot near second. Between second and third, the plate umpire is inside the diamond near third and the base umpire outside the diamond near second. Between third and home, the plate umpire is outside near the plate and the base umpire is inside near third.

Other considerations: • Avoid conflicting double calls by making eye contact before announcing a ruling. One theory is that the umpire away from whom the runner is advancing is best positioned to see the tag and is primary.

But not all situations are alike so communication is vital.

• When you are the only umpire covering the rundown, keep your shoulders square to the runner and move sideways. It is not necessary to keep up with the runner; rather shadow the runner’s movement along the baseline.

• A runner is out if she attempts to avoid a tag by running more than three feet either side of a fielder with the ball in her possession. 

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SOFTBALL

CASEPLAYS Detached Equipment Play: R2 is on second base with no outs. A pitch to B2 gets away from F2, and R1 attempts to advance. F2 throws her helmet and stops the ball so she can retrieve it more quickly. Ruling: In USA Softball and NCAA, when a fielder intentionally contacts a pitched ball with detached equipment, the effect is a delayed dead ball. R2 is awarded one base from the time of the pitch.

In NFHS, the ball is dead. B2 is awarded first and R2 is awarded one base from the time of the pitch. In USSSA FP, the ball is delayed dead. If R2 reaches third safely, the infraction is ignored (USA Softball 8-5 F; NCAA 9-54; NFHS 5-1-2b, 8-4-3e; USSSA 8-14D Note 1).

Injured Pitcher Play: F1 is in obvious pain after she delivers a pitch in the bottom of the second inning. It is determined F1 cannot continue due to injury and is replaced by a different pitcher. How many warmup pitches is the new pitcher allowed? Ruling: In USA Softball, NFHS and NCAA, the umpire should allow the substitute as many pitches as the substitute needs to warm up (USA Softball 6A and 6B, Section 9 Effect, 6C and 6D, Section 8 Effect; NFHS 6-2-5 Note 2; NCAA 10.19.5).

USSSA FP rules do not allow extra warmup pitches in that situation. When a pitcher relieves another pitcher, one minute may be used to deliver not more than five practice pitches. For excessive warmup pitches, a pitcher shall be penalized by awarding a ball to the batter for each pitch in excess of five.

Pitch Bounces, Batter Swings Play: B1 has a 1-2 count. F1’s pitch bounces, but B1 swings and misses. F2 gloves the pitch cleanly on one bounce. Is B1 out?

Ruling: B1 is not out because F2 did not catch the third strike in flight. The ball is live and in play.

B1 is entitled to attempt to reach first base with liability to be put out, either by being tagged or if the throw to first beats her to the bag (USA Softball 8-1B; NFHS 8-1-1b; NCAA 11-14; USSSA FP 9-5B).

Take a Peek at This Mechanic

By Anthony “Corky” Carter

A

ttention veteran umpires: Want to have some fun?

Go to a “rookie” field clinic and watch umpiring candidates take the batter-runner to second base on a base hit to the outfield.

Inexperienced umpires often look like they are running around like beheaded chickens. You’ll see them awkwardly turning, twisting and contorting their bodies. You might see them losing their balance, stumbling and even falling down.

Remember those days?

The buttonhook (also known as the pivot), is the movement that enables the umpire to watch the

activity at first and take the batterrunner to second, or back to first as the situation dictates. As seen in the MechaniGram, to perform the buttonhook, the umpire moves inside the baseline between first and second and toward the pitching rubber. About 10 feet from the baseline and 12 feet from the foul line, the umpire pivots left toward the runner. The critical part of that maneuver is timing so that the 270-degree left turn is completed about two steps before the batterrunner arrives at first base.

(This column focuses on the base umpire, but we don’t want to totally ignore the plate umpire.

With no runners on, the plate

B

B

P

P

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umpire should come out from behind the plate in fair territory and trail the runner no more than 15 feet up the line.)

Umpires do the pirouette (my preferred term) to convince everyone that they are looking for the batter-runner touching or missing first, for possible obstruction by the first baseman and an occasional interference by the batter-runner. However, with apologies to softball purists, I believe the umpire-school buttonhook is overrated and sometimes unnecessary. The buttonhook can be awkward and even dangerous for an inexperienced umpire.

Here’s my reasoning: We know that after we take that quick look to see the action around first, our most important responsibility is to find the ball. If you’re pirouetting, you’ll have your back to the ball for some time, regardless of where the ball is hit. If the ball is hit toward left field, you’ll have your back to the ball even longer and it’s sometimes hard to get your bearings after your pivot.

Ever had that disoriented feeling as I’ve had? Since you can’t run backward or pivot as fast as you can run forward, you may place yourself at a disadvantage in getting to second before the batterrunner.

Because the pirouette sometimes places you at a disadvantage, I prefer the “peek” method. Yes, I can hear the howling already, but please keep reading.

The peek mechanics are the same as traditional mechanics, except instead of pirouetting left near first, you simply peek over your left shoulder and then your right.

On a base hit, start toward the pitcher’s plate, timing it so you are approximately 10 feet inside the baseline when the batter-runner nears first base. Your torso is still facing the pitching area as you peek over your left shoulder to see if the batter-runner touches first.

Then, immediately swivel your head to look over your right

Oct_18.indb 63

shoulder to observe any possible obstruction or interference. That can be done in a nanosecond.

Well, maybe it will take a few nanoseconds.

At the time you are turning your head to look over your right shoulder, your body will naturally turn toward the shortstop area of the field. You’ll then be moving in the right direction toward second base. Now that your body is already headed toward second, you can quickly and easily turn your head to locate the ball. Usually, the ball will already be in flight from the outfield to the second baseman or shortstop.

If the batter-runner is speeding to second, you are already headed that way. Then you can accelerate your pace and stop to be in position for any call before the runner arrives.

If the batter-runner returns to first, you can easily slow and turn with any throw to the bag.

An even better use of the peek occurs when the plate umpire is moving up the line on a hit and has the throwback at first.

When you’ve coordinated that mechanic with your partner, you can keep running toward second and be waiting, waiting, waiting for the batter-runner. That also makes it easier because you don’t have to start and stop for the potential play back at first.

In summary, I think the peek is much more advantageous than the buttonhook. It will make for easier movement by veteran and rookie officials alike. Perhaps the most important benefit is it allows the novice umpire to find the ball easier and quicker. That’s a skill new umpires often have difficulty mastering early in their careers.

I realize some instructors and umpires may disagree with the peek method. However, once you’ve gotten used to the peek, you may never turn circles again.

Anthony “Corky” Carter is a longtime umpire and instructor from Brentwood, Tenn. 

HUNDREDS OF FREE SOftball & OFFICIATING ARTICLES ON

8/22/2018 11:35:37 AM

PROFILES

PERSONALITIES PLUS

By Steven L. Tietz

D

anitra Betita may be short in stature, but long on what makes a great basketball official.

“She has perfect control and command of the floor,” said retired Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) Commissioner of Officials Gary Whelchel. “She handles the coaches and players so well it’s practically textbook.”

Thoroughly in charge, Arizona basketball referee Danitra Betita has worked six AIA state finals in her 14-year career.

That’s why Betita was recently named the recipient of the inaugural Gary L. Whelchel Officials Award by the AIA this spring.

“It represents (the highest) character and integrity demonstrated within the AIA,” said AIA Sports Information Coordinator Seth Polansky, who noted the award covers all officials working in Arizona.

Betita was amazed at the honor.

“I know that there are many elite officials in Arizona so I’m humbled and honored by this,” she said. “I know that this is greatly appreciated by all the women officials out there.”

Whelchel said Betita was an easy choice.

“She’s in the vanguard of the ethnic

and gender equality that we’ve been looking for,” he said.

Betita, 32, is a member of the Navajo tribe. She and her family moved to Flagstaff when she was 5. She gravitated toward sports and became a top-flight guard on her high school basketball team.

“I was always the shortest one (5 feet tall) so that meant I always had to work harder,” she said.

A referee who had been working Betita’s games since she was in fifth grade urged her to get into officiating, and she did after graduating in 2004.

“I started and found that I enjoyed it,” Betita said. “I really like the interaction with the players and the coaches.”

She quickly moved up the ranks and has earned six AIA state title game assignments, including the last three seasons in a row. She was also named the NFHS Arizona Girls Basketball Official of the Year in 2015.

But she isn’t resting on her laurels.

“I really like to go through the casebooks,” Betita said. “Look at situations that don’t come up too often, because I don’t want to be caught looking like a deer in the headlights.”

