Ten For the Ages

Some things never change. In officiating, there are maxims and ideas that never go out of style. Here are 10 great tips to remember:

1. Study and understand the rules. Just about anyone could digest the rulebook and then regurgitate it on command. Soon, those "rulebook lawyers" figure out it takes more than quoting chapter and verse to be successful. It takes a special individual to study the rules diligently and then understand their intent and proper application. Rulebook study, even if for just five minutes, should be a part of your everyday life.

2. Join a local association. Where do you get that understanding of rules? By talking about them within local groups. Officiating wisdom is passed down through the ages. Take advantage of that by becoming active in a local group. However, don’t take a local guru’s advice as gospel; he may not be up to date on current philosophies, etc. The sharing of information is just a part of the total learning experience. By sharing with different officials in different settings, you can begin to use some items and weed out others.

3. Get yourself in peak physical condition. The potential for injuries is reduced when you are in shape. More importantly, as an official you have an obligation to the game, its participants and your officiating brethren. If you’re overweight, you are likely to get hurt, be out of position for calls, lose stamina as the game progresses and create a negative perception toward officiating as a whole. Promote a positive image and feel good about yourself by being in top physical condition.

4. Work scrimmages. Preseason games are a great way to maintain physical fitness and work the officiating kinks out before the games count.

5. Arrive at the game site early. Allow ample time to arrive comfortably. There’s nothing worse than rushing to a game and never mentally adjusting.

6. Hold a thorough pregame conference. When you arrive early, you’ve got time for a good pregame conference. The extra time spent talking mechanics, rules and philosophy is invaluable.

7. Dress in proper, clean uniform. Your appearance gives a distinct – and lasting – impression. Items should be shined, pressed and updated.

8. Relax. If you appear tense and nervous, players, coaches, fans and partners will pick up on it. Make sure your muscles are relaxed before taking the court. There’s a way to be intense and in tune with the game without looking like you’re stressed out. Work on it.

9. Hustle but don’t overhustle. You must work hard to get into position and display maximum effort, but hustling too much can have a negative impact on your positioning and perception.

10. Communicate with your crewmates. The first person who should know what’s going on is your partner(s). Use each other to make penalty administration flow smoothly and with minimal errors. If something seems awry, take the time to talk to a crewmate(s) to gather more information and make the right call. Keep it brief.

Pull Up a Chair…

Everyone who’s ever stepped onto a field, court or rink to officiate a game has a story to tell. Here’s one about growing up in the shadow of an officiating legend.

Footsteps: Confessions of a Referee’s Son

By Tim Clougherty

I have always been a referee’s son. Probably will be for a good while longer. *Growing up, my mother worked nights as a nurse so my brother and I would always get the opportunity to ride to games with my dad. We would sit under the hoop with a towel just waiting for a player to fall so we could wipe up the floor. I also got to sit in on countless pregame and postgame meetings long before I ever thought of pursuing officiating myself. We would rush off the floor with him after games and sprint to the locker room.

Dad would take us to North Carolina State and the trainer would bring out a pair of Chuck Nevitt’s shoes for us to look at. We would walk around the locker room in awe with size 20 shoes on. We thought we were big time and for the most part, for an eight- and a seven-year-old, we were big time.

You would think that after all those years of going to games and listening to Dad and his partners getting yelled at that I would have learned not to get involved in officiating. But I always thought that what the referees did was special and that they were special people for wanting to do it.

Dad was always worried about how we would take it as little kids listening to fans yell at him while he was on the floor, but it never bothered me. Personally, I kind of got a kick out of all those people taking the time to yell at my dad. Still doesn’t bother me, even though I’m now the one they’re yelling at. Yeah, you guessed it; I became a referee. Probably was inevitable.

When I first decided to get involved in officiating, I chose to pursue baseball umpiring, a completely different sport than what my dad officiated. I even attended Jim Evans’ Academy and spent three years in the minor leagues. I think maybe I did that to avoid the shadow of having a dad who’s a big-time official, a Final Four referee.

My friends would ask me all the time "Why don’t you ref basketball? Don’t you know how much fun it is?" Of course I knew. I’d grown up in a basketball ref’s locker room. But I had this notion of establishing myself in other sports first, proving that it was me, not my name, that made me a good official. I even tried my hand at high school football for four years before turning back to the one sport I already had so many fun memories from – and to the gigantic footsteps waiting for me there.

Starting out on the basketball court, I was bothered by questions that kept popping up in my head: Am I as good as my dad? Would my dad handle that situation this way? What if I miss a call? Are they going to say, "Well, he’s sure not his dad"? It took some time to realize, but after awhile I figured out the answer to all those questions is no. No, I am not as good as he is, and no, as a third-year college ref I can’t handle a situation the same way a 25-year veteran can, and no, the people who matter are not comparing me to my dad. They are judging me on who I am and not who my dad is.

Now I wish I had started refereeing basketball earlier. It’s brought me closer to my dad than ever before. We’ve even gotten to work a few games together. Usually we see each other four of five days a week and when we are sitting around talking, we usually discuss basketball. He’s my dad, but he’s my mentor, too. You couldn’t ask for a better experience than that.

I’m a referee’s son – and that’s not so bad.

Tim Clougherty officiates college basketball in the Southeastern (SEC), Atlantic Coast (ACC), Colonial, Big South, Atlantic Sun, Ohio Valley and Northeast conferences. He still umpires baseball at the college level in the SEC and ACC. Clougherty lives in Raleigh, N.C. with his wife, Laura, and two children, Grace and Jack. His father, John, is a longtime NCAA Division I men’s basketball official

Sports Officiating Summit 2005

NASO’s "Sports Officiating Summit 2005" will be held July 30 through Aug. 1, 2005, in Salt Lake City. Leadership Officiating is the theme of the 2005 Summit. Along with leadership issues, other timely officiating subjects will also be discussed during the two-day Summit program.

The 23rd NASO Summit will focus on topics directly impacting officiating leaders. State high school leaders, local officials association officers, officiating supervisors and sport administrators and officials will be in attendance.

Mark your calendar to build relationships and network with officiating leaders from all levels. For information on Summit registration, contact Tina Sagal, NASO-ON coordinator and NASO Special Events coordinator at tsagal@naso.org or by phone 800/733-6100.

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