tssaa referee ratings

[bsktballfan]

Why can there not be a reporting from each game, to the tssaa, about the referee's competence. I have thought for years that there could be a rating from each game , given only by the winning coach , to help get rid of the poor referees. I have certainly been involved in games that I have won that I knew were the results of the way the game was called. I think most coaches would report accurately because the same referees could cause them a loss in the future.

[etownsparky]

Why can there not be a reporting from each game, to the tssaa, about the referee's competence. I have thought for years that there could be a rating from each game , given only by the winning coach , to help get rid of the poor referees. I have certainly been involved in games that I have won that I knew were the results of the way the game was called. I think most coaches would report accurately because the same referees could cause them a loss in the future.

 

I doubt this would be very effective. First, if coaches (even the winning coaches) were given the responsibility to provide ratings, I think there would be a reluctance to be truthful for fear of retaliation in subsequent games. Secondly, every district has supervisors that are supposed to be doing just what you suggest already, i.e. evaluate the officials. The problem is that generally the supervisors are past officials that seem to be more interested in retaining the good favor of their cronies than providing constructive criticism or, at a minimum, demanding a minimum level of competency. From my observations of supervisor/official interactions in my area, getting high marks has less to do with actual performance on the court and more to do with "sucking up" to the supervisor(s). Sadly, this is just another example of the old adage, "it's not what you know, it's who you know..."

[FlatCreekJim]

I think it could be done. Other states do it. The thing about it is you can't hold a mistake against an official. They are made, all ARE human. I think Coaches should also be held accountable for their

comments and antics courtside. Be careful what you wish for. So HERE's the slippery slope we draw towards.............

 

There's a rating system in place. Official A has gotten 3 bad reports from Philbert H.S. coaches. He gets assigned to them for an important game that will determine #1 or #2 seating in the district tournament.

The game is close and heated. The coaches, players and fans believe this game may determine how far they go in the tournament. Official A calls traveling because steps are taken, not seeing a push from the defensive player. This happens in front of Philbert's bench. The coach, players and fans go ballistic. The official turns to the coach and ask him to get back in the box. He is slow to respond, a technical

is called. Philbert's opponent gets the ball and scores. As Philbert is trying to get the ball up court for the final shot their guard collides with the defender. He lowered his shoulder but the player was moving and not playing good defense. Blocking is called. The opposing coach, players and fans duplicate the actions of Philbert's team earlier. Only this time when motioned back into the box the coach complies and no Technical is called. The shots are missed by the Philbert freethrow shooter. The opposing team rebounds the ball, time expires and Philbert loses. They give the official an adverse report. Claiming no Technical was called on their opponent for the same action they had committed. Technically the truth, but not the truth in the "spirit" of the law. The official did his job correctly. He allowed for the excitement and energy of the game to happen without changing the outcome. Once he attempted to regain control and calm things down one coach complied, one did not.

 

From this point on, Official A has no choice but to enforce the "letter" of the law. Outta the box means "T". Even if it's your little toe! ;P The game will be wrecked for all, including the official.

I've played, coached and officiated. I know what I'm talking about. It will depend on who evaluates the reports. I knew coaches that thought they should get calls because they were in their home gym. I knew officials that would call against coaches because of things that happened earlier in the season or seasons before. So an evaluation process would not only evaluate the officials but shed some light on

the coaches and schools also. But look for games to become more closely called, players and fans ejected, I think it could actually get worse. My question would be were do you find someone with the

character and morale strength to do this?

 

What makes me so angry is the inconsistency of how rules are enforced. I was at one game where a home team student had a plastic horn from the Dollar Store or somewhere. The crowds for both teams were tame and not producing much noise! Someone blew the horn once, while an opposing player was preparing to shoot a foul shot. You would have thought a gun had been fired! The official laid on his whistle running and taking the ball from the shooter then stopped play and notified the principal. The game was not started back until this horn was found and removed from the gym. Since then the same team was on the road in a critical district game. With less than 4 seconds left one of the visiting players was at the line for 1 and 1. This would mean the ballgame. The home students where allowed to come out of the stands, kneel and beat the floor, on the playing floor! The officials watched and did nothing! That's what a lot of us are getting tired of, and why so many people want to talk about it.