She works in finance at a small college, and in March married her longtime boyfriend Adam Betita. Her son is 13 and her daughter is 6, and she also helps raise a younger brother and sister.

“Adam is always supportive,” she said. “… He knows I can hold my own pretty well.”

Her son is tagging along now and is picking up on officiating nuances.

“I think he likes it,” Betita said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he became an official himself.”

She stayed busy this summer at the Native American Basketball Invitational tournament, with more work coming.

“When I was playing I never thought about officiating, but I guess I (always) was in a way,” Betita said.

Steven L. Tietz is a longtime sportswriter from Milwaukee. 

Young Umpire in Charge Andrew Woody Jr. Age: 14 Scarborough, Maine

After dealing with an early sports setback, Andrew Woody Jr. adjusted and is now into his fourth year as a softball and baseball umpire.

He got into it after he didn’t make his baseball team at Westbrook Middle School. It was a tough blow to take, but he made sure to stay involved in baseball in another way. He now umpires up to 17 games a season, including those of his classmates, who don’t always agree with his calls.

Woody Jr. got into officiating with help from his father and fellow umpire Andrew Woody Sr. His dad said Andrew had a tough call in his first game but hasn’t backed down since. His goal now is to work high school and college games.

55 Years on the Track Roy Davis Age: 79 Clarks Summit, Pa.

Track has always held a special attraction for the longtime Lackawanna Trail educator and official Roy Davis. That’s why he found it so difficult to step down after 55 years of working as a sports official in May. “In my mind, the sport is so simple,” Davis told the Times Tribune. “The race is what it is.”

Davis, who also has the Scranton Chapter of area football officials named after him, has been a fixture as a starter and a timer at Lackawanna Track Conference meets since the 1970s. Before his final meets, area officials presented him with a plaque of his favorite phrases.

“There’s a beauty to track,” he said. “The kids run and the fastest wins.”

Do you know a person or group who should be profiled?

JIM WILLITTES/MAXPREPS

Betita Earns AIA’s First Whelchel Officials Award

Send info to us at profiles@referee.com

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BASEBALL

EDITOR: BRENT KILLACKEY

bkillackey@referee.com

RULES, MECHANICS, PHILOSOPHY

The home run or walk to score the winning run can be an exciting moment for players — but that run can be taken off the board if the batter-runner or other baserunners don’t fulfil their responsibilities under the rules.

ABANDONMENT

By George Demetriou

A

walk-off is a run-scoring event in the bottom half of the last inning of the game that gives the home team the win. That may include not only a home run, but any base hit, a basesloaded walk or hit batter, a sacrifice fly and events not involving the batter such as steals of home, passed balls, wild pitches, errors, balks and even interference.

Walk-offs result in joy for the home team, dismay for the visitors and sometimes a challenge for the umpires.

On occasion other things besides the walk-off act need to happen for the game to be over. An incident in a

Georgia high school semifinal playoff game proved just that. Except where noted, the material applies equally to NFHS, NCAA and pro rules.

In the May 18, 2017, game, the score was tied with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning. A Johns Creek batter drew a walk, seemingly forcing in the winning run for a 4-3 victory over Lee County. Before the umpires left the field, the Lee County coach appealed that the runner from second never touched third. The appeal was acknowledged by the third-base umpire and the runner called out, sending the game to extra innings. Lee County prevailed with two runs in the top of the eighth. That victory was ultimately overturned

on appeal by the governing board because the umpires had used cell phones to consult the state rules interpreter regarding the applicable rule. The full story is in the 10/17 issue of Referee.

The umpires correctly applied the NFHS rule. On a walk-off base on balls, each runner must advance and touch the next base or be subject to be called out on appeal. If that out becomes the third out, a run cannot score because of the force play including one made by appeal (NFHS 9-1-1 Exc. b; NCAA 5-6c Exc. 2; pro 5.08a Exc. 2). The fact that the runner touches the plate before the out is declared is not a factor.

Other events which can preclude

REFEREE

Runner Responsibilities in Game-Ending Situations

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a run from scoring are the failure of the batter-runner to touch first base, or a preceding runner who is declared out on an appeal of a baserunning infraction. Although it was not a factor in the Georgia situation, it is possible for a time play to be involved in a game-ending appeal.

When a preceding runner is appealed for a baserunning infraction, the out is considered to have occurred at the time of the infraction. Thus when two are out, the status of a following runner is affected by a preceding runner’s failure to touch or retouch a base and a run cannot be scored (NFHS 9-1-1 Exc. c; NCAA 5-6c Exc. 3, 8-1d; pro 5.08a Exc. 3).

The requirements for touching the next base on a walk-off base on balls are different in NCAA and pro, where only the batter-runner and the runner on third are required to advance (NFHS 9-1-1 Nt 2; NCAA 5-8d Nt; pro 5.08b).

The routine “statute of limitations” for appeal plays is before the next pitch or any play or attempted play. In NFHS and NCAA, if the offensive team initiates the play, the appeal is not negated, but in pro an appeal cannot be made if either team initiates a play (NFHS 8-2 Pen.; NCAA 8-6b4; pro 5.09c4).

For an infraction that occurred during a play that ends a half-inning, the appeal must be made before the pitcher and all infielders leave fair territory and not merely before the next pitch, etc., as in NFHS. NCAA further specifies the catcher must have left his position on his way to the bench (NFHS 8-2-5 Pen.; NCAA 8-6b8; pro 5.09c4).

If the appeal is to be made after the game has apparently ended, the end-of-half-inning procedure applies for NCAA and pro games, but in NFHS the appeal must be made before all umpires leave the field (8-2-6j). In the Georgia game, the time of the appeal was not an issue because all four umpires were still on the field when the Lee County coach approached the plate umpire.

Additionally, whether the runner on second ever got to third was not argued. At some point, such a runner can be judged to have abandoned

his effort to reach the next base and be declared out. Simply leaving the baseline is likely insufficient to call an out, but crossing a foul line or entering a dugout or a celebration would certainly qualify (NFHS 8-42p Nt; NCAA 8-5c; pro 5.09b2 Cmt).

Here’s an actual play from another prep game.

Play 1: With R1 on first, R2 on second and one out, B5 strikes out.

The scoreboard operator quickly turns on the light for the second out. R2 glances at the scoreboard, sees two outs and trots off to the first-base dugout thinking B5’s strikeout was the third out. Ruling 1: The base umpire waited for R2 to approach his dugout and take off his helmet before calling the out. The umpire would have been justified in calling the out sooner once it was clear R2 had abandoned his base — definitely when he crossed the foul line and probably by the time he reached the pitcher’s mound.

Abandonment is not an appeal play. It’s possible for a walk-off home run to be negated by a runner’s abandonment.

Play 2: With R1 on first and two out in the bottom of the last inning of a tie game, the batter hits the ball out of the park. R1 touches second and believing the home run automatically wins the game, cuts across the diamond and heads toward his bench as the batter-runner touches all the bases. Ruling 2: Once R1 is called out for abandonment, the inning ends and the home run does not count.

Game-ending appeals are most likely to be for baserunning infractions. In addition to missing a base, or failing to properly retouch a base (leaving too soon), failing to touch home immediately after overrunning/over-sliding qualifies. In NCAA and pro, a runner who takes a running start on a tag up must also be appealed, but in NFHS, such a runner is immediately declared out (8-4-2o).

There are other types of infractions that could be appealed, including the use of an illegal bat or glove, batting out of order and an illegal substitute.

George Demetriou, Colorado Springs, Colo., is the state’s NFHS rules interpreter. *

QUICKTIP On a pickoff attempt, a runner that gets fooled looks like a “dead duck” leaning the wrong way.

However, the throw still has to be made and the tag applied for an out to occur. Don’t decide on the call until the entire play has been completed. Without great timing, you might find yourself calling an out before realizing the fielder dropped the ball or the runner avoided the tag with a great dive back to the bag.

BY THE NUMBERS 90

The approximate weight (in pounds) of an MLB umpire’s loaded equipment trunk.

1,681

Number of times DHL Same Day shipped umpires’ equipment between cities in 2017.

99.94

The percent of successful deliveries in 2017 — there was only one missed connection.

Stadiums keep back-up uniforms and gear on hand just in case this happens.

2

For 2018, the number of companies involved in shipping umpire gear between cities: DHL Same Day of Sterling, Va., which services 17 of the 19 crews, and Crane Cartage Freight Services of Houston, which services the other two crews.

