Quote:
Originally posted by Hawks Coach
I can tell you that I have a voice that can easily be heard, I use my loud voice for coaching and requesting timeouts (not for yelling at refs), and I visually and loudly call for timeouts in obvious timeout situations. I have, nevertheless, been ignored by officials for as long as 5-10 seconds, even in relatively quiet gyms. I have never been ignored by any official that I thought had a handle on the game, even when the gym was loud. This problem generally occurs with oficials who get tunnel vision and are not actively thinking about game situations.
I do consider it to be an element of game management to anticipate the situations where a coach might want a TO and to have your ears tuned in for it (while keeping eyes on court). You hear the request, you look over quickly, you see me, you award it. That simple.
I know that there is a lot to do and I don't want your job, beieve me. And I am not aout to suggest that this comes easily. But I believe it is something that you should work on in terms of awareness, not just say if I don't hear it, oh well, that's the coach's problem.
|
I can say this to you. I am not going to call a timeout with my back to you. It just is not going to happen. For one, it might not be you (the coach) calling a timeout. Secondly, when I call a timeout, I am making sure the proper team has the ball or the ball is not at the disposal of the other team. It is the coaches problem if he or she is not using common sense when trying to call timeouts. Even the NF warns officials of calling timeouts with our backs turned. And I go by the procedure that Ed Hightower told us at a IHSA Rules Meeting about 7 years ago when this rule was put in to:
1. Hear
2. Recognize
3. Then Grant.
First to hear your request, recognize the who is calling it and the status of the ball, then grant the timeout if the proper situation is present. With a coach yelling for a timeout, it might take a few seconds to recognize who is yelling. That is why the coaches should use some common sense and have their players call for the timeout as well. The official's eyes are on the court, it is very easy to tell if they are calling for a timeout, instead of turning around and take my eyes off the court to see who might be yelling for a timeout.
Peace