RULES, MECHANICS, TECHNIQUES: Check out the latest information provided in each sports section.
Basketball: To determine contact on an airborne shooter, focus first on the defender and then make your way to the shooter. Learn how to increase your percentage of correctly calling the action in the article “Protect the Shooter: Referee the Defense and Then the Offense.”
Baseball: A batted ball off the foot can be one of the toughest calls for a plate umpire to make. Learn what to look for in the article “‘Got Him in the Box!’ Batted Balls Off the Foot Require Slow Timing, Luck.”
Softball: Through the use of concise language containing the essential concepts of most systems, the plate umpire can have the beneficial impact of cultivating confidence in the crew before stepping onto the field. Improve your pregame in the article “The 8-Minute Pregame: Concise Language for Three-Person Crew Develops Unity.”
Soccer: Refereeing a competitive game is physically and emotionally demanding. Get your head in the game with the soccer article “Think in Sync: How to Stay Mentally in Tune With the Game.”
Football: In football, possession of the ball means everything. There are rules that apply strictly to the person with a grasp on the pigskin. Learn more in the article “Life on the Run(ner): Rules Regarding Players in Possession of the Pigskin.”
All Sports: There are several times during a game when it can be a good time to have some positive communication with the coach and use the interaction to improve your credibility. Get some tips in the article “Magic Words: Be Patient, Positive When Dealing With Angry Coaches.”
FEATURES: Officiating leaders share their strategies to motivate officials so that they adopt the vision and standards of the association in the article “How to Get Officials to Buy In.” Referee editors rank the top officiating stories of last year in the article “The Biggest Stories of 2011.” Learn what it’s like to be on call as an alternate official for a playoff or championship game in “Stand By.” The officials who worked the Carrier Classic men’s college basketball game on the USS Carl Vinson share their experience in the article “Port of Calls.”
COLUMNS & DEPARTMENTS: In this month’s “Last Call,” article “Are We All Nuts?” a former soccer official recounts why he refereed and why all officials do what they do. In the News: NBA referee Bill Spooner and AP settle their lawsuit. “ACC Football Officials Enforce Education” is the “Getting It Right” article that highlights the all-level clinic put on by the ACC football officials.