SOURCE: TRANSPORT TOPICS

SIDELINE Hirschbeck Gets Bobblehead The first 1,000 fans attending the Mahoning Valley Scrappers game July 14 at Eastwood Field in Niles, Ohio, received a bobblehead of former MLB umpire John Hirschbeck, who is a native of Poland, Ohio. Hirschbeck retired following the 2016 season after spending 34 years calling MLB games. The Scrappers, a Single A team, are affiliated with the Cleveland Indians.

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BASEBALL

TEST YOURSELF In each of the following, decide which answer is correct for NFHS, NCAA or pro rules, which might vary. Solutions: p. 81.

1. Just prior to F1 beginning his pitching motion, B1’s preparatory movements bring his bat in contact with F2’s mitt. a. A ball is awarded. b. Catcher interference; B1 is awarded first. c. No penalty; the ball is immediately dead. d. Delayed dead ball. e. If F1 stops his motion, it is a balk.

2. With a runner on second and one out, B1 skies the ball to right centerfield. R2 tags and attempts to advance to third. F8’s throw skips past F5 and hits the thirdbase coach, who attempts to avoid the ball. The ball deflects off the coach’s back and goes into the stands. a. The play stands. b. The play stands only if the coach was in his box. c. R2 is out. d. R2 must return to second. e. R2 is held at third.

3. After a beaning incident, both dugouts empty and converge on the mound for a prolonged shouting and shoving match. All personnel who left their positions to participate in the fight must be: a. Given a warning. b. Ejected and suspended for the next game. c. Ejected and suspended for the next two games. d. Ejected and suspended for the next four games. e. Ejected and suspended based on league or state policy. f. Not necessarily ejected, but may be suspended based on league or state policy.

4. In a game where the DH is not used, Bubba pinch hits for B8 in the bottom of the second, but does not take the field in the top of the third. In the fifth inning, Bubba comes to bat again in the same spot in the order. a. Legal play. b. If Bubba is discovered before completing his at-bat, he can be replaced by a substitute. c. Bubba is out when discovered while at bat.

When You Can’t Tell a Ball From a Strike

By Jon Bible

A

nyone who has umpired for any length of time knows that we’re going to have plate games where everything is a struggle. It happens at all levels and to veterans and newbies alike. External forces may be a factor — bad pitching, catchers that crowd the inside part of the plate or shift late, wet weather, etc. — but often our problems are of our own making.

What to do when it’s a rough day?

Take inventory. Run down a checklist of basics: Is your timing too fast? Head position higher or lower than usual? Body in the same position it’s usually in? Tracking the pitch all the way to the mitt with your eyes?

Head steady? Maybe ask a partner for help; sometimes an outsider sees things that we don’t. In fact, I habitually asked a partner how things looked after the first two innings or so of every game. More than once I thought things were fine, only to have the other guy say, “Well, now that you ask …”

In the mid-80s, I started a College World Series game by balling the first two pitches — perfect sliders on the corner — only to be so eager not to miss another strike that I rang up the next pitch, which was way low and outside, almost before it was thrown.

Three pitches, three misses. To avert disaster, I quickly ran a checklist and realized I missed the first two because I had set up too far in the slot — I worked on a knee at the time — so with a lefty pitching to a lefty the ball looked a mile outside. The third miss was a panicky overreaction to the first two.

Once the head coach of a school for whom I assign non-conference games called about an umpire he said was missing pitches. Because I respected him and thought I owed the courtesy of not just ignoring him, I looked at video. The umpire’s head was moving to the other side of the catcher’s head on outside pitches to

left-handed batters; because he wasn’t seeing the pitch all the way in, he was guessing and sometimes ringing up pitches a foot outside and missing ones on the white. From there it was a quick fix, but the learning points are that at times we start doing something different without realizing it, and sometimes it takes someone else to point it out.

Stick with the basics. I once worked with a veteran who was inconsistent early in an NCAA regional game. I knew he knew because he normally worked a box but changed to a knee, scissors, back to a box, etc. His head also moved around as he fought to see pitches better. After the second inning, I went in and said, “Mind if I say something?” He said no. I said, “You look uncomfortable. Stay with your box, keep your head steady, and try the pro school mantra of, ‘On the rubber – get set – call it,’ before each pitch to get a consistent rhythm.” Far from chewing my head off as I feared he might, he thanked me, settled down and got back in his groove.

Presumably you’ve developed a stance, signal and ritual that have produced good results in the past.

Don’t change things if it gets rough, for you’ll likely make matters worse; instead, try to figure out what you’re not doing that you normally do.

Relax. At times when I struggled, I tensed up. Golfers know that when you hit a few bad shots, the impulse is to grip the club tighter, and this can happen to us. The more we mess up (or think we do) the more rigid we can get. If you sense this, take the proverbial deep breath and try to feel the tension ease out of your body. You can’t hit good golf shots when you’re so tense that the tendons in your arm stand out, and you can’t call balls and strikes that way either.

Focus. Part of my checklist was to ask if I was really concentrating on the pitch from the time it left the pitcher’s hand until it got to the mitt.

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Maybe I was unwittingly thinking about something else — the fight I had with my wife, someone in the stands, etc. When I told myself to block everything out and concentrate on the little white ball, it helped.

Don’t be too fine. Pitchers can be too fine when they try to hit a spot instead of raring back and throwing it. We can be too fine on pitches. Often we struggle because we call strikes balls, not vice versa; we want it to be perfect before we ring it up, in other words. My philosophy always was that when the ball left the pitcher’s hand it was a strike until proven otherwise, so if it’s a rough day, ask yourself if you’re subconsciously going with the

opposite presumption and need to open up the zone.

Don’t anticipate. One thing I had to fight was anticipating what pitch was coming given the situation. Once the home team was ahead in the top of the ninth with two outs and 0-2 on the hitter. I was looking for a waste pitch, and sure enough here came what seemed like a high fastball.

Unfortunately, it broke down into the heart of the zone, but I had already registered it as a ball. Thankfully the batter missed the next one. So if you’re missing pitches, one reason may be that you’re expecting a fastball, slider, etc., instead of just taking each pitch as it comes without any preconceived notions of what it will be.

Two closing notes. Some umpires stand up while the pitcher is looking in and then jerk down into their stance when he begins his delivery.

Others use a demonstrative punch or similar strike signal. Both can hurt you. It’s easier to see pitches and call them properly if you ease into your stance and use a firm, smooth but not rushed signal. Look at the top umpires and you’ll see virtually all working in cruise control; by contrast, the poorer ones usually have jerky mannerisms. Smooth out your routine both ways and it may produce better results.

Jon Bible, Austin, Texas, worked six Division I College World Series. *

It’s About Time ... Limits

By Chris Szolyga

W

hile there are some pace-of-play initiatives introducing a clock to the game of baseball, the traditional game doesn’t worry about a clock the same way football, soccer and basketball do. Half-innings end when three outs are made, not when the clock runs out of time.

But for a game without a clock for officials to manage, there are times when officials will need to watch a clock. Sometimes, a game is played under a time limit, which introduces an element the usual rules of baseball don’t cover. Any time that happens, you can expect there will be points of contention umpires will be asked to sort out.

Time limits are commonly seen in youth tournaments, adult leagues and freshman and JV play. Sometimes, certain varsity games will have a time limit.

BOB MESSINA

Teams trying to use up the clock to reach the time limit will sometimes use their remaining mound visits. Umpires should allow the team the same amount of time as they did earlier in the game, but not more. Doug Sweeney, Palmdale, Calif.

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BASEBALL

CASEPLAYS Dropped Ball Play: R3 is called out after a collision with F2. The ball falls to the ground momentarily, but is scooped up quickly by F2. No other tag attempt is made. Ruling: If the base umpire clearly saw the ball out of F2’s possession when the tag was made, it is his responsibility to inform his partner that the ball was on the ground. That procedure would be followed when it appears to the base umpire that the plate umpire based his judgment call on something his partner obviously did not see (NFHS 10-1-4; NCAA App E C-5; pro MLBUM).

Suicide Squeeze Play: With R1 on first and R3 on third, the suicide squeeze is on as both runners start. F2 reaches out and touches the bat. B1 turns to look at F2 and F1 halts his delivery. Ruling: Even though the contact with the bat occurred before F1 released the ball, interference shall be called. B1 is awarded first on the interference and each runner is awarded one base (NFHS 8-1-1e; NCAA 8-2e; pro 5.05b3, 6.01g).

Missed Base on Overthrow Play: B1 hits a grounder to F4. The throw to first goes over F3’s head into the dugout. B1 misses first. Ruling: Although he is awarded two bases, B1 must legally touch each base. If B1 does not touch first before proceeding on the award, he is declared out on proper appeal (NFHS 8-2-1, 8-2-6g; NCAA 8-1a; pro 5.06b1).

