How much does this matter to you?
 

What is wrong with this picture?

https://www.suntimeshighschoolsports...41-999x799.jpg

Peace

Illegal undershirt.

And yes, it does matter to me. At least in varsity.

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Yes it matters. Would not wear it any any of my HS games....the question should it matter? Is there a better way to enforce this than making us the police?

This would get addressed as soon as it was noticed -- hopefully before the game when they remove the warmups.

Epitome, Forum Word Of The Day ...
 

Of course it matters. Those black and yellow socks are the epitome of ugly.

What Does It Matter?
 

The OP image matters to me zero.
What matters to me is that it matters to the Fed and to my state association and to my assignors. That matters to me.
;)

Rainbow Connection ... ...
 

In my high school varsity game, if I were the referee and this kid wasn't wearing a warmup jacket, or shooting shirt, he wouldn't make it through one, or two, layup lines. If I were the umpire, or if he was wearing a pregame warmup jacket, or shooting shirt, he wouldn't make it to the jump ball circle for the opening tap, or if he were a substitute, he would be sent back to the bench.

If he were wearing it in a junior varsity game (in my little corner of Connecticut, varsity officials are supposed to observe at least the second and third periods of the preceding game), I would mention it to the officials as something they need to work on to get to the next level.

No excuse for this. Yes, we don't like being the Fashion Police (even me), but that doesn't mean we should ignore illegal undershirts. It's one of the most restrictive equipment color restrictions in the book (not many choices), but it's been simplified (no more school colors), and is also the easiest equipment color restriction in the book observe (must be similar in color to the uniform jersey).

From my recent IAABO Sportorial magazine article:

Rules regarding undershirts are the most restrictive, and should be the easiest to enforce by officials. Undershirts must be similar in color to the uniform jersey. According to NFHS rules, the home team must wear white uniform jerseys. Therefore, the only legal undershirt color for home players would be white, and only white. Players on the visiting team, wearing their dark road jerseys, must wear dark colored undershirts similar in color to their dark color uniform jerseys. “School color” doesn't apply to undershirts since “school color” is not mentioned in the current NFHS rulebook. Undershirts may not have frayed edges, and undershirt sleeves shall be the same length. Note that this rule does not require all players to wear the same length sleeves on their undershirts, but each individual player must have sleeves the same length on the undershirt when worn.

Some equipment restriction rules are for safety reasons. Rules that restrict equipment colors benefit officials by allowing them to easily identify players on each team during fast paced action. Consistency among officials in the enforcement of equipment restriction rules will provide a unified statement to coaches. When some officials choose not to enforce these rules, they are only hurting the profession and setting up the next crew for criticism from the coaches, when, in fact, the officials who did not enforce the rules are the ones who deserve the criticism. For those officials contemplating not enforcing equipment restrictions because such rules have “nothing to do with the game of basketball”, in the words of author Roy T. Bennett, “Stop doing what is easy, or popular. Start doing what is right”.

I did a scrimmage a few weeks ago and we weren't enforcing equipment colors (it was only a scrimmage). One player was wearing a long sleeve white undershirt under a green (reversible) scrimmage shirt. The other team was wearing white (reversible) scrimmage shirts. I had to pause a few times on bunches of players fighting for a rebound. Who was who? No way I'm allowing such equipment colors in my "real" games, the game is tough enough to officiate well when the players are wearing legal equipment colors.

Now, would somebody please help me down from this soapbox. It's pretty high up here and I'm getting dizzy.

I have heard people talk about making the coaches enforce uniform rules. The problem is that they are already tasked with policing this stuff in the rule book and they still don't do it, so we have to. In that scenario, what is the penalty if they don't comply? Send in a report to the state? That will take weeks to correct things and who is supposed to ensure it is followed through with? We are supposed to enforce the other rules in the book, so why do so many officials have an issue with these? The vast majority of officials I work with do a great job of taking care of uniform issues because 99% of teams around here are always in compliance. It's usually out-of-area teams that need to be corrected.

Equipment Color Restrictions ...
 

Not so here in my little corner of Connecticut. Many officials either don't understand the rule, don't bother to look, or if they do look, don't bother to enforce it.

Especially true in girls games where many officials don't realize that underwrap wrapped around the head is a headband (thus falling under headband color restrictions), probably confusing them with hair control devices, or that "Skylar Diggins" tails are illegal.

By rule, exceptions to equipment color restrictions include rubber, cloth, or elastic bands, used to control hair. Such soft hair control devices (e.g., ponytail holders) are under no color restrictions. Hard hair control devices including but not limited to beads, barrettes, and bobby pins, of any color, are prohibited. Remember, headbands go around the entire head (and must be the solid color black, white, beige, or the predominant color of the uniform jersey), while soft hair control devices only go around hair and are under no color restrictions. ... Only a single headband may be worn on the head, and headbands are not allowed to have extensions or tails. There is a wider array of legal color options for other equipment items such as headbands, wristbands, arm sleeves, knee sleeves, lower leg sleeves, compression shorts, and tights. All of these equipment items must be the solid color black, white, beige, or the predominant color of the uniform jersey.

