Why the problem at the DUALS?

[2blLeg]

Step three go to TSSAA.org and sign up because it sounds like you think you could do the job much better. So put your money where your mouth is.

 

The infamous rebuttal to anyone questioning the officiating. Surprised it took 3 pages to get there.

 

Totally agree! Was shocked it took this long for this to come out

[2blLeg]

Middle TN refs are improving and specially out of Rutherford Co, Warren, and Coffee as well. I noticed some consistency out of a younger new ref from of Chatt-town this year in former 2x state champ, John Lane!! Way to go bringing out some that younger talent - Chattanooga!!

 

Glad to hear that, and hopefully that trend will continue

[ghouse]

How funny it is when someone from west Tennessee complains about stalling. I was at a tournament this year and was asked by another coach from west Tennessee about locking hands. They had no idea that overlaping or even touching of hands was locking hands. I was told that the only way it is called locking hands in the west is if the hands are grasped together. So before you start saying things about mid state refs you may want to acctually do a few steps. One read a rule book which can be purchased at the national federation web site. Step 2 read the rule book. Step three go to TSSAA.org and sign up because it sounds like you think you could do the job much better. So put your money where your mouth is.

 

You know that is a pretty funny comment... I am sure each and every region of the state has got its fair share of uneducated coaches. Of course, that has little to do with the officiating.

 

And just to prove my point on the uneducated coaches... I had the head coach of one of the major middle TN youth programs complain about the exact same call (hands touching at the edges) as not being locked hands during a dual meet last year. I guess the lack of knowledge is just running rampant throughout our state!

 

I am rarely one to bag on officials but I will say that what I have seen out of many of the middle TN officials this year has not been the consistency of calls that I was witnessing 3-4 years ago. Nobody around would claim that West TN has the best officiating (I believe the Chattanooga area gets to claim that honor) but I will say it has been improving.

 

That being said, I challenge anyone in TN to take a short trip up to the southern Illinois area (say around Carbondale) and attend even just a youth tournament and tell me that you won't beg some of the officials to come back to TN with you (I know that I have). The consistency of the calls from the youth level to the high school is impressive and the general knowledge of wrestling and when to let things go versus call a stall, stalemate, potentially dangerous, etc. is far above what we get here on average. Of course there are a lot of factors that add to that including official training, experience at higher levels as a wrestler, better interaction with coaches, etc. I also notice that they seem to do a better job communicating within their officials ranks about things to look for and situations before each event and also relating particular things to coaches as well as giving the coaches an opportunity to talk about positions the officials are likely to see from their wrestlers. This open dialog goes a long way in that a coach may be told ahead of time that if his wrestler continues to go back to the same ride that hasn't shown any ability to turn the bottom wrestler but does a good job of controlling, it will be called stalling and the wrestler is generally told so during the match as the situation becomes apparent. This dialog also lets the officials be told of moves they may seem coming and where the intent is and how it will be executed so that some less-informed calls are avoided.

 

TN has a lot of work to do on its level of officiating (both training and communication skills) if we ever want to get to that level. One of the biggest challenges for us as a state seems to be the diversity with which things are called across the state. I believe that is where a lot of the frustration comes from.

[2blLeg]

You know that is a pretty funny comment... I am sure each and every region of the state has got its fair share of uneducated coaches. Of course, that has little to do with the officiating.

 

And just to prove my point on the uneducated coaches... I had the head coach of one of the major middle TN youth programs complain about the exact same call (hands touching at the edges) as not being locked hands during a dual meet last year. I guess the lack of knowledge is just running rampant throughout our state!

 

I am rarely one to bag on officials but I will say that what I have seen out of many of the middle TN officials this year has not been the consistency of calls that I was witnessing 3-4 years ago. Nobody around would claim that West TN has the best officiating (I believe the Chattanooga area gets to claim that honor) but I will say it has been improving.

 

That being said, I challenge anyone in TN to take a short trip up to the southern Illinois area (say around Carbondale) and attend even just a youth tournament and tell me that you won't beg some of the officials to come back to TN with you (I know that I have). The consistency of the calls from the youth level to the high school is impressive and the general knowledge of wrestling and when to let things go versus call a stall, stalemate, potentially dangerous, etc. is far above what we get here on average. Of course there are a lot of factors that add to that including official training, experience at higher levels as a wrestler, better interaction with coaches, etc. I also notice that they seem to do a better job communicating within their officials ranks about things to look for and situations before each event and also relating particular things to coaches as well as giving the coaches an opportunity to talk about positions the officials are likely to see from their wrestlers. This open dialog goes a long way in that a coach may be told ahead of time that if his wrestler continues to go back to the same ride that hasn't shown any ability to turn the bottom wrestler but does a good job of controlling, it will be called stalling and the wrestler is generally told so during the match as the situation becomes apparent. This dialog also lets the officials be told of moves they may seem coming and where the intent is and how it will be executed so that some less-informed calls are avoided.

