Football
Sideline Officials Cannot Just Wing It
R
eferees have a great deal on their plate. Before the opening kickoff they perform organizational duties, and conduct the pregame meeting and onfield tasks...
Calm on Broken Plays
Coaches, players and fans are allowed to panic when a play goes awry. Officials, on the other hand, must react to broken plays as if they're routine...
Formation Consternation Demands Concentration
Defensive players can align themselves anywhere for scrimmage plays as long as everyone is on the proper side of the neutral zone. There is...
Video Tips for Working as the Referee with Legendary White Hat Jerry Markbreit
Jerry Markbreit is one of the most well known and respected sports officials in the world. Not just in the football community but across...
Deep Official A Key Crew Member
Back judges are often undervalued in a crew of five. Perhaps that stems from the many prep teams that run the ball much more often than pass...
Skokie to the Super Bowl: Jerry Markbreit
Walking Away
Jerry Markbreit doesn't know what he's going to do next.
He does know that when the 1998 NFL football season ends, he'll walk off...
First Action May Not Be the Last
A few seasons ago, a game was stopped six times for instant play reviews. Four stops led to reversals of the onfield call. Two of the reversals involved...
No Connection, But There’s Still an Ejection
In most cases, it is not illegal to fail in the attempt to do something. Fighting is an exception.
Even if a punch fails to...
How to Handle a New Crew Member
If you’re used to working on a crew with the same people from week to week, you know that you can quickly reach a...
Be A Penalty Enforcer
Being an effective penalty enforcer is vitally important, but something officials tend to neglect. Contrary to what some officials seem to think, it is not only a referee-umpire...
Forward Thinking on Backward Passes
I created a list of words and expressions commonly used by fans, coaches, announcers and sometimes by officials. However, nothing in my list appears...
Football Ground Rules
Whether it’s dry or wet, artificial or natural, the surface on which the game is played can have a marked influence on how the game is played and on...
Eyes Off the Ball
More than one clinician has joked about officials who should have to buy a ticket to officiate a game because they mostly watch the...
Swap Meet
By George Demetriou
One of the more common misconceptions in football is that a kick receiver must signal for a fair catch in order to...
Official/Player Communication Influences Conduct
Trying to manage a football game would be nearly impossible without effective and pointed communication. Although managing players is primarily the responsibility of the coaching staff, officials can facilitate the...
Seven Kinds of Hustle
Hustle means different things to different sports officials. Many think of hustle as pure speed, getting from one place to another as fast as...
More Than a Dozen Intentional Acts Are Possible
When the word “intentional” is mentioned, the first thing that springs to the mind of most football officials is intentional grounding. However, intent plays a role in many more...
Inside Look: 2025 CFP Championship Game Officiating Crew
When Ohio State linebacker Jack Sawyer completed his scoop-and-score after sacking Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers with a little more than two minutes remaining in...
Now, Later and Never
The idea of a flag being waved off brings to mind an overbearing referee trumping the decision of a younger crewmate. That has happened...
Forward Fumbles Lead the Way
By Joe Jarosz
Forward fumbles ruled out of bounds between the goallines will now be brought back to the spot of the fumble due to...
Ditch the Dinosaur Mechanics
The semifinal game was sold out. Although the visitors were seeded lower, their playoff performance made them the favorite. The home team held its...
Manipulation Or Management?
One of the attributes that separates the best referees from their good counterparts is the ability to manage a game. Good game management includes...
The 5 D’s Of Football Success
Here's a list of qualities starting with D from Steve Shaw, CFO National Coordinator of Football Officials, that, if employed, can help any official...
Team B Fouls on a Touchdown
Depending on the rules code, a scoring team may or may not have an enforcement option if the opponent commits a foul during the...
