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Know Your Rules Inside and Out

Know your sport. More importantly, know the rules of your sport. It’s your job.

Some officials associations and states do not require testing on a given sport prior to registration or in order to register. Those associations leave it up to the officials to know what they’re doing.

Other associations give tests that require a certain number of correct answers in order to pass and for the official to participate. If an official fails, he or she must take the test again. The official only gets a limited number of chances, however, and then the official is on the outside looking in.

Whether or not a test is administered to officials should not affect officials individually or as an organization. The type of test shouldn’t make a difference in your rules preparation for officiating either. If the association you’re in, regardless of sport, leaves it up to you to know the rules, then know the rules. Otherwise, you will face personal embarrassment and the same goes for your group.

Many leagues will supply practice tests. Use them. Do them throughout a season to stay sharp. If a practice test doesn’t exist, make one up. The time it takes is well spent when you consider the problems an official could have by not knowing a rule.

Study, study and study some more. Every official needs to study his or her rulebook and companion study aids. It’s imperative. And it’s as important to know what’s not in your rulebook as it is what is written there.

During a game this past season one of my partners made a call that surprised me. He enforced a rule that no one challenged, though I thought it was a stretch.

About two weeks later a similar situation occurred and the call was different. Why? Well, it was pointed out during a stoppage in play that the play in question was clearly not covered in our rulebook, thus the call was to do nothing about what had occurred.

When I brought up what had happened two weeks prior, I was simply told that the previous call was wrong. If it isn’t covered, there’s nothing to enforce.

Keep your levels straight. Each league and its rulebooks differ. That makes the job of a multi-level official even more difficult. Obviously, it is necessary to not only know the differences between the leagues you officiate, via the rulebook, but also to keep track of which rules apply when.

That includes oddities such as when I coached high school baseball and the Catholic league we were in used a 3-2 balls-and-strike rule. That’s why every scheduled league date was a doubleheader. Public school versus Catholic school games were called as 4-3 balls-and-strike baseball. You don’t want to make a mistake between the two.

It is also important to recognize the procedures regarding discipline and expulsions and how they’re implemented and handled following the game. The only way to really know is to seek out the information. Know what your specific league and assigner expect of you and meet those expectations.

Always check your rulebooks and don’t be embarrassed if you need to refer back to them. Few officials possess a photographic memory.

Written by John Miskelly, a freelance writer and official who lives in Royal Oak, Mich. This originally appeared in the Jan. '07 issue of Referee.

Pick Up Your Game in the Offseason

You walk off the field after the last game of your season. A couple of days later, your clean uniform is hanging in the closet and officiating gear is packed neatly away, enjoying a well-deserved several months off.

And you? Is it time to kick back, put your feet up and enjoy your more open schedule? If you want to take your game to the next level, probably not.

Instead of taking the offseason off, why not take stock of where your game is and what you need to do to take it to the next level? Extending your efforts to improve in the offseason is likely to increase the length and quality of your real season.

Conditioning. Some of the extra time on your hands can be invested in staying in shape or even improving your conditioning. Are you carrying a few extra pounds? You can hit the fitness center a few times a week. Virtually anyone could easily begin a walking or a walk/jog regimen that could help hold the line. Check with your doctor or other health professional to outline a program best suited for your fitness goals.

A simple way to keep active is just to be more active: take the stairs instead of the elevator, walk instead of drive, do some extra yard work. In any event, don’t forget that if you are losing the extra exercise from officiating you’ll need to compensate for that during the offseason — to avoid an unwanted weight gain of up to several pounds before you put the uniform on again.

Study. After working your body, it’s time to work your mind. Offseason study can do much to improve your game. At the top of the list, of course, are rules and casebooks. It’s a mistake to put the rulebook on the shelf after the season is over. Regular review of the rules keeps you fresh and keeps your mind on the game yearround.

Past issues of Referee are also helpful. There are rules and case sections in every issue that help keep you sharp. Every issue also has offers for several study aids that can be extremely helpful.

Getting with fellow officials from time to time to quiz each other on the rules over a beverage and a sandwich is a great way to stay in touch and stay in tune. Association meetings often contain valuable information and new ideas that can be adopted for next season.

Arguably the best way to utilize the offseason is to seek out clinics that feature great hands-on segments with officials working leagues and levels you’ve set your sights on in addition to classroom sessions that give you a fresh perspective.

If good clinics are too far away, check with your local or state associations to see if they have a video library from which you can borrow instructional tapes. In addition, video study of your games or sample plays is also a very effective means of improvement.