 

TN has a lot of work to do on its level of officiating (both training and communication skills) if we ever want to get to that level. One of the biggest challenges for us as a state seems to be the diversity with which things are called across the state. I believe that is where a lot of the frustration comes from.

 

Great post!

[drem2acheve]

I am from the East end of the state, the refs here are very average at best. Of course some better than others. A few years ago a very well respected Chatt. area ref came to Reg. 1 area to call a tournament and he was taken back by the level of non communication between officials and the relationships between officials and coaches. The ref told me he had tried to help some of the other refs at the tournament and they had basicly told him they new it all, they needed no help. He was really shocked at how they treated him. This guy has been calling for 37 years or more and does an incredible job. I have also been up in the ohio and Pa. areas and there training is much more extensive for refs than ours is, you have to call Jr. High and AAU-USA levels for a few years then go on to high school. Take annual tests and be observed by a ref panel.

[FHU423]

Hahaha I bet their last names start with C and end with dale

[Sommers]

This guy has been calling for 37 years or more and does an incredible job. I have also been up in the ohio and Pa. areas and there training is much more extensive for refs than ours is, you have to call Jr. High and AAU-USA levels for a few years then go on to high school. Take annual tests and be observed by a ref panel.

 

Nearly every ref in Chatt-town is mentored weekly by the best our state has to offer. We have about 5-6 in middle TN that are very consistent and top notch, but a few others that may not stay on top of their game like the others. I see little difference than the training, observation, and testing noted above for our TN refs. Our refs may lead the south anyway, IMHO.

[UncleDoug]

I'm very tough on refs but at the same time I truely appreciate the job they do. I've done it and even though I think of myself as knowledgable I was not very good. It's not easy. It's amazing what you can't see from 4 feet away that you can at 30 feet.

 

We have a huge lack of refs and would truely appreciate any of you to help out and put on some stripes.

 

I'm thankful for any of the refs we have, even though I may not always agree with them.

[oneblindref]

Hahaha I bet their last names start with C and end with dale

Dude, I don't know who you are or what hole you crawled out of, but the world would be a better place if you crawled back in it. This is a wrestling board to talk about wrestling not your personal problem with me, my son or my brother.

[chatt78]

I was always taught by my coach don't let the match be close enough for a ref to decide, both he and I are Chattanooga Refs, there was calls on me when I was younger that I didn't like right or wrong, but I always remembered what he taught me, don't try to win by one point, blowem out or stick em and the ref won't be a problem. Officiating is hard you have to work at it. We have a lot of good guys in the state, I don't mind people bashing us, that's just part of it, but we try to be the best that we can. We really do need more people to come out are numbers get smaller every year.

[2blLeg]

I was always taught by my coach don't let the match be close enough for a ref to decide, both he and I are Chattanooga Refs, there was calls on me when I was younger that I didn't like right or wrong, but I always remembered what he taught me, don't try to win by one point, blowem out or stick em and the ref won't be a problem. Officiating is hard you have to work at it. We have a lot of good guys in the state, I don't mind people bashing us, that's just part of it, but we try to be the best that we can. We really do need more people to come out are numbers get smaller every year.

 

Good advice, the problem is that this can't always be the case.

 

And the biggest issue is not the blown call here and there. Those happen. It's the inconsistent calling, and overbearing refs, trying to make themself part of the match

[chatt78]

I was always taught by my coach don't let the match be close enough for a ref to decide, both he and I are Chattanooga Refs, there was calls on me when I was younger that I didn't like right or wrong, but I always remembered what he taught me, don't try to win by one point, blowem out or stick em and the ref won't be a problem. Officiating is hard you have to work at it. We have a lot of good guys in the state, I don't mind people bashing us, that's just part of it, but we try to be the best that we can. We really do need more people to come out are numbers get smaller every year.

 

Good advice, the problem is that this can't always be the case.

 

And the biggest issue is not the blown call here and there. Those happen. It's the inconsistent calling, and overbearing refs, trying to make themself part of the match

 

 

I agree, but I think we are better than a lot of other states, you have to put new faces in the mix to let them get the experience, you might go all year calling tourneys or duals that are not that tough then bam it's the state tournament and there is a ton of close calls, judgement calls. I've called a lot of sports in the past and wrestling is by far the toughest, there not just black and white calls, theres a lot of gray area. It's amazing you could put ten refs/fans together looking at a situation and you could get 10 different opinions on the call. The consistency will come with time, we just don't get enough pressure matches throughout the year, and that hurts. When you call lop sided matches theres not many tough calls in those matches.