Fewer problems in boys games, usually involving multi-color shooting sleeves, or leg sleeves. Or problems with same color worn by one player and all players.

Furthermore, anything worn on the arm or the leg (except a knee brace), is defined as a sleeve, including knee pads and elbow pads (must be the solid color black, white, beige, or the predominant color of the uniform jersey). All of these items shall be the same color as worn by each player. Additionally, all of these items shall be the same color for all members of a team who choose to wear them.

It matters to me not because I want to enforce fashion police rules, but because I don't want to be "that guy" who lets him get away with it and makes the next crew's job harder.

The compression shorts and the wrist band are to be the same color, too.

Be True To Your School (The Beach Boys, 1963) ...
 

There is a wider array of legal color options for other equipment items such as headbands, wristbands, arm sleeves, knee sleeves, lower leg sleeves, compression shorts, and tights. All of these equipment items must be the solid color black, white, beige, or the predominant color of the uniform jersey … All of these items shall be the same color as worn by each player. Additionally, all of these items shall be the same color for all members of a team who choose to wear them.

Remember, we're past the time when legal compression short colors were confusing (same color as uniform (rule a few years ago, no longer true), could be jersey, or shorts), or same color as shorts (older rule, again, no longer true). Now compression shorts must be the solid color black, white, beige, or the predominant color of the uniform jersey. All equipment items (including compression shorts) shall be the same color as worn by each player, and all of these items shall be the same color for all members of a team who choose to wear them.

Also, all references to school colors being legal (for various equipment items) have been removed from the rulebook (which would surprise a few guys in these parts).

Freddy, The King Of Equipment Restrictions (Painted On Velvet, $24.95) ...
 

In regard to everything else, always listen to bob. In regard to equipment restrictions, always listen to Freddy. I'm pretty good, but he's the king of equipment restrictions. Everything I know about equipment restrictions, I learned from Freddy. I am not worthy to untie the laces of his all black official's shoes (with apologies to Luke 3:16).

Yep. So, I'd enforce it in my HS games and some of my college conferences, but not in others.

You think that's bad, I had a home team show up in gray jerseys (in holiday tournament game). How long has white been required now?

If it were a technical foul for uniform violations, uniform violations would go away.

Probably not. You'd have to actually get people to call them. It is hard enough to get people to deal with them now.

+1

I’ve had a couple teams whose road color is light gray. On one occasion (in a subvarsity game) the home team asked if they could change to their black jerseys at halftime because the coach said it was too confusing (we allowed it).

There’s one girls team in my neck of the woods whose home jerseys are yellow for some reason, and they have a waiver from the state office in their scorebook. As long as the two colors are contrasting, whether the home team is wearing white or not, I’m not giving a T to the head coach.

Exhibit A:

[QUOTE=BillyMac;1013653]Not so here in my little corner of Connecticut. Many officials either don't understand the rule, don't bother to look, or if they do look, don't bother to enforce it.

Especially true in girls games where many officials don't realize that underwrap wrapped around the head is a headband (thus falling under headband color restrictions), probably confusing them with hair control devices, or that "Skylar Diggins" tails are illegal.

Only a single headband may be worn on the head, and headbands are not allowed to have extensions or tails. There is a wider array of legal color options for other equipment items such as headbands, wristbands, arm sleeves, knee sleeves, lower leg sleeves, compression shorts, and tights. All of these equipment items must be the solid color black, white, beige, or the predominant color of the uniform jersey.

On the issue of the "Skylar Diggins" headband. Is the headband itself illegal or just the tails? For enforcement, do you have players remove the whole thing or just ask them to tuck in the tails and play on?

When In Rome ...
 

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Skylar Diggins (Notre Dame 2009-2013, WNBA 2013-Present), as an All-American point guard for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish popularized knotted headbands with long loose ends. In 2015, the NFHS ruled that headbands must be without extensions.

I would prefer to tell them they can't play with the "Skylar Diggins" headband, but that doesn't appear to be the standard operating procedure here in my little corner of Connecticut, so I would stick out like a sore thumb (Overly Officious Official) if I did, so I just reluctantly tell them to tuck in the tails.

The usual caveat, check your local listings.

Zombie thread alert

I refereed Danville several times last year and only 1 time did we have to tell that same player to take off his undershirt. He obliged and didnt have any issues.

I think some players know who they can and cant get away with things and always push the limits.

I have had Danville in the playoffs a couple years back and this was not an issue and I do not recall this player having this issue. If it was, it was certainly corrected as my partners were State Final Officials as well.

I think I was at this event but did not work this particular game. I simply do not remember for sure, but it appears this is Orr High School in Chicago (who that documentary was about on Fox) and done by officials that might not be as stringent about these things in general. If that is the case, I am not surprised this took place or might not have been corrected. But that is speculation at this time.

Peace

Generally speaking, the later in the season it is, the more I care.

In my association, we actually make an effort to address it EARLY in the season. We have found that by doing so, we don’t seem to have to deal with it later in the year, except for with visiting teams to our area.


