Quote:
Originally Posted by SC Official
... (high school) officials are less hesitant to whack because they don't have to have the "coach, you've lost the box" conversation which everyone knows just throws fuel on the fire ...
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I can't deny that this exists, but in my opinion it's way way down the list of reasons why some high school officials are reluctant to "whack".
One main reason here in my little corner of Connecticut is that coaches "vote in" state tournament officials, so officials don't want to offend coaches, often ignoring the fact that the other coach, who also votes, is saying to himself, "Hey these officials are letting him get away with murder while I'm acting in a sporting manner".
Another main reason is that we've got some guys who see technical fouls as a sign of weakness, taking pride their ability to get through their games using game management skills other than technical fouls, some who brag about such skills, "I haven't given a coach a technical foul in years".
And we have some young, inexperienced guys who are just downright intimidated by some powerful, aggressive, challenging coaches, and such officials will avoid (short of flagrant action) "whacking" just to avoid the technical foul confrontation, falsely hoping that ignoring the situation will make it go away.
And we've got a few guys who just don't want to do the paperwork. Technical fouls have to be reported, in writing, to our assignment commissioner. Technical fouls accompanied by ejections have to be reported, in writing, to our assignment commissioner and to the state interscholastic sports governing body.
I will admit that I think about the "seatbelt" rule, but only
after I charge the technical foul
and administer the penalties. I never immediately tell the coach he has to sit (fuel and fire), I wait to see if he remembers and adheres to the rule. After going up and down the court a few times after the technical foul penalties I might say to myself, "Damn, he's still standing", and try to get my partner to remind the coach without stopping the game, barring that, I will mention it to the coach as I run past. Or perhaps my partner, or I, will mention it to the coach during the next clock stopped dead ball period.
I still think that the seatbelt is a good tool with the benefits slightly outweighing the risks, risks that I admit do exist. High school coaches (I know, I coached middle school basketball for twenty-five years) don't want to coach while sitting, and will do everything in their power to keep their bench personnel on the straight and narrow to avoid being "seatbelted". Coaching while sitting is awkward, and "out of the zone", for many coaches.