Foul Appeal?

Play: B1 lashes a line drive to the gap in right center, but he misses first. He reaches second and calls time to retrieve his helmet. The defensive team wishes to make an appeal. In order to prevent the runner from advancing to third on an overthrow at first, they position F4 several feet behind F3 in foul territory. The ball is properly put back into play. Ruling: As soon as the umpire sees the player go into foul territory, he should inform him that play cannot resume until he returns to a legal position (NFHS 1-1-4; NCAA 5-4c; pro 5.02c).

The limits are typically straightforward: No new inning will start after so much time has passed, but the current inning is played to completion. In some cases, particularly weekend tournaments concerned about keeping a schedule on track, there may be a hard stop in the middle of an inning, but the score typically reverts to the last completed inning (just as if the game had been stopped because of bad weather).

Check with an assigner, tournament director or conference commissioner if there are questions about whether a time limit will be used. Coaches aren’t always up front about time limits, particularly at lower levels where they want to get the team more playing time.

If there is a time limit, there are a few things to be worked out between the umpires calling the game: • Who has the clock? Before the pregame meeting, you and your partner should decide who is keeping the clock. Nine times out of 10, the base umpire will keep the time. If it is the base umpire, make sure he has a stopwatch or other timing device accessible. It is not proper mechanics to wear a watch on the field, but it is OK to place the stopwatch or other timing devices in a pocket. What if neither umpire has a way to track the time? Pick someone, typically a representative of the home team, who has a timepiece and can relay the start time to the umpire crew. Often, teams are using apps to score the games — use that clock to track the time.

• Start the clock. Tournaments and conferences will often outline a time limit, but then are vague about when to start the clock — it’s often left up to the umpires. Some like to start the clock at the first pitch. Others like to start the clock as soon as the plate meeting concludes, providing an incentive for teams not to waste time in their final warmups.

• Pregame meeting. When playing under a time limit, all the details about how things will work — including when the clock officially starts and who is keeping the official time — should be covered. Making sure everyone is on the same page will help avoid conflicts over the time limits later in the game.

The pregame meeting is also a good time to outline that the general pace of the game that is established in the early innings will be maintained as the game progresses closer to the time limit. There won’t be rushing in later innings, with one team hurrying up the other one because the time limit is imminent.

It’s also a good time to remind coaches when an inning officially ends and the next one begins — when the third out is made.

Play: With one minute left before the time limit in the bottom of the sixth inning with the home team leading, 3-1, the third out is made.

The home team stalls the betweeninning warmups to run out the time limit. Ruling: The seventh inning was reached when the third out was made prior to the time limit expiring.

Even though a pitch wasn’t thrown in the seventh inning before the time limit expired, the inning will proceed (provided there’s not a drop-dead time limit). Note: In a blowout when the time limit is getting close, it’s OK to discuss with the losing coach whether it’s worth continuing.

• In-game communication. Keep the teams informed of the time limit, especially as that limit gets closer. Best to avoid surprises.

• Stalling tactics or rushing.

Time limits aren’t part of the original rules of baseball and they can create challenges for umpires when teams try to use stalling or rushing tactics to use a time limit to their advantage.

Invariably the other team will complain to the umpires, expecting umpires to adjust the time limit.

Letting teams know at the plate meeting that the pace established early will be maintained when the time limit becomes a pressing concern can help. If a team is adopting tactics that stall or rush, remind them of that pregame item.

If needed, stop rushing pitchers from quick-pitching to batters. Or, warn the team about stalling. Don’t let conferences drag on any longer than earlier in the game.

For games being played under NFHS rules, an umpire may choose to remind teams that the batter cannot delay the game by failing to take his

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w p

W y t

position within the box within 20 seconds (NFHS 7-3-1) or the pitcher cannot delay the game by throwing to a player other than the catcher when the batter is in the batter’s box unless it is to retire a runner (NFHS 6-2-2a).

Also the rules require pitchers to pitch or make or attempt a play, including

a legal feint, within 20 seconds after receiving the ball (NFHS 6-2-2c).

Because time limits aren’t part of traditional rules of baseball — and can prompt teams to use unconventional tactics — umpires can be challenged when presented with teams rushing or stalling. When

presented with unique situations, it’s time for umpires to stay the course and see things through to the end — whether through natural game play or limits.

Chris Szolyga is a high school and college baseball umpire from Muskego, Wis. 

On the Transfer S

upplemental signals provide a non-verbal explanation for calls that otherwise might prompt coaches and players to wonder what happened. One such supplemental signal is “on the transfer.”

The signal — pulling the hands apart, like a fielder pulling a ball from his glove — indicates that a defensive player had control before dropping the ball while attempting to pull the

ball out of his glove in order to make the next play.

The signal is normally seen involving a play at second base, although there are times it can be used elsewhere on the field.

It is important that umpires make this signal vertically. Pulling the hands apart horizontally can look too much like a safe signal and cause confusion. 

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REFEREE October 2018 |

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HOT W HEADSET For O2O system.

NFL referees carry much more than a penalty flag and beanbag — they’re wired, and not just for penalty announcements.

Mic Pack 1

For referee to make announcements, such as penalties, to TV/radio/ stadium audience using a lapel mic (not shown).

Mic Pack 2 Backup if Mic Pack 1 fails.

on/off switch

Activates microphone to announce penalties.

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WIRED MOVEMENT TRACKERS

Buttons hold tracking devices on the underside of the shirt collar.

Tracks amount walked, jogged, run, sprints, start/stops/speed, total expenditure of effort, etc.

NFL officials get a report after every game which helps with planning their recovery phase after the game.

O2O (OFFICIALTO-OFFICIAL) COMMUNICATION SYSTEM Sleeve protects battery/frequency pack carried by all officials.

‘BLUE DOT’ BUTTON

Push to talk for O2O system.

NFL officials (from left) Craig Wrolstad, Roy Ellison and Mark Hittner.

BILL GREENBLATT/UPI

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ALL SPORTS

EDITOR: JEFFREY STERN

jstern@referee.com

FOR ALL SPORTS, ALL LEVELS

Washington state soccer officials (from left) Chris Krueger, Yakima; Katie Salvey, Vancouver; Aleta Walker, Stanwood; and Ed Eldredge, Duvall; are in lockstep as they take the pitch for their match, giving every indication they’re ready to work as a team.

ARRIVE AND SHINE

By Dave Simon

H

ow you enter the arena, stadium, field or other facility says a lot about you. Do you casually stroll in?

Are you laughing, confident, smiling, scowling, serious? What’s your demeanor?

First impressions occur every time you jog onto the court or field to officiate. Fans, coaches and players watch you and judge. Body language experts say with that first seven seconds people have formed an opinion about you.

You may think those first impressions don’t start until you introduce yourself to the coaches and shake their hands. That’s important, no question. But people watch you and your style even earlier than that.

When you emerge from the tunnel or sprint onto the court or field — that’s really the first time folks have the opportunity to examine you as an official. Don’t wait until you actually get on the court or field to put on your officiating face. Prepare in the locker room, and when you come out, know that others will be watching.

What do they see?

Your style. How do you carry yourself? Are you slouching? Do you come onto the field with purpose in your stride? Do you hold your shoulders up?

Clothing. How do your shoes look? In need of a shine or polished to a high gloss? Is your jacket zipped properly and well-cleaned? Do your pants fit well? Are they too long? Too short? It goes without saying that you want your uniform clean and without wrinkles. We often overlook how our uniform appears to others. Have

DALE GARVEY

Let Your Entrance Onto the Court or Field Speak Volumes

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someone critique you. You may need an update.

Pace. The way you walk or jog onto the court or playing field demonstrates energy and interest.

If you’re lollygagging your way in, viewers will see a lack of engagement.

Show them you care about what you’re doing by establishing a brisk pace.

Facial expressions. Do you smile or scowl? Does your face look serious?

Your facial expression tells others if you are prepared, open to others or in a bad mood. Make sure you regulate it, and display openness by looking people in the eye, listening intently and smiling appropriately.

Interaction with partners. That is often overlooked. The interplay between you and your officiating partners shows others how you get along. Remember, you’re the third team out there. Demonstrate that as soon as you walk on the court or field.

Enter together. Don’t isolate any of your partners.

How you stand. Your posture says a lot about you. Stand up straight.

