Melton07

7A has some decent players this year but the bench decorum has been terrible. There is a certain coach on the girls side in 7A that better be ready for a "wake up call" after the Christmas break. His attitude toward the officials will stop - I can promise you that.

The officials are doing the best job that they can, the issue is that they are under paid by a state governing body (T$$AA) and most officials just aren't willing to give up family and job time to go make a few extra bucks. In 7A and 7AA there will be lots of district games with only 2 officials. There are a few reasons for the numbers of officials to be "down" this year but mostly its because the TSSAA won't shell out extra $ and give officials a raise.So guys have made the decision not to work. Coaches are having to work around the officiating staffs availabilty and move game dates/times in order to get 3 person crews. Till we raise the pay and get some of the veteran officials to come back, our officiating will struggle.

The officiating crew that was assigned to the FC and TC game was assigned for a reason. Teams had been complaining already that TC was breaking a rule by coming into the other teams warm up area and this crew finally put a stop to it. It is black and white in the rule book and it is covered in almost every state rules meeting every year. The coach knew the rule but chose to not let him team know that this 'maneuver' was illegal. Hence the 'T'. Kudos to the crew for finally putting a stop to it and stopping this 'unsporting' act. The reason so many foul shots were attempted in the FC vs TC game was that FC decided they were not going to quit fouling. Excellent job by the officiating crew for 'taking control' and not allowing anything to escalate into something that is 'non-basketball'. The officiating in the Upper Cumberland has lots of new officials whom are doing the very best that they can. Basic mechanics, bench decorum and understanding the rules is tough to take in for 'newer' officials - so they are put to the test early and often. You should thank them ocassionally for this 'thankless' job !

And she did one heck of a bang up job !!!!!

If your coach/athletic director does not feel as though the officials were professional and handled their "business" in a professional manner, they should send an official complaint to the assigning officer or supervisor of the officials association. Sending text during the game is 100% NOT ACCEPTABLE !!! We had some officials doing that and they were reprimanded and dealt with swiftly. There is no place for that in the game AT ALL. If you are not sure of the supervisor/assigning officer that handles your area , send me a private message and I will make sure that you have their contact info. The un-professional behavior MUST STOP !!!

The Herald Citizen has Upperman playing the Middle Tennessee Heat tonight. Is this an AAU team ? Hmmmmm , I thought there were rules against that. Read here - last paragraph Upperman Cancellation

Richard was always very easy to work with. Most of the officials around the Upper Cumberland had an outstanding "working relationship" with him. Just goes to show that if you upset the wrong person in Overton County - you could be getting your walking papers. From all the officials in North Central - we appreciate you Coach Melton ! Good luck - we know that you will land back on your feet somewhere.

Pretty solid job by all the officiating crews I have had a chance to see. Still need to focus on seeing the whole play - start, develop and finish before we put air in the whistle. Good Job Guys (and girls) ! Have a safe holiday.

This tournament always has some interesting match-ups. It is also a good oportunity for the officials in the Upper Cumberland to get in some work close to home. Good luck to all the teams and all the officials !!

Went out tonight to scout the officiating. Pretty solid crew. Both sidelines were on good behavior and the crew "cruised" in the 2nd half. The only thing I was a little critical on was their appearence. The white hat and umpire could both stand to loose a few lbs (Couldn't we all) and the wing officials need to come in tighter to the play, especially the wing official opposite the strong side. Too far away from the play and player(s). Back judge was soild - probablly the strongest of the crew - nice appearence and first step was always towards the play instead of back peddling at the snap. White hat's mechanics were ok ,would like to see them tightened up a little. He seemed to rely on the wing officials too much, especially when the ball went into the side zones. Overall Grade B - This crew should get stonger as the season progresses.

It has been tinkered with a little in a few associations. The problem is closed dates, geographic location of the crew and the game and the strength of the individuals in the crew. I like the idea of putting officials in PODS. Four or five officials in the POD. One official in the POD is the crew chief. Rotate the officials in the POD allowing each to get thier floor time. The officials that do not work the varsity game will work the JV game and also run the clock in the varsity contests. The POD concept wold also require that the crew chief send evaluations to the supervisor/assignor after each contest critiqing the way the game was officiated and giving feedback on each member of his/her POD. Maybe the crew cheif could be compensated by the state office for the extra work required by them. My two cents.

I have seen some pretty well officiated games so far in the post-season. 2 areas for improvement 1. Have a more patient whistle. See the whole play before you crack the whistle. DON'T JUST BE A WHISTLE BLOWER !!! 2. Lead calling across the lane when the Center official does not have a whistle. If you are the lead official and you want to put air in your whistle on a post play , get your backside across the lane so yo can get a good look at it. Trust your partner and ROTATE !!! Those that are working the next few weeks - CONGRATS !! Travel Safe and HAVE FUN !!!

Please take a look at this story. Poor Sports

The game admin is responsible for the crowd. The refs have enough to worry about on whats going on in-between the lines.

What I would like to see is a fourth official assigned to games that works the clock. They have it in football, why not basketball??? He could be a beginner or 'new' official who is trying to get experience. Put him in the crew for the night, he gets to sit in with the crew for pre-game, ask questions and basicly get 'on the job training'. Or - older, seasoned officials who want to stay around the game but are past their prime could do this job as well. It would be an excellent training opportunity with minimal expense involved.