How to and how hard to push for games

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by Multiple Sports

Hartsy -

I currently assign about 7,500 hs and youth softball and baseball games during the summer. Rut is 1000% correct about being prepared for the answer. Arguing will not do you any favors.

You said you work with 5 different assigners. Here is a question for you. Whom do you take first ???? IMO too many officials at the high school level will answer this question by saying I take first whoever gets me first. Again, IMO that is the wrong answer. Be honest and let all your assigners know where they stand. Every assigner wants HIS guys...by you taking whoever gets that date first, you become a secondary to most of your assigners. I'm not saying put all your eggs in one basket but try to be honest with them.

I actually work for more than 5 as we are apart of a consortium in the Chicago area that has about 15 different assignors that are members with Arbiter. We can get games from any of them theoretically.

Now that being said, whomever starts giving games. We get games usually about a year in advance. For example some assignors start giving games around early November for the following season. Most assignors start with the Fridays, which are generally conference games or dates schools know they will have scheduled. The non-conference games are usually coming out later, sometimes out in the summer before the coming season, those trickle out until the season in some cases. So whomever asks for my Fridays, that is where I start. Then they might ask for certain tournaments or shootouts, which might not be assigned by a conference assignor at all.

Originally Posted by Multiple Sports

The guys who work college basketball on here will tell you that that is what they do. My good friend BNR and I work in two leagues together and both of those guys know where each of us stand. This honesty will reward you in the long run. If you take an assigner 5th out of 5 that is OK as well...just realize regardless of your ability you can't take a guy last and expect to work his post season.

Hope this helps......

I also work college and I do not work and those are mostly Saturday dates initially. So I always block off my Saturdays to high school assignors until most of the college games come out. I always have a Saturday or two that is open or an opportunity to work a later game on Saturday after a college game if it is close enough. Also college assignors expect you to work their college game if you are on staff. So that might mean we have to give back a game on a weekday game if assigned.

Peace