[KeeperFan15]

...don't respond, don't take the bait... Oh well, I had a nice little conversation about the topic in my mind. Only pleasant comment I can make is that consistency is the key. I do wish there were a way to get there.

[etownsparky]

I think it could be done. Other states do it. The thing about it is you can't hold a mistake against an official. They are made, all ARE human. I think Coaches should also be held accountable for their

comments and antics courtside. Be careful what you wish for. So HERE's the slippery slope we draw towards.............

 

There's a rating system in place. Official A has gotten 3 bad reports from Philbert H.S. coaches. He gets assigned to them for an important game that will determine #1 or #2 seating in the district tournament.

The game is close and heated. The coaches, players and fans believe this game may determine how far they go in the tournament. Official A calls traveling because steps are taken, not seeing a push from the defensive player. This happens in front of Philbert's bench. The coach, players and fans go ballistic. The official turns to the coach and ask him to get back in the box. He is slow to respond, a technical

is called. Philbert's opponent gets the ball and scores. As Philbert is trying to get the ball up court for the final shot their guard collides with the defender. He lowered his shoulder but the player was moving and not playing good defense. Blocking is called. The opposing coach, players and fans duplicate the actions of Philbert's team earlier. Only this time when motioned back into the box the coach complies and no Technical is called. The shots are missed by the Philbert freethrow shooter. The opposing team rebounds the ball, time expires and Philbert loses. They give the official an adverse report. Claiming no Technical was called on their opponent for the same action they had committed. Technically the truth, but not the truth in the "spirit" of the law. The official did his job correctly. He allowed for the excitement and energy of the game to happen without changing the outcome. Once he attempted to regain control and calm things down one coach complied, one did not.

 

From this point on, Official A has no choice but to enforce the "letter" of the law. Outta the box means "T". Even if it's your little toe! ;P The game will be wrecked for all, including the official.

I've played, coached and officiated. I know what I'm talking about. It will depend on who evaluates the reports. I knew coaches that thought they should get calls because they were in their home gym. I knew officials that would call against coaches because of things that happened earlier in the season or seasons before. So an evaluation process would not only evaluate the officials but shed some light on

the coaches and schools also. But look for games to become more closely called, players and fans ejected, I think it could actually get worse. My question would be were do you find someone with the

character and morale strength to do this?

 

What makes me so angry is the inconsistency of how rules are enforced. I was at one game where a home team student had a plastic horn from the Dollar Store or somewhere. The crowds for both teams were tame and not producing much noise! Someone blew the horn once, while an opposing player was preparing to shoot a foul shot. You would have thought a gun had been fired! The official laid on his whistle running and taking the ball from the shooter then stopped play and notified the principal. The game was not started back until this horn was found and removed from the gym. Since then the same team was on the road in a critical district game. With less than 4 seconds left one of the visiting players was at the line for 1 and 1. This would mean the ballgame. The home students where allowed to come out of the stands, kneel and beat the floor, on the playing floor! The officials watched and did nothing! That's what a lot of us are getting tired of, and why so many people want to talk about it.

 

Excellent post...I agree that consistency is an important aspect of officiating and one that I welcome as well. However, a good dose of common sense has to be incorporated as well. Unfortunately, common sense is an oxymoron these days. For instance, from the example you gave above, how long does an official give a coach to get back in the box? Does 1 second longer justify giving a "T" vs. not? The problem with consistency is that it can be "good" or "bad." Consistently bad is probably no better than being inconsistent. The issues you mention above are all reasons why I suggest that getting supervisors to do their job and performing fair, but accurate, evaluations is key. That coupled with school officials', i.e. coaches, ADs or administrators, inputs could possibly work. One obvious drawback is that supervisors can't be at every game. Furthermore, when supervisors do attend games, the officials tend to be on their best behavior. I'm not sure what the solution is, but I do believe you hit on another key ingredient necessary for any system to work - CHARACTER. As a matter of fact, if all coaches, officials, and supervisors had IT; there probably wouldn't be much to debate...