Keep your shoulders back. Your stance should convey confidence without arrogance, not too rigid, and relaxed without being sloppy or disengaged. Do not stand with your hands in your pockets. If your hands feel uncomfortable, clasp them lightly together behind your back.

Haircut. Ah yes, the haircut.

Funny how we don’t talk about that one much. Most male officials keep their hair fairly short and get their

hair cut regularly. Men who follow that routine are fine. If hair is longer or uncombed or unruly, some product may be needed to keep it in place or a quick visit to a stylist may be in order.

Women will want to ensure their hair looks professional and stays out of their face. It may need to be tied back or put in a bun. Most importantly, it needs to be controlled so it doesn’t flop and look unprofessional.

When you boil it all down, as to what you want to see in officials when they enter the arena, it’s fairly simple: enthusiasm, energy and desire. Does the guy or gal want to be there?

I happened to see a basketball game this past season with a woman and two older men officiating as partners. It was clear the woman was there for the right reason. Her posture, how she assumed her position on the court and how she monitored the players stood out to me. She wasn’t the most experienced in the crew, but she demonstrated to those watching the game that she was an official for the right reason — she cared about being out on the court and doing her best.

When you enter the arena, keep in mind how you appear to others and your court or field presence will take a positive step.

Dave Simon is an associate editor at Referee. He officiated basketball for 18 years in the Washington, D.C., area and Nebraska, and currently observes high school officials for the Wisconsin Basketball Officials Association. 

You’re Getting Warmer …

M

BILL NICHOLS

any individuals involved in sports are familiar with what is known as static stretching. Static stretching is assuming a stationary position and holding it for 30-60 seconds and feeling a pulling or stretching sensation in the body with no bouncing or rapid movements.

Besides using a static stretch such as the touching of the toes after a workout, incorporate dynamic stretching to reduce the risk of

injury and get prepared before the game. Warming up properly before competition prevents injuries. In the University of Connecticut Health Center’s article, “Safety Gear/ Dynamic Stretching — Crucial in Preventing Common Sports Injuries,” Dr. Thomas Trojian emphasizes, “Runners, for example, can do a dynamic warmup by simply walking for five to 10 minutes. Doing the movement at a slower pace to allow

DID YOU KNOW? In the early Olympics, judges were selected from an area of Greece called Elis, the local region which included Olympia. Even though the judges were all Eleans, local Elean Greeks were still allowed to compete in the Olympics.

The Elean people had such a reputation for fairness that an Elean cheating at the Games was a shock to other Greeks.

THEY SAID IT “Yeah, it’s really a pain. It’s kind of ruined sports for me. I used to love watching the NBA, and all I do now is watch the refs. I go to the Coyotes (NHL) games in Arizona (in his hometown), and I watch the officials. It’s amazing how they skate and avoid pucks.”

— MLB umpire Ted Barrett, noting that being an umpire has changed how he watches sports.

SOURCE: ESPN

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REFEREE

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ALL SPORTS

blood to flow into the muscle is good preparation and can potentially help prevent injuries.”

Along with preventing injuries, dynamic stretching can also help improve sport performance. Dynamic stretching uses activity-specific movements, such as controlled leg and arm swings and torso twists that take a person to their full range of motion to warm up the muscles.

It increases blood and oxygen flow to soft tissues prior to an active workout, preparing the body for physical exertion and sports performance. It’s important when using a dynamic stretch that the technique of the movements is slow to slightly raise the body temperature, and that the stretching is controlled.

The advantage and benefit for an individual in sport is to use similar movements he or she would use during a game or activity. Dynamic stretching is a way for officials to prep for the game or match, putting them into the zone.

If the sport requires running up and down the court or field, walking on the toes as opposed to using a regular static stretch of the calf muscles is a great way to warm up the legs. High knees is a dynamic stretch that consists of basic running with the individual bringing his/ her knees higher up beyond the waistline. Butt kicks are also a way to prepare for a workout. It is a running technique where the back of the heels

Riel Banaria, Las Vegas, performs torso twists to prepare for a game.

touch the individual’s bottom then the ground on every stride.

Other movements for alternative activities are a step slide, which is the same as a basketball defensive slide. The athlete is in a low athletic position, moving laterally by pushing off with one foot followed by the other, repetitively so the feet don’t touch or cross. The Carioca is a warmup in which one moves laterally crossing one foot in front of

the other and then crossing behind forcing a rotation of the hips. All of those stretching exercises are a good way to prevent injuries and benefit performance.

Dynamic stretching with some arm circles or hand motions can prevent injuries and better prepare the individual for the game and competition.

Excerpted from a column that appeared in the 3/11 issue of Referee. 

By Jay Rowan

R

obert Frost wrote about the road not taken. Yogi Berra suggested if you come to a fork in the road, you should take it.

As for me, for years I have asked my students a simple riddle and it is as follows: There are two paths in life. One leads to success and one leads to failure. There is one guardian on each path. One always tells the truth and one always lies. You don’t know

which one lies or which one tells the truth. You can ask either guardian one question and it will lead to the successful path. What question would you ask?

One type of person all businesses want is a problem solver. The same can be said for any type of athletic event. They want officials who can solve a problem when it occurs.

The best officials are those who can properly handle situations that happen in almost any contest. To handle those types of problems you need to be on

the proper path to becoming a good official. With luck, you will have one or more fellow officials who can help guide you in the proper direction.

The following may help you along the appropriate path. Here are a few suggestions that will take you in the wrong direction.

• Don’t study the rulebook. If you don’t know the rules, how can anybody hold you responsible for not enforcing any?

• Don’t bother to look at the officials manual. If you don’t know

DALE GARVEY

Which Path Will You Choose?

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where you are supposed to be, you can’t be blamed for an incorrect ruling.

• Don’t show up for an assignment. That way you won’t have to worry about future assignments.

You won’t be getting any.

• Don’t have a pregame meeting.

It’s a waste of time going over stuff that will probably happen in the game.

• Don’t observe the pregame warmups. You might observe something that will help you do a better job.

• Don’t have a pregame meeting with captains and coaches. A short and to-the-point pregame might lead them to think you know what you’re doing.

• Don’t move to improve. Another good excuse for incorrect rulings. You were straight lined, you were blocked out, etc.

• Don’t stay out of the stands. You can get to know the fans in the stands.

Always beneficial.

• Don’t hustle. That way everybody will forgive you for not being in the proper position to make a call.

• Don’t communicate with coaches. If they ask you a reasonable question in a sportsmanlike manner, don’t answer. They will appreciate that.

• Don’t concentrate on your primary coverage area. You might get a call you’re actually supposed to get.

• Don’t watch away from the play. You might get something nobody else is looking at and people might think you know what you’re doing.

• Don’t bother to see the entire play. If you think you saw something, guess. Coaches will appreciate your guessing. It shows creativity.

• Don’t bother to count. You might think it fair that a team is playing with more or less players.

• Don’t use any preventive officiating techniques. That way you will have more opportunities to stop the flow of the game.

• Don’t have a postgame review.

You might learn something that may benefit you in the future.

Those are only a few of the ways to take the wrong path. Now, if you would rather be a success, don’t follow any of the above suggestions.

Do the opposite and you will be on a successful officiating path.

If you are like my students, you will want to know the answer to the riddle I posed earlier. So, here it is. You ask either guardian the following: If I ask the other guardian which path leads to success, what will he or she say? Whatever the guardian says, take the opposite path and that will be the path to success.

Problem solved.

Jay Rowan is a teacher and veteran high school football official from Pittston, Pa. 

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FOR THE RECORD AWARDS, ROSTERS, NOTABLES

PROFESSIONAL • The following officials were selected to work Arena Bowl XXXI on July 28 in Baltimore, where the Washington Valor defeated the Baltimore Brigade, 69-55: Referee — Dave Cutaia, Benicia, Calif.; Umpire — Jeff Carr, Rockford, Ill.; Head Linesman — Kenny Leffle, Oakley, Calif.; Line Judge — Mark Bennett, Grand Rapids, Mich.; Back Judge — Brad Brunet, Wyoming, Mich. Carr also received the league’s Official of the Year award.

