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General items of interest to all officials that don’t fit in the categories above.
Rule Changes That Changed Everything
Officiating standards and practices have changed considerably over the course of time. So have the rules all of us are expected to know and enforce. The evolution of the rules...
The Facts Behind Bad Sporting Behavior
Sports and American culture — the two are practically inseparable. Young children through those in their golden years get a thrill from the engaging...
Defining the “It” Factor
Rules knowledge, mechanics and making the right calls are important. Missing any of those elements can break your career, but having them won’t make...
Why I Love Officiating
No matter what sport or level we work, we are bonded. We are drawn together by a passion for officiating those outside the industry...
I’m Working With Whom?
Partners and crewmates come in all different shapes, sizes and personalities. There are a lot of good ones out there, but then there are...
Employee or Independent Contractor?
Update: June 14th, 2019 - View the court's ruling
Some of history’s bloodiest conflicts were started over a small insult. A pastry chef not receiving...
Is There Still Room for Personality In Signals?
In the old days, style and flair in officiating was easy to recognize. It was prevalent in a lot of games. Today, most assigners...
Comments Don’t Reflect Reality
The times have changed in sports and officials know it all too well. In the past the things people said to us while we...
Keeping Players Safe is JOB ONE
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hen it comes to player safety, photos (and film clips) speak a thousand words.
A video montage created for a session at the 2016 NASO...
Can We Improve the Culture of Sports?
“I did not like being a referee one bit, and I’m very happy to be done with it. It was very stressful, and I...
Why Teachers Make Great Officials
There has always been a sizable contingent of teachers within the officiating community. Part of the reason is circumstances; teachers are finished with work and often available to handle...
Should Sports Officials Be Suspended?
Officials strive to do the right thing, enforce the rules correctly and administer the game properly. But inevitably, mistakes will happen. Sometimes it’s an error in...
Can Coaches Openly Criticize?
When a Missouri girls’ high school basketball coach publically said negative things about the officiating after his team’s playoff loss last season, athletic administrators...
When a State Draws the Line on Sportsmanship
It’s no secret that sportsmanship issues are an ongoing issue in high school athletics. The North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) decided to address the issue head on....
How to Recruit U30s
Even before the pandemic, state high school athletic associations faced a significant shortage of officials across the country, which was affecting games. Heavy recruiting...
Drone Protocol
I
n more than 40 years as a referee at the high school, college and professional levels, Bruce Maurer has seen his share of the...
Are Big Calls Even A Thing Anymore?
The proposition is simple enough: safe or out? foul or not? catch or no catch? A good official has had hundreds of big calls in his...
Big Data’s Increasing Role in Sports Officiating
Rusty Acree got a call from Bill Carollo this past year, asking him to provide three years of Power Five (P5) replay data from...
Benefits and Landmines of Working Multiple Sports
More and more, we seem to lose sight of the fact kids might be playing three sports just for the fun of it. Now,...
Embracing Technology in Sports
No matter what sport you officiate, or even at what level, technology has become an integral part of sports. You have heard the popular expression, “Get...
Transition Game
Basketball has taken Ka-Deidre “Didi” Simmons around the globe. After a stellar collegiate career at Seton Hall University that saw her graduate as the...
Spark the Fire to Create Lifelong Officials
We need more officials, plain and simple. The not-so-simple part is figuring out how to spark the fire in new recruits that will keep...
Our Guide to High School Replay
Since its regular season introduction to pro football officiating in 1986, replay has found its way into nearly all of the major professional sports. Even the so-called beautiful...
Recruiting & Retention: What Worked…What Didn’t
By Scott T. Glass
Nearly every officials association in the country is experiencing serious membership shortages. Recruiting new officials is a complex, deliberate organizational task...