[FlatCreekJim]

Excellent post...I agree that consistency is an important aspect of officiating and one that I welcome as well. However, a good dose of common sense has to be incorporated as well. Unfortunately, common sense is an oxymoron these days. For instance, from the example you gave above, how long does an official give a coach to get back in the box? Does 1 second longer justify giving a "T" vs. not? The problem with consistency is that it can be "good" or "bad." Consistently bad is probably no better than being inconsistent. The issues you mention above are all reasons why I suggest that getting supervisors to do their job and performing fair, but accurate, evaluations is key. That coupled with school officials', i.e. coaches, ADs or administrators, inputs could possibly work. One obvious drawback is that supervisors can't be at every game. Furthermore, when supervisors do attend games, the officials tend to be on their best behavior. I'm not sure what the solution is, but I do believe you hit on another key ingredient necessary for any system to work - CHARACTER. As a matter of fact, if all coaches, officials, and supervisors had IT; there probably wouldn't be much to debate...

 

 

HOME RUN!

[pantherdad]

consistency would be wonderful. what bothers me is some of these guys in basketball are out

of shape. it would be scarey if one of them had a heart attack on the court. i have made many

pictures of ref, umpires ect from volleyball to basketball. some of their guts hang out over

their belts. some of them can't climb the ladder to get up to do a volleyball game. i think

i could do some of this. i know no weight requirement, apparently no eye test. there are

many good refs that enjoy the kids and call a fair game but sometimes you have a few that

have egos. i think the worst ref is one that listens to the crowds and doesn't pay attention

to watch the game is in charge of be it softball, volleyball or basketball. but it looks really

bad when one ref is lagging down the court!! tssaa needs to look at that.

panther mom

[5-Sport Dad]

I doubt this would be very effective. First, if coaches (even the winning coaches) were given the responsibility to provide ratings, I think there would be a reluctance to be truthful for fear of retaliation in subsequent games. Secondly, every district has supervisors that are supposed to be doing just what you suggest already, i.e. evaluate the officials. The problem is that generally the supervisors are past officials that seem to be more interested in retaining the good favor of their cronies than providing constructive criticism or, at a minimum, demanding a minimum level of competency. From my observations of supervisor/official interactions in my area, getting high marks has less to do with actual performance on the court and more to do with "sucking up" to the supervisor(s). Sadly, this is just another example of the old adage, "it's not what you know, it's who you know..."

Sparky, you're a pretty observant, well-spoken and smart guy/gal.

 

The problem is character/accountability. Sadly, there is none with most T$$AA officials and it appears to be getting worse every year. They're very UNprofessional, in my opinion. Basketball has gone from being a finesse game to a muscle-dominated wrestling match. George Gervin, Earl Monroe and Walt Frazier (look 'em up on YouTube if you're too young to know who they are...or just watch Steve Nash play) would've never been appreciated. Their 'fluid' moves and God-given talent would've been shamefully negated by the physical assault of today's players. It's a trickle-up effect from the playground and a trickle-down effect from today's NBA that high school and college referees can't seem to harness...or don't care enough to even try. It may be just as good to 'call your own' and let the coaches decide differences - yeah, right! - and to save a little, I mean a lot of, T$$AA-mandated ca$h.

 

Getting off track a little, but panthermom, speaking of 'guts hanging over,' have you also noticed most of your local police, fire and emergency personnel? To me, it's almost like seeing a medical doctor and/or nurse taking a 'smoke break.' Say what?! Who gave them their jobs or lets them keep 'em? Are there no physical standards anymore?

 

This topic could easily be sub-titled "Can of Worms"...