• The following umpires worked 2018 Florida High School Athletic Association state tournaments: Baseball — Jason Abreu, Miami; Zach Andrews, Ocala; Randy Austin, Lutz; Dane Bassett, Sarasota; John Bennett, Sarasota; Gary Benton, Melbourne; Joe Brady, Longwood; Tony Branch, Beverly Hills; Daniel Breighner, Miami; Matt Cain, Lynn Haven; David Calicott, Montverde; Denver Dangerfield, Panama City Beach; John Dowdy, Orlando; Steve Durrance, Tampa; Fran Eckert, Hollywood; Aaron Fernandez, Miami; Kevin Flay, Lake Mary; Keith Floyd, Bradenton; Steve Floyd, Bradenton; Scott Harris, Chipley; Orlando Hernandez, Coconut Creek; Chris Hunt, Sarasota; Henry Jackson, Fort Myers; Chris Jeffray, Bonita Springs; Shaun Lancaster, Oakland; Dan Lawrence, Titusville; Jonathan Lemelin, Altamonte; Bob McLane, Tequesta; Aaron Milligan, Niceville; Tony Mollica, Lake Worth; Scooter Morrison, Titusville; Matt Nall, Tampa; Randy O’Connell, Port Richey; Jim O’Neil, Royal Palm Beach; Mike Parks, Crestview; Daniel Pighetti, Winter Springs; Matt Rollo, Deltona; Ron Ryals, Pensacola; Steve Sambucci, Port Charlotte; Bill Stanley, Melbourne; Eric Steiner, Lake Mary; Carl Sumner, Tampa; Nick Susie, Sarasota; Larry Taylor, Punta Gorda; Zak Vankampen, Inverness; Steve Weisher, Dunnellon; David Wooldridge, Tampa. Softball

— Richard Abasia, Clearwater; Veronica Alred, Orlando; Leo Arteaga, West Melbourne, Maggie Baez, Jacksonville; Billy Bauer, Orlando; Rich Bavilacqua, Riverview; Mike Beal, Naples; Roger Bloat, Wellington; Paul Bosshardt, Naples; Rob Brokaw, Fort Myers; Cindi Brunot, Lantana; Isaiah Carpenter, Venice; Kayla Carpenter, Venice; Rob Cheslow, Coral Springs; Glen Chesson, Wellington; Jay Cohen, Pompano; Patrick Curtis, Homestead; Peter Derosa, St. Petersburg; Bo Drury, Maitland; Ed Dufrene, Cocoa; Ralph Ellingsen, Venice; Rocky Ellingsworth, Gibsonton; Mike Everhart, Jacksonville; Rich Farina, Cantonment; Carlos Fenn, Fort Pierce; Lenny Fox, Gainesville; David Graham, Inverness, Robert Green, Winter Haven, Kyle Gross, New Smyrna Beach; Gary Hollett, Fort Pierce; Joseph Imperatore, Port St. Lucie; Joe Jackson, Jacksonville; Donald Johns, Fort Pierce; Ernie Jones, Miami; Jarrett Kenyon; High Springs; Kirk Klawitter, Pensacola; Bob Kleeba, Lake Mary; Mark Lindblom; Debary; Ray Lopez, Cutler Bay; Scott Martin, Jacksonville; Dan Miller, Palm Harbor; Jerry Mills, Sarasota; David Mozingo, Port Orange; Fernando O’Neill, Port St. Lucie; Daniel Papendick, Winter Park; Chris Parks, Inverness; Tom Parker, Lakeland; Wayne Peeples, Interlachen; Doug Powell, Venice; Paul Przychocki, Sebring; Jeff Rabideau, Winter Haven; Mark Reuschel, Pace; Ralph Rodriguez, Zephyrhills; Chris Rubin, Boynton; Johnny Saldivar, Boynton; Rick Sanzone, Cape Coral; John Schaefer, Naples; Brian Serafin, Brandon; Matt Sims, Wabasso; Tony Singer, Inverness; Charles Smith, Fort Pierce; Kerwin Smith, Frostproof; John Torres, Tampa; Rick Tumbleston, Plant City; Mike Ulbrich, Clearwater; Tom Ulbrich, Safety Harbor; Jerry Welch, Winter Haven; Ed Whipple, Lake Worth; Dan Willis, North Fort Myers; Jim Witt, Coral Springs.

The officials pictured worked the Empire 8 College Swimming & Diving Championships for the 2017-18 season held in February in Webster, N.Y. They are, left to right, John Natti, Dr. Gregory Kenney, Dianne Lazenby, Bryan Kemmerer, Cynthia McFadden Larabie, Anne Byerts and Darrell Byerts.

AWARDS & HONORS

• The Paganelli family of officials has been selected as the Outstanding Team Honoree for the 2018 Grand Rapids (Mich.) Sports Hall of Fame. Carl Paganelli Sr., who is already a member of the hall for his work as a longtime college football, USFL, World Football League and Arena Football League official and coordinator, will be joined by his sons Carl Jr., Perry and Dino, who have combined for more than 50 seasons of experience as NFL officials. Carl Jr. is an umpire, while Perry and Dino are both back judges. Carl Jr. and Perry officiated Super Bowl XLI together in 2007, the first siblings to do so. The ceremony is scheduled for Sept. 25.

OBITUARIES • Mike Terlecky, Williamsville, N.Y., a regional

umpire-in-chief for USA Softball and a member of the Western New York Softball Hall of Fame, died July 7 of cancer. He was 74. Terlecky worked as an NCAA Division I softball umpire in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, umpired high school sectional, regional and state competition in New York, and officiated women’s college basketball and worked as an officiating observer in that sport for the Mid-American Conference. He was also a member of the New York State Baseball Umpires Association.

• Dan Fregien, Sullivan, Wis., founder of the Wisconsin Track Officials Association and a high school and NCAA Division III collegiate football official, died July 11. He was 60. Fregien previously officiated baseball, basketball and wrestling. He was an active official for 42 years.

He was a past president and board member of the Lakeland Officials Association.

Do you have any rosters, assignments or awards that warrant mention?

Send info to us at ForTheRecord@referee.com

CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS

POSTSEASON ASSIGNMENTS

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ROSTERS NFL

The following are the NFL officiating crews for the 2018-19 season. They are listed by uniform number, name, hometown and years in the league. Crews are listed in the following order: referee, umpire, down judge, line judge, field judge, side judge and back judge.

122 Brad Allen, Lumberton, N.C., 5 71 Ruben Fowler, Del Valle, Texas, 12 48 Jim Mello, North Andover, Mass., 15 40 Brian Bolinger, Leo, Ind., 2 33 Steve Zimmer, Smithtown, N.Y., 22 1 Scott Novak, Phoenix, 5 111 Terrence Miles, Denver, 11

66 Walt Anderson, Sugar Land, Texas, 23 124 Carl Paganelli, Grand Rapids, Mich., 20 68 Tom Stephan, Lenexa, Kan., 20 18 Byron Boston, Humble, Texas, 24 43 Terry Brown, Knoxville, Tenn., 13 15 Rick Patterson, Gaffney, S.C., 23 27 Lee Dyer, Trenton, Ga., 16

34 Clete Blakeman, Omaha, Neb., 11 128 Ramon George, Jacksonville, Fla., 3 8 Dana McKenzie, Zionsville, Ind., 11 87 Walt Coleman IV, Dallas, 4 73 Joe Larrew, Bridgeton, Mo., 17 109 Dyrol Prioleau, Bristow, Va., 12 5 Jim Quirk, Holmdel, N.J., 9

23 Jerome Boger, Conyers, Ga., 15 129 Bill Schuster, Livonia, N.Y., 19 63 Mike Carr, Oregon, Wis., 2 59 Rusty Baynes, Birmingham, Ala., 9 104 Dale Shaw, Holly Springs, Ga., 6 120 Jonah Monroe, Baltimore, 4 112 Tony Steratore, McMurray, Pa. 19

51 Carl Cheffers, Whittier, Calif., 19 20 Barry Anderson, Atlanta, 12 94 Hugo Cruz, San Antonio, 4 108 Gary Arthur, Findlay, Ohio, 22 130 Land Clark, Albuquerque, N.M., 1 103 Eugene Hall, Frisco, Texas, 5 78 Greg Meyer, Fort Worth, Texas 17

65 44 91 75 80 26 38

Walt Coleman, Mabelvale, Ark., 30 Jeff Rice, Fort Myers, Fla., 24 Jerry Bergman, Pittsburgh, 17 Mark Stewart, Jenks, Okla., 1 Greg Gautreaux, Lafayette, La., 17 Jabir Walker, Louisville, Ky., 4 Greg Yette, Bowie, Md., 9

99 Tony Corrente, La Mirada, Calif., 24 76 Alan Eck, Cumming, Ga., 3 13 Patrick Turner, Lakewood, Calif., 5 47 Tim Podraza, San Diego, 11 7 Keith Washington, Bowie, Md., 11 25 Ryan Dickson, Fruit Heights, Utah 2 30 Todd Prukop, Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., 10