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The penalty for illegal uniforms, undershirts and gear is, the player can’t play until it is corrected. You send the player to the bench and let the coach know he can’t re-enter the game until the problem has been corrected.



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Illegal Uniforms (Including Illegal Numbers) ...
 

Not true for an illegal uniform. A coach can "buy" his player with an illegal uniform into the game, the "expense" being a technical foul. No penalty if the team member with an illegal uniform doesn't participate, and stays on the bench the entire game.

A player with illegal equipment can't get into the game at any expense and can’t play until it is corrected.

If a team member participates as a player while wearing an illegal uniform, then a direct technical foul is charged to the head coach, who will lose the coaching box privilege for the remainder of the game. This infraction is penalized when discovered, and the team member with the illegal uniform may participate without further penalty and is not required to change the number. A maximum of one technical foul shall be charged directly to the head coach regardless of the number of offenders.

If it is February, I assume (normally correctly) that my peers were not handling business in November. That being said, I always enforce fashion police rules, more strictly in the early season.

However, if a team has been wearing gold uniforms at home the entire season, I am not going to be the first to give a direct T to the head coach. Most likely the team has an exemption from the state anyway (there is one girls team in my area like this).

There is a team from a small village in Alaska that wears a fluorescent yellow color jersey for their home uniforms. I’m not sure how the regular season went last year as far as administering technical fouls to start the game, but at the state tournament, officials were instructed to enforce it by the book. 3 of their 4 games began with the other team receiving 2 shots and the ball. Their season ended with them being crowned State Champions - wearing their illegal uniforms.


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Apply to the ASAA for a waiver, and then there would be no issue about technical fouls, if the waiver is approved. If the fluorescent yellow is the only uniforms that the team has, it's reasonable for them to play in those.

I had a private school freshman girls game where the visitors came in gray uniforms (the home team wore white), and I asked the coach if they would change to blue, to avoid confusion. The home coach agreed, and we played grey vs blue.

What makes you think the school didn't ask for one?

All this nonsense would end if FED would adopt the NCAA rule. But I'm sure someone will come up with a reason why the FED rule should stay.

As of this fall, in FED soccer, visitors wear white jerseys and home team wear "dark"--defined as any color that contrasts with white. So fluorescent yellow or gold would likely be good.

By the way, the rationale for the switch is to allow home teams to wear their school colors or colors (eg, pink) for "special events." Same reasoning should apply to basketball, seems to me.

The NCAA (basketball) rule requiring the home team to wear "light" and the visiting team to wear "dark" is better. Why should one of the colors have to be white?

And this rule can be altered if the schools agree, which current FED rules don't allow.

Because one team wears sky blue (or various shades of grey) as the "light" color and the other as the "dark" color. It's just as problematic

Thanks for correcting me. I hate it when incorrect rule information is posted and I’m embarrassed to be part of the problem this time. Again, thanks for correcting me on the uniform issue.


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FED was once light and dark. You had a lot of teams that had light and dark jerseys that were more or less the same. I once had a game with two teams in grey (one just a little lighter than the other). That made for some interesting situations. In the midst of some plays, it was much harder to tell which was which. White, on the other hand, is pretty easy to tell from almost all other colors (except perhaps really light grey).

With light and dark being relative, for some teams, their dark jerseys were the same as someone else's light jerseys.

Well "gold" used to be a common color you would see for the "light" jersey and the visiting team would wear the same gold or similar yellow and you would have to look for markers to figure out who was on each team. It was a disaster. The same would go for "grey" colors too. This was really the problem in tournaments or some kind of featured shootout.

Peace

Fun With Illegal Numbers ...
 

I know it because I've had two odd situations in Catholic middle school games where coaches preferred to not accept the technical foul because they wanted to stand and coach.

In one situation, the coach, in her own gym, pulled apart the supply closet to find a uniform with a legal number for her player, who had just recently joined the team. It took several minutes but the player eventually played with a legal number, wrong size jersey, but a legal number.

In an even odder situation, while on the road, a coach didn't want to sit, he wanted to stand and coach. His suggestion, to have the player with the illegal number sit during the first half, switch jerseys with another player during halftime, report the change to the referee, the opposing coach, and to the scorekeeper, and let the other player, now with the illegal number, sit the second half. Even odder, the two players involved were identical twin sisters.

And, no, I wasn't being a hard ass, both of these happened at the beginning of a season where the assigner (also a league officer) insisted that uniform numbers be legal and not be taped over to avoid penalties.

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(Any excuse to get to my favorite basketball player's photo on the Forum.)

Exactly. I will warn/educate players/coaches in pre-season scrimmages and maybe for the first couple of regular season games. But if I see something late in the season, no chance.

Fashion Issues ...
 

In scrimmages, I will warn/educate, but will not enforce. Working such scrimmages reminds me of the basis for some fashion rules. When there is a cluster of players battling for a rebound, it helps if they're all wearing the proper color undershirts. It makes it just a little bit easier to identify players if their undershirt matches their jersey, not a lot easier, just a little easier, nevertheless, easier.