[just another ref]

Originally Posted by Back In The Saddle

Not to throw fuel on the embers that remain of this fire, but this philosophy is the guiding star of "that guy." You know the guy I mean; he's the one who stands apart from the pack, doing his own thing, making his own calls, and nobody quite understands why. And frankly noboby knows quite what to expect him to call. You may not see him all that often, but you probably follow him up quite a bit. If you have coaches telling you "that guy" let us do it last week... Or "that guy" called xyz last time... Or, well, you get the picture.

Don't get me wrong, I admire your chutzpah in defending your position for 15 pages. I've been in your shoes before, and not done half so well.

But in the end, I think any official, newbie or the most experienced veteran, has to be able to set aside his personal reading of the rules and really examine why he thinks what he does when so many other quality officials disagree with his stance on a rule. It's part of the maturing process of a quality official. And I don't say that lightly; it's taken me 20 years to get past how the words are arranged on the pages of the rulebook and to see that sometimes they don't always square with what the rule is really trying to say. The written words are, at best, a good aproximation of the rules.

I wish you the best, I honestly do. But please do not encourage others to follow their convictions when they are at odds with the rules. The real rules. Not just their understanding of what the way the words are arranged is trying to say. We need fewer "that guy"s, not more.

I understand and agree with what you are saying. I was pleased and greatly relieved that when I discussed this play in person with several guys, after a minimal amount of wrangling, ALL of them had the same answer that I had. And, no, this was not to pacify me, because initially I did not even tell anyone which side I was on. I really think that at least part of this is overanalysis and a play which does not translate well from court to paper.