RULES, MECHANICS, TECHNIQUES:

BASEBALL
Your Most Important Job: Get the Play Right: Rules, Ethics Require Correct Call, Not Protected Egos; Real Plays, Real Rulings; Remember to Hide Your Exposed Hand; Five Minutes With … Eric Cooper

SOFTBALL
Pregame Meeting is Crucial to Successful Game: Getting Proper Start Avoids Problems Later; Get the Difficult Calls Right; Five Minutes With … John Bennett

SOCCER
Doing Double Duty: How to Implement the Dual System Correctly; What Hat Are You Wearing?; Chalk Talk: Setting Up for the Next Play; Actions to Take With Serious Injuries

BASKETBALL
NFHS 2006-07 Points of Emphasis: Uniforms, Timeouts and Proper Rule Enforcement Addressed; Learning Not to Be Perfect; Chalk Talk: Three-Person: Center Helps Lead on Out of Bounds

FOOTBALL
Outside the White Lines: Rules That Apply When the Ball, Players Go Out of Bounds; Intangibles (and Tangibles) Matter When Moving Up; One Kick, Dozens of Possibilities; Reducing the Mean Time Between Failures

FEATURES:

Gold Whistle Award 2006
Blow the Whistle on Cancer
For the first time in history, the NASO Gold Whistle Award is being presented to an organization instead of an individual — but what an organization it is! The “Blow the Whistle on Cancer” initiative, sponsored by The V Foundation for Cancer Research, has raised more than $250,000 to fight cancer — and it’s all because of the efforts of sports officials.

Nobody Told the Officials
It was just another game — high school football played in the nation’s heartland. The officiating crew had worked hundreds of other contests just like it. But this time it was different. Little did referee Dennis Daly and his crew know when they pulled on their stripes that night that their routine local assignment would thrust them suddenly — and viciously — into the national spotlight.

Flashpoint
Formerly smooth games can sometimes have a way of turning. You can feel it in the hairs on the back of your neck. Like a breeze washing up from a Florida surf, it hits and you can feel something change. What is it? Where is it? Can you stop it?

Observations
One Referee magazine hallmark of the past 30 years has been the “psychological” story. That is, features and columns that explore the act of officiating from the inside out. The late Dr. Roy Askins was among the first to apply psychological and sociological implications to the actions of referees and umpires. Don’t miss this sampling of his innovative work.

COLUMNS & DEPARTMENTS:

Publisher’s Memo
Impact Statement, Eh?

The Gag Rule
Choose Your Words Carefully; The Impact of Sight

The News
NCAA, CCA Name 8 Regional Basketball Advisors; Eric Gregg, 55, Dies After Massive Stroke

Back to Basics
Cleanliness is Next to …

Take Care
What Can Applied Sports Psychology Do for You?

Tools
National Basketball Referees Foundation Conference; Stretch-Fit Hats; Nike MAXSIGHT Contact Lenses; Football Rule Differences 2006

Getting It Right
Umpire Goes Extra Mile in Extra Innings

For the Record
USBL and WNBA rosters

Classifieds
Camps/Clinics/Schools; Equipment/Apparel; Leadership Resources; Speakers; Computer Software

Last Call
I Turned Into One of Them