A fresh start. Whichever methods you decide are best for you, spend your next offseason working body and mind to improve your game. Use your down time to pick your game up.

Written by Dave Sabaini, a freelance writer and official who lives in Terre Haute, Ind. This article originally appeared in the 1/07 issue of Referee.

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Let's Hear Your Best Story ...

You’ve probably been sharing your best officiating stories at any number of postgame crew gatherings for years. Referee magazine wants to publish your favorite war story from the officiating trenches. Type up your story in 900 words or fewer and e-mail it to lastcall@referee.com. Sure, you might lose the opportunity to tell the story to your buddies, but now you’ll have an even bigger audience. Here’s a story of an official whose vocation as a plumber crossed with his avocation on the court one particular night.

I Handled - - it

By Freddy Krieger

Sometimes, as an athletic official, you just have to “put up with it.” But what is the “it”?

“Be prepared to put up with the worst and be happy when you get the best,” a wise veteran once taught me. I’ve prepared for it all, but I never thought I would have to put up with this!

At a characteristically uneventful boys’ high school freshman basketball contest, I was very happy that one member of our three-man crew was my boys’ assigner. It provided an opportunity for me to officiate and do a good job for the guy who rates me and schedules me according to my abilities and judgment. To handle a pressure situation tactfully and professionally would be bonus points for me, I figured.

All was going well deep into the second quarter. Then … “it” occurred.

As the trail official following the play from backcourt to frontcourt, I eyed a foreign object at midcourt, near the jump circle. It looked like something that could cause injury if stepped on by a player coming back up the court. With no significant play about to develop, I whistled play to stop, called for an officials’ timeout and approached the object.

Was it half a Baby Ruth candy bar? A partially gummed three-link large Tootsie Roll?

My plan was to pick it up and head toward the scorers’ table, while scanning the bleachers for any group of fans giving away their guilt as the ones who tossed it.

Favoring expediency over analysis, I tenderly grasped the unidentified encumbrance with my left hand, suspecting nothing more than a gooky hand full of chocolate as an outcome. After all, as a plumbing contractor specializing in drain cleaning and sewer repairs, I surely handle more disgusting stuff than that on a daily basis.

I distinctly remember saying to the table official, “I’m not gonna ask what this is, but can you throw it away for me?” I dropped it into his open hand, turned around and prepared to signal for play to resume at point of interruption.

Then, just as I was about to wipe the spittle from the piece of candy on my black pants, for no memorable reason at all, the impulse to take a whiff of my hand struck me. And I did.

I think you know where I’m going. It was softer than a Baby Ruth should be and not as hard a Tootsie Roll. Sure enough, it was neither.

Promptly, yet calmly, I called the other two officials to center court. “I think I better go wash my hands,” I remarked, partly seeking the permission of my referee. It took only the briefest of explanations before the crew chief, my assigner, responded, “You’d better!”

A quick trip to the dressing room and then I was back on the court. The game finished without a problem and no one in the stands had a clue what had just transpired.

It turns out the whole thing was caught on tape, both the incident and the offender. In fact, according to an athletic director friend from a neighboring county, it happened again in a different gym a week later. That time he handled “it.”

The mystery now solved, a letter is being crafted by one athletic director to the other that there’s a problem with one particular player. Apparently an effort is under way to take care of “it.”

The best analysis of the situation came from someone who said, “I know you have to put up with a lot of $#*& sometimes. Good thing we had a plumber on the court!”

Looking back, it seems I handled “it” OK. As an official, I guess it’s just another one of those things I have to put up with.

I hope my assigner was impressed!

Freddy Krieger is a basketball official from Baroda, Mich. This article originally appeared in the 7/08 issue of Referee.

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The following is an actual incident handled by NASO through the MICP program. NASO members receive supporting documents, advice and initial consultations as part of their membership.

Verbal Assault

Member Inquiry: A member requested suggestions for the steps the association board should take in handling a vicious verbal assault from one official to another. 

MICP Action: The MICP liaison contacted the member. For the member who was verbally assaulted, three different options were given: 1. Report it to the association board via a formal letter of complaint. 2. Report it to the state office. 3. Report it to the police. The liaison suggested the member keep detailed documentation on what had taken place. The association was advised that it must follow its established bylaws and procedures. There should be an appeal/due process opportunity. If the allegations are not documented, or not addressed with an opportunity for correction, the association could increase its liability. The member was also sent numerous articles on association management.  

Resolution: Thanks to the assistance of NASO and the information provided in the response the member was able to get the information needed to make an informed decision on how to handle the situation that was presented to the association.