NCAA fashion police?

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by BadNewsRef

I just do not agree with the approach that since you only work a limited amount of those games that you should not be held to same standards as a college official working those same games ... to dedicate yourself to knowing Connecticut prep school shot-clock rules as thoroughly as you should know NFHS/IAABO rules.

I know shot clock rules to the best of my ability depending on what's the handout that we're given, and responsible to interpret. Sometimes things get really weird, things that aren't covered on the short synopsis handout, things that are occasionally discussed by college guys here on the Forum (recent one: where ball is inbounded after specific type of shot clock violation).

Experience plays a big part of understanding (not just memorizing) a rule set.

Originally Posted by BillyMac

... I've been officiating with NFHS rules for thirty-five years (thousands of games) and I'm still stymied by a few of the rules, and interpretations, so it shouldn't surprise anyone that I'm occasionally stymied by NCAA rules, especially shot clock rules.

That's why my comfort level goes way up when I work such a game with a college guy. He's more experienced with shot clocks than me, and will definitely have more expertise when something weird happens, and will be able to react quickly to such a situation, due to his experience level, while I stand there scratching my head trying to figure out what was on the handout regarding this weird situation.

At any level, the more experience one has, the better official one will probably be. For all intents and purposes, I'm a second year prep school official. Knowing the rules is great, but there's no substitute for experience.