2-person state final question
 

Just scanning the channels and came across the OK 2A girls' state final and noticed it was a 2-person game. Are all of the OSSAA state finals 2-person or just the smaller schools?

Three Person Starting In Quarterfinals In Connecticut ...
 

What? In regard to two/three person games, there's actually a state more backward than Connecticut? I find that hard to believe.

The NYS finals actually went from 3-person back to 2-person in the 00s. The state federation didn't think there were enough officials qualified to work 3-person. The change lasted maybe a year or two.

Fire Up The Flux Capacitor ...
 

We have 7 classes B-6A. Only 5A, and 6A are 3 man. Even during the regular season only those 2 classes are 3 man. Some lower classification schools are starting to allow us to bring 3 during the season.

Is it more a matter of sheer numbers of officials available? Lack of desire from schools (i.e., money)? Something else?

In our area, small schools have money concerns. They can request for 3

All games in Idaho are two-person, up to and including state championship games. I attended high school in Idaho and watch my Alma Mater in the state tournament most years. It's tough to watch with the decade of three-person I've gotten since my departure ;-)

There has not been a State Finals that has used 2 Person in Illinois since 1997 (any level).

I cannot believe this is still an issue.

Peace

Curiously, 1997 is the same year that Nevada switched to 3-person.
NV made the change for the regular season too at that time in the largest classification.

Well this was just for the playoffs for the record. Regular season officials is not mandated by the IHSA in any way. But almost every conference and every regular season tournament are 3 person.

I will say this, the Chicago Public Schools have many levels of classifications and they for most of their classifications use 2 person crews for games. Usually the "Red Division" the top division uses 3 officials for most of the games. Usually the Red teams are teams with the best programs and players that you might see in the NBA or D1 college likely played in the CPS system in the Red Division.

Most officials like myself almost never work a CPS school so it does not become an issue in my schedule. I have not worked a single 2 person game at the varsity level in like 5 years and it was not a CPS game. It was a small Christian School that assigned their own non-conference games and did not assign two officials like when they play conference games. Weird, but many officials pass on those games at the varsity level.

Peace

NY - where I do most of my HS work - has five levels (AA then A through D, though the NYC public schools only have AA, A and B). All AA boys and girls in NYC are 3-person but that only happened this season. In the NYC public school playoffs, classes A & B are 2-person until the quarterfinals (I can't speak on the private & Catholic schools). When the city playoffs are about to begin assignors send out emails to those who work NCAA/JUCO asking them to try to keep dates open so there are at least two people on a crew who know 3-person.

NJ - where I live but do very few HS games - is 2-person until the state tournament. There's always a scramble at the end of the regular season within the individual IAABO boards to hold 3-person clinics to get ready for the states. Not exactly a good plan. You definitely can tell which officials have worked little or no 3-person.

JetMet, I think you may be onto something. The system the OSSAA had when I was there in 2007-09 was the same as it is today as OKREF describes it. Not much if anything has changed in eight years.

Why? I have two theories:

1. I think the number of officials has a lot to do with it. OK has more individual school districts then any other place I can recall, and they all insist on playing varsity games exclusively on Tues/Fri nights. That spreads officials fairly thin in all but the urban hotbeds of Lawton, OKC and Tulsa.

2. Pay sucks. It was $80 for a 2x varsity DH in OKC in 2009. I think it's only up to $90 now. Not very intriguing to new officials moving up.

You've got a point. I can see both being a problem. In NYC virtually all of the games start at 4:30 or 5 but we have lots of officials and the only semi-quiet weekday tends to be Monday. We also don't work DHs, or should I say one assignor won't schedule you to work a DH.

From a pay standpoint, it's actually a combination of the officials and the schools that hold back 3-person. We're paid very well ($110.44 for Varsity) but people don't want to have their check reduced for the sake of getting the extra person. The schools don't want to put out the extra $ to have it at all levels.

AZ has 5 divisions (DI-DV) for both boys and girls. ALL regular and post season is 2 person. Some holiday tournaments will use 3-person. There is no serious push to 3-person.