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[QUOTE]Originally posted by johnny1784
The problem is a head coach needs to understand when it is appropriate to converse to an official. It sure isnt warm-hearted to do so during a live ball unless it is for a correctable error, a time-out or the coach screams... "Hey ref, I give up. My team quits!"
You might feel more comfortable by ignoring and holding long personal conversations with an irate or pesky like head coach.
Maybe youre more like the football ref in those Budweiser commercials, where the football coach who keeps yelling into the football ref's ears but the ref holds a very calm, straight face look and never makes a comment.
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I totally agree with you, and I'm not knocking you for bringing up the guidelines because they are useful guidelines. The more I officiate though, the more I realize the importance of being approachable to a coach, or to simply give coaches your ear in good faith.
Now I don't feel that ignoring a coach is a good policy because he will just get more irritated in most cases. A coach should be addressed in some way, be it approachable body language, a nod of the head, or a verbal acknowledgement. Long conversations are also a no-no because they look bad from the other coach's perspective and there's too much being said on the official's part that could be misquoted or misinterpreted. In other words, the more you talk, the more likely you put yourself in a box.
In terms of the "irate" coach, that coach is beyond conversation, and depending on the situation, I will remind him of his box or take care of business if needed. My goal is to try to prevent the irate coach situation from occurring if at all possible. Regarding the "Budweiser Ref" analogy, darn right if a coach is yelling and screaming at me, I would aspire to stay emotionless, stonefaced and quiet, and when he finishes his rant, then hit him with a calm T. I'm not there yet, but that's where I want to be, in complete control of my emotions. Again, I aspire to depersonalize all comments directed at me the official and to deal with the coach on a personal and professional level.
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