83 Shawn Hochuli, Newport Beach, Calif., 5 81 Roy Ellison, Windermere, Fla., 16 134 Ed Camp, Hawthorne, N.J., 19 98 Greg Bradley, Jenks, Okla., 10 97 Tom Hill, Hackettstown, N.J., 20 125 Chad Hill, Oxford, Miss., 1 39 Rich Martinez, Davie, Fla., 5

35 John Hussey, Huntington Beach, Calif., 17 115 Tony Michalek, Evergreen Park, Ill., 17 16 Kevin Codey, Pittsford, Mass., 4 74 Derick Bowers, Ada, Okla., 16 58 Don Willard, Bloomington, Ill., 1 56 Allen Baynes, Birmingham, Ala., 11 12 Greg Steed, Mitchville, Md., 16

55 Alex Kemp, Greenville, Mich., 5 49 Rich Hall, Tucson, Ariz., 15 100 Tom Symonette, Windermere, Fla., 15 32 Jeff Bergman, Mars, Pa., 27 117 John Jenkins, Sacramento, Calif., 5 50 Aaron Santi, Medford, Ore., 4 133 Steve Freeman, Oxford, Miss., 18

19 Clay Martin, Jenks, Okla., 4 11 Fred Bryan, South Minneapolis, Minn., 10 113 Danny Short, Davidson, N.C., 2 79 Kent Payne, Aurora, Colo., 15 118 David Meslow, Mahtomedi, Minn., 8 88 Brad Freeman, Oxford, Miss., 5 119 Greg Wilson, Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., 11

135 Pete Morelli, Stockton, Calif., 22 54 Steve Woods, Franklin, Ind., 2 22 Steve Stelljes, Derby, Kan., 17 45 Jeff Seeman, Chaska, Minn., 17 36 Anthony Jeffries, Fultondale, Ala., 1 41 Boris Cheek, Charlotte, N.C., 23 61 Keith Ferguson, San Jose, Calif., 19

132 John Parry, Talmadge, Ohio 19 131 Mark Pellis, Bethel Park, Pa., 5 24 David Oliver, Topeka, Kan., 2 10 Julian Mapp, East Point, Ga., 10 96 Matt Edwards, Indianapolis, Ind., 1 72 Michael Banks, University Park, Ill., 17 46 Perry Paganelli, Caledonia, Mich., 21

14 Shawn Smith, Southfield, Mich., 4 92 Bryan Neale, Indianapolis, 5 28 Mark Hittner, Kansas City, Mo., 22 2 Bart Longson, North Salt Lake, Utah, 4 126 Brad Rogers, Lubbock, Texas, 2 95 James Coleman, Pottstown, Pa., 14 105 Dino Paganelli, Wyoming, Mich., 13

62 Ron Torbert, West Bloomfield, Mich., 9 64 Dan Ferrell, Franklin, Tenn., 17 53 Sarah Thomas, Brandon, Miss., 4 84 Mark Steinkerchner, Akron, Ohio, 25 86 Jimmy Buchanan, Ridgeland, Miss., 10 3 Scott Edwards, Blanco, Texas, 20 67 Tony Josselyn, Erlanger, Ky., 1

52 Bill Vinovich, Lake Tapps, Wash., 14 102 Bruce Stritesky, Roanoke, Va., 12 110 Phil McKinnely, Alpharetta, Ga., 17 9 Mark Perlman, Lake Havasu, Ariz., 18 31 Mearl Robinson, Glendale, Ariz., 2 60 Gary Cavaletto, Santa Barbara, Calif., 16 17 Steve Patrick, Oneonta, Ala., 5

4 Craig Wrolstad, Lake Tapps, Wash., 16 121 Paul King, Worcester, Mass., 10 6 Jerod Phillips, Grove, Okla., 3 101 Carl Johnson, Thibodaux, La., 15 21 Jeff Lamberth, The Woodlands, Texas, 17 29 Adrian Hill, Bowie, Md., 9 93 Scott Helverson, Clive, Iowa, 16

Swing Officials: 90 Mike Spanier, Sartell, Minn., 20 116 Mike Weatherford, Edmond, Okla., 17

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LAW

ISSUES AFFECTING OFFICIALS

Stop the Fight Before It Happens

By Alan Goldberger When an official asks, ”What should I do if a fight breaks out?” I’m forever tempted to answer, “Dude, don’t let it happen again.” Most of the time, tact wins out and I ask a question: “Have you ever seen a deer on the road transfixed by your car’s headlights?”

For some good answers on what wildlife has to do with officiating, I turn to a published interview with wildlife biologist David Yancy. “Deer activity peaks within an hour or so on either side of sunrise and sunset,” he told The New York Times, “so their vision is optimized for very low light.” Eyes dilated diminish a deer’s vision dramatically. As a result, the deer “don’t know what to do, so they do nothing,” according to the expert.

When it comes to dealing with fighting, we may dress like zebras, but at times, we referees are like deer in headlights when a fight is about

What should you do if you sense ill will brewing? to start. In too many cases “we don’t know what to do, so we do nothing.”

But there are tools that can be used to defuse a given situation.

Concentration and reaction time enable officials to short-circuit fighting when necessary. When a fight may be about to start, move quickly and react decisively to redirect the negative energy. A few seconds can make all the difference.

Enforce the rules from beginning to end, utilizing the guidelines below: • Insist on sound crew mechanics. Your pregame needs to include a plan so at least one member of the officiating crew observes all players and both benches at all times.

• Recognize trouble spots. Those include after a score, a foul, an injury and all “dead ball” periods.

• Be firm. Do not ever warn an athlete who clearly taunts or baits an opponent. While the wording varies among various playing rules codes, “taunting and baiting” means any attempt to embarrass, ridicule or demean an opponent. It is a foul.

Call it every time.

The issue is not about a fight breaking out, but instead, what should you do if you sense ill will brewing? Enforce the rules. Call the foul. Don’t turn your back. If a fight happens despite your best efforts, disqualify the offenders without hesitation and enforce the appropriate penalties.

When officials control a situation by proactive mechanics, injuries are reduced. That is how the best officials minimize the chance of injury and thus the chance of lawsuits.

Points to remember: • Keep an eye and ear attuned to tempo and flow of the game.

Sometimes players don’t want to play but instead commit unnecessary infractions and disrespect opponents.

• Don’t rationalize. For decades, officials have been supplied with a myriad number of reasons not to manage fight situations: “Never touch a player … for liability reasons.” “Don’t attempt to separate players.” Officials stand motionless as a fight situation develops.

• Distract and delay. If, despite your best efforts, a quick escalation of tensions leads to physical contact, use whistle, voice and movement to distract combatants. Separate the opponents while calming tempers.

Taking immediate action to keep opponents apart will usually prevent the fight from escalating or drawing more participants. These actions can prevent injuries that can cause lawsuits.

Alan Goldberger is an attorney and official from Florham Park, N.J. This column is for informational purposes and is not legal advice. 

Criteria for Criminal Conduct When personal or legal difficulties escalate into criminal matters, officials associations, commissioners and assigners sometimes have their hands full sorting out alternatives.

Conducting criminal background checks for members and prospective members is an issue for associations. But instituting background checks too quickly without a mechanism in place to lawfully deal with the information received can lead to costly and embarrassing legal consequences.

Having a solid set of criteria for membership and a fair, dueprocess-oriented method of culling out those who violate it are absolute necessities for the successful operation of officials associations.

Avoiding Alcohol Association Issues Officials like to trade war stories about past games. Those storytelling sessions often happen at a restaurant or bar after games. The tales pour out of mouths, especially after the adult beverages start flowing into people’s mouths.

Local officials associations sometimes try to boost membership or sagging attendance by offering alcoholic beverages at meetings. However, the liability risk associated with serving alcohol should be avoided.

The only way to avoid liquor liability is to eliminate alcohol from association events. But if an association wants to go ahead with serving beer or other alcoholic beverages at a meeting or party, steps can be taken to reduce liability risk.

First, hold the event at a licensed and insured restaurant, bar or social club where the businesses themselves serve the alcohol.

Second, association officers or members should never purchase or serve the alcohol themselves.

Third, have a “cash bar.”

Fourth, create an environment that discourages over-indulgence.

PRESENTED BY

Go to www.naso.org and click on member benefits for more on MICP.

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OCTOBER

FLASHBACK 40 YEARS AGO …

1978

• The application of common sense must be used when making decisions in gray areas of the game.

