Movement and Coverage Tips for the Second Referee
Volleyball referees don’t move a lot during play, compared to referees in other sports. But there are a lot of challenges involved in calling...
5 Tips for the Tag Play at the Plate
Atag play at the plate is among the most exciting plays in softball. The decision the umpire renders on a close play at home...
How to Tackle Pre-Match Responsibilities as a Team
It is important to arrive at a match with plenty of time to prepare yourself mentally as well as making sure to have enough time to conduct pre-match...
Officiating Loose-Ball Action
There are a few rulings you can make that can affect possession. Rulings such as traveling, three seconds, loose ball fouls and illegal dribble...
How to Keep Calm During Rundowns
Rundowns are usually the result of a runner being too aggressive. Depending on the level of play, players may go into panic mode. Umpires...
Goalline Extended?
By definition, progress spots are relatively simple concepts. In practice, when airborne players, striding runners, out-of-bounds status, goallines and pylons are introduced, rulings can...
3 “When In Doubt” Judgment Guidelines
According to Webster, judgment is the ability to make a decision. An official’s judgment calls will be questioned more often than his or her...
11 Hacks for Onfield Umpires
With a new baseball season rolling along, here are a few tips and hacks involving plate work that can help you out as an...
What Coaches and Referees Actually Agree On
In any game, coaches and referees usually agree on several things:
The time of the game
The location of the game
The teams playing...
Keys to Cutting Down Correctable Errors
During any game, a mistake by an official or scorer can be made. For officials marked by inattentiveness and indifference, change “can” to “will likely.” For officials working with...
Tips to Stay Focused During Long Matches
Staying focused as a referee or line judge is of the utmost importance. Whether it’s a tight match or not, first point or last,...
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...
7 Reasons Why Communication With Your Partner Pays Off
The words “requires excellent communication skills” are part of virtually every job description in today’s market, to the point where they’ve become meaningless jargon....
Handling Tough Situations on Difficult Pitches
One of the toughest jobs for a softball umpire is ruling on inside pitches. There is a lot happening at once and there are a lot of moving...
Hot Buttons
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks, and apparently you can’t get umpires — old, new or in between — to clean up...
Veteran Approach
As we prepare for each season, we study rules and interpretations, casebooks and officiating manuals, and attend preseason clinics and meetings. And once the season starts, we usually have...
Careful with Explanations
There may never be a game we officiate that is free from controversy, in which every call is met with agreement from two compassionate...
Refereeing Gives Skills For Your Lifetime
Through three decades and nearly 3,000 games of my officiating career, I've accumulated insights, notions and generalizations I didn’t have before which I can...
Always Time for Teachable Moments
Whether it is during the prematch conference or a postmatch debrief, a formal evaluation or a self-evaluation, or in a classroom clinic setting, we...
Active ‘C’ Creates a Successful Crew
The center official on a three-person crew is the straw that stirs the drink. When “C” is active, things go more smoothly and games are apt to be...
Aptitude Vs. Attitude
The attitude officials have when they walk onto the field will determine in part the success they may or may not enjoy in officiating...
Take a Number
What's in a number? You'd be surprised how some NFL officials wound up with their uniform numbers, and the history behind those identifying digits.
On...
Listen Up to Go Up
“Keep your mouth shut and listen.”
Although it sounds harsh, it might be one of the most important pieces of advice an aspiring umpire can...
Soccer Sideline Management Simplified
Depending on your level of training and experience as a referee, communication may not seem to be a top priority for officiating games. However,...