Fashion Police Update
 

Hot off the presses:

"The NJSIAA has ruled that when the head band with 2 inch tails is worn... the tails can be tucked between the individuals head and head band. If there is religious headgear that has very long tails, they must be tuck inside the back of the jersey."

Skylar Diggins Lives On ...
 

I've been unilaterally doing this for a few years. Nobody ever complained.

Funny you mention this, we've been dealing with this all year in Iowa. Two years ago, the state came out with a memo to coaches AND officials that for girls, basically any headband goes as long as there are no hard surfaces. So it's been the wild west with head gear here. Well about 4-5 games into the season this year, the state decided to send a memo to ONLY OFFICIALS saying basically hey, those headbands that have knots in them are illegal and you need to enforce it as such.

I know multiple people who emailed, called, and texted people at the state level to say "hey, that's great but you might want to let the coaches know that." Guys were getting shit about it from coaches because the state refused to tell the coaches and coaches were like "uh, that changed 2 years ago." Still, nothing. So all year, we're still seeing these headbands because the coaches play dumb and/or other officials are not enforcing this new(old) rule. Two night ago, in fact, I had to tell a girl she could not wear them and her coach was like "What are you talking about?" A guy I worked with was the R on a game last week, and I asked him if he was going to enforce it and he basically said until the state gets coaches on the same page, he's not going to battle it. I'm getting there myself.

In Missouri, the headbands that tie in the back are not to be worn. I have had it come up several times this year already.

The Tails Of Skylar Diggins ...
 

When in Rome ...

Of course, officials will enforce what their state/association wants them enforce, but keep mind that the NFHS rules and interpretations don't actually state that knotted headbands are illegal, only that extensions on the headbands are illegal.

3-5-4: Wristbands and headwear shall meet the following guidelines:
b. A headband is any item that goes around the entire head. It must be
a circular design without extensions. If worn, only one headband is
permitted, it must be worn on the forehead/crown, it must be
nonabrasive and unadorned, and it must be a maximum of 2 inches
wide.
d. Rubber, cloth or elastic bands may be used to control hair. Hard
items, including, but not limited to, beads, barrettes and bobby pins,
are prohibited.
e. Head decorations and headwear, except those specified above, are
prohibited.

Basketball Rules Interpretations - 2015-16
SITUATION 4: An official notices members of Team A are wearing headbands that have extensions.
RULING: Illegal. The coach should be informed that the headbands with extensions are illegal and the players will not be allowed to enter the game wearing them. (3-4-5b)

3.5.4 SITUATION B: An official notices members of Team A are wearing headbands that have extensions. RULING: Illegal. The coach should be informed that the headbands with extensions are illegal and the players will not be allowed to enter the game wearing them.

The most commonly knotted headbands are prewrap worn as a headband, usually by girls. Originally prewrap only came in beige, which is why it's one of the legal colors for equipment.

It was actually a couple of elementary school age Connecticut girl soccer players that discovered that they could import prewrap in a variety of colors from China, they started selling the colored prewrap to their soccer player friends, and eventually sold the colored prewrap online. It became a very successful business until bigger companies got on the bandwagon.

https://youtu.be/DTyjsP6oc-4