[dblref]

Originally posted by sportsannouncing

Funny you say this. You know, I've heard a lot of people say they can announce. And it's true, anyone can announce. Just like anyone can officiate. But it takes a certain person to do it WELL, to do it RIGHT.

I'm not saying I'm the best official out there, far from it. What I am saying and really asking, is why are the same officials making the same bad calls every year? Then complaining they don't get different results. It's frustrating to hear "If I call everything, then everyone would've fouled out by the end of the first half," and have the referee believe it.

"If you call the first foul, the resulting fouls wont occur," Dick Vitale.

It's true. Plus, a player with no fouls plays differently than if he has three or four.

But this is part of the problem that's going on and until it's realized, it's going to continue. It is easily possible to go through a season without having any fights in high school games. When there was a fight at a game in Northern Virginia, the first question among fans wasn't "Who started it", it was "Who were the officials". When we found out, we understood why it happened.

I am a big proponent of high school and women's basketball and want to see it succeed. The problem is, some officials (and I don't even know if they are on the board) don't take those games seriously and let it get out of hand. It's not good for anyone when that happens.

Since you are talking about officiating in northern VA, here is an open challenge to you. I am a member of Cardinal Basketball Officials Association -- the premier association in northern VA. Come join our association. We have excellent officials, good officials, bad officials, and officials that seem to be like you -- ready to criticize but not ready to learn.

I'll tell you about officiating like my wife told me years ago: PUT UP, OR SHUT UP! That's how I started officiating. The ball is in your court.