Girls’ basketball was used as an example. Because young girls are playing and competing in the sport for the first time, in many cases, their level of skill may be less than demanded by the rules. Officials were encouraged to be consistent in what they allowed, being fair to both teams, while not making a travesty of the game.

30 YEARS AGO …

1988 QUIZ ANSWERS FOOTBALL 1 — Both – c (NFHS 8-2-2; NCAA 10-2-2g-1) 2 — Both – b, c (NFHS 6-1-2, 7-2-3, 7-3-2a, 7-4-2, 7-5-6; NCAA 2-12-1b, 2-15-6, 7-1-3b-1 Exc. 2) 3 — NFHS – b (7-5-1, 7-5-2b, 7.5.1); NCAA – a (2-19-3b, 7-3-2a) 4 — Both – d (NFHS 10-1-3, 10-42 Exc.; NCAA 6-3-13, 10-1-6b, ) 5 — Both – b (NFHS 2-14-2, 2-3214, 9-4-6; NCAA 2-16-10, 9-1-14, AR 9-1-14 I-III) VOLLEYBALL 1 — All – a (NFHS 6-4-2a &9-9-1f; NCAA 12.1.1 & 6.3.2.11; USAV 19.1.1 ) 2 — All – c (NFHS 10-3-6; NCAA 11.3.6.1; USAV 15.7 ); in USAV, player may not return to the match.

3 — NFHS, USAV – d (NFHS 11-2-1.6; USAV 15.3.1 ); NCAA – e (11.2.6.1) 4 — All – a (NFHS 7-4-a; USAV 7.3.4; NCAA 10.1.1.10)

5 — All – d (NFHS 6-3-1; NCAAA 12.1.1; USAV 5a) BASEBALL 1 — All – c (NFHS 2-21-5, 5-1-1n, 7-3-7; NCAA 8-2e Nt.; pro 6.01c Cmt.) 2 – All — a (NFHS 3-2-3, 3.2.3; NCAA 8-3j; pro 6.01f) 3 — NFHS – e (3-3-1p); NCAA – d (5-16c Pen. 1), pro – f (8.01d) 4 — NFHS, NCAA – c (NFHS 2-36-3a, 7-4h; NCAA 5-5j1); pro – b (5.10d) SOCCER 1 — IFAB – d (Glossary p. 169); NFHS – b (18.1.hh); NCAA – e 2 — IFAB – a (12, ATR 12.D.1); NFHS – a (12.8.2.I); NCAA – d (5.6.4.Note) 3 — IFAB – c (12); NFHS, NCAA – a (NFHS 13.2.2.m; NCAA 12.3.3) 4 — IFAB – a, c, d (12.7); NFHS – b, c (13.2.1.j, 13.2.3.a); NCAA – b (AR 10.4.1.b)

BASKETBALL 1 — All – d (NFHS 3-3-1, 3.3.3B; NCAAM/W 3-6.2.c) 2 — NFHS – b (4-38); NCAA M/W – c (NCAAM 4-32.2; NCAAW 4-26.2) 3 — All – d (NFHS 10-2-1a; NCAAM 4-10.1.b, 10-2.5.a, A.R. 66; NCAAW 4-9.1.b, 10-12.2.e.1, A.R. 77) 4 — All – d (NFHS 4-24-8; NCAAM 10-1.15; NCAAW 10-10.16) SOFTBALL 1 — All – c (USA Softball 1 Definition, 8-2I, 8-4L; NFHS 2-30, 8-2-9; NCAA 11-16 Effect; USSSA 8-17H Effect) 2 — All – d (USA Softball Rule 1 Definition, 8-2E, 8-7P; NFHS 8-8-2; NCAA 12.17.1.5.2; USSSA 8-17e) 3— All – b (USA Softball (8-7C; NFHS 8-6-3; NCAA 12.9.2.1.3; USSSA 8-18M) 4 — All – a (USA Softball 7-2D (2) Effect; NFHS 7-1-2 Pen.; NCAA 11.9.1-11.9.3 Effects; USSSA 9-10)

• The Massachusetts Baseball Umpires’ Association, an organization composed of 15 boards and 1,200 members, chooses to withhold services to state high schools for the 1988 season. By striking, the MBUA voiced its displeasure with the fee-setting body of the state, the Game Officials’ Committee of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association.

20 YEARS AGO …

1998

• While awaiting sentencing, NBA referee Joe Crawford speaks exclusively to the magazine about the stress of being convicted for filing a false tax return. Crawford was one of nearly a dozen NBA officials charged after they downgraded airline tickets bought for them by the league and pocketed the difference.

10 YEARS AGO …

2008 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 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.

• While talent is still the first qualifier of being a great official, talent alone is not enough to get to the top of the industry.

Lisa Mattingly, Steve Shaw, Monty McCutchen and John Parry all shared the successful traits found in their fellow officials.

REFEREE October 2018 |

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LAST CALL

A PERSONAL STORY BY ZELTON STEED

Basketball Saved My Life Someone once told me, “Use basketball. Don’t let basketball use you.”

My go-to quote is, “Basketball saved my life!”

I have been working Division I college basketball for more than 30 years. I’m shocked in saying that.

Makes me sound really old, but I know I have a few more years to go and I’m ready. Basketball has played a very big portion of my still-young life. I’m especially thankful for the requirements of this chunk of my experience.

Every time I walk out on the floor now, I take a look around and thank God for the gift of being there.

One of those requirements is an annual physical. The lying scales and the doctor’s latex gloves are so worth their wait. As my brother officials know, that part of the exam is no fun, but I’m here today because of it. Five years ago, my doctor noticed my PSA (Prostate Specific Antigen) was trending upward — a serious red flag for men of color for some reason and one the doctors can’t explain. My father had the same issues.

Two years ago, I refereed my

whole Division I schedule with cancer in my body. You want to talk about what goes through your mind during a timeout! I can honestly say I never thought about it during the course of calling plays. I chose not to tell anyone about my condition during the season. I consider myself a very private person and didn’t want anyone’s pity, but I sure needed their prayers. I refereed that season like it was my last, treasuring every moment and hugging every official.

I’ve been blessed to have a great and prosperous career. But I am very humble that God has presented me with those chances to succeed. I am fortunate to have worked with some great officials and some much finer individuals. That season, there were nights I couldn’t sleep. Some days I just stared into space. I needed to share my zeal for life. I became more of a hugger and more aware of others, their worries and problems. I was more sympathetic to others. My faith became stronger, my family, my rock.

Last year, after receiving three opinions, Team Steed finally decided on a treatment plan. The Cancer Treatment Center of America saved my life. I thank God for them. I remember that day of getting my third opinion. I have refereed in front of thousands of people with no fear.

There was fear that day! We met with the urologist first. He wanted to take it out. Then we met with oncologist. Guess what he wanted to do? Right … take out my prostate gland. Then we met with radiation people. I cried like a little middleschool girl who’d just got dumped for the first time by her boyfriend of two weeks. The radiation treatment was not so invasive and had fewer side effects. Surgery to have my prostate taken out would have put me on the sidelines for six weeks and I would have had a tough recovery period.

This process allowed me to keep my male dignity.

I had two procedures performed

a month apart. I never got too emotional until I thought about our two daughters and that I might not ever see them again. That’s when the middle school kid would show up again, and I would lose it emotionally. I also wanted to be an inspiration to them — to show them that during a crisis we need to face it head on. I hope I was successful. My family is a close unit and we support each other in everything. I pray they know I couldn’t have done this without them.

But most importantly, I pray my family and close friends know I am a Christian and truly believe in God. My faith and my family’s love has made me stronger. My belief in God’s will for me is my message — that all officials should have their physicals performed yearly and pay close attention to the warning signs.

My goal is to be a motivator of people to find their faith and to be the best they can be. Helping others is my primary goal. It’s what my parents — Mamie and Luco Steed — inspired and molded in my soul and what I am teaching my kids every day.

I’ve been cancer-free for a year now. I live each day to the fullest. I hold my family tighter and tell them I love them. Each time I meet a dear friend or fellow official, I hug them because I realize the value of the “precious present.”

Every time I walk out on the floor now, I take a look around and thank God for the gift of being there.

After the game, I want to kiss the floor because you are not guaranteed tomorrow.

Zelton Steed is now considered cancerfree, and his PSA is trending down.

He continues to be tested twice a year.

He officiates high school volleyball and baseball, in addition to his basketball schedule, which has taken him to the NCAA Division I tournament 14 times, four Sweet 16s and two regional finals.  Do you have a personal officiating story to tell?

Send your story or queries to lastcall@referee.com

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