2019-20 NFHS: Rumors/Desires?

[SC Official]

My response to officials who opine and nitpick about "approved" signals such as a one- or two-finger directional instead of four...

Do you give a prelim on every foul?
Do you signal a 60-second timeout with open hands instead of fists?
Do you "score the goal" as it looks on the signal chart?
Do you signal "1 and 1" with arms outstretched to the sides?
Do you signal a blocking foul with opens hands on the hips instead of fists?

I'm sure there are plenty more. Unless you can answer "yes" to every one of these questions, shut up.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by SC Official

My response to officials who opine and nitpick about "approved" signals such as a one- or two-finger directional instead of four...

Do you give a prelim on every foul?

Something we are asked to do heavily here, but it almost never stands out unless an official never does it.

Originally Posted by SC Official

Do you signal a 60-second timeout with open hands instead of fists?

I do now, but no one said a thing to me when I didn't for some time.

Originally Posted by SC Official

Do you "score the goal" as it looks on the signal chart?

Absolutely not.

Originally Posted by SC Official

Do you signal "1 and 1" with arms outstretched to the sides?

Nope, I give the signal with two fingers about shoulder length. Never had anyone say a word to me about this.

Originally Posted by SC Official

Do you signal a blocking foul with opens hands on the hips instead of fists?

Not on at the spot. I am not sure I give that signal at the table at all times.

Originally Posted by SC Official

I'm sure there are plenty more. Unless you can answer "yes" to every one of these questions, shut up.

I agree.

I do not say this to brag. I worked this past year the very last game of the IHSA Basketball Season. I worked the most prestigious game there is and over 4000 officials would have loved to have worked that game in my place or my partner's place for sure. I cannot recall in my over my 20 plus years more than 5 times where anyone said anything to me about any of these things and in some cases, no one ever said a word, even including camps I attended coming up for high school basketball.

The IHSA makes a training tape every few years and they use the State Finals as examples of good and bad things. The things they will highlight the most are things like positioning at the C or Trail for example. They might talk about how to rotate or when not to rotate. I am sure I will be on the tape when they make the next one for doing something wrong that is not perfect (I was able to avoid it the last two times I was working the State Finals), but I doubt me giving one finger or two is going to even be mentioned when that does happen. I am convinced they have bigger things they want us to do at least here in this state.

Peace

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

The IHSA makes a training tape every few years and they use the State Finals as examples of good and bad things. The things they will highlight the most are things like positioning at the C or Trail for example. They might talk about how to rotate or when not to rotate. I am convinced they have bigger things they want us to do at least here in this state.

IAABO International weekly emails us a Play of the Week during the season. They always ask three questions. Was the call correct? Were the officials in the proper position to make the call? Were the signals correct?

These three questions seem to asked (and later answered) in priority order. Proper signals are important, but not as important as making the correct call and being in the right position to make a correct call.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

IAABO International weekly emails us a Play of the Week during the season. They always ask three questions. Was the call correct? Were the officials in the proper position to make the call? Were the signals correct?

These three questions seem to asked (and later answered) in priority order. Proper signals are important, but not as important as making the correct call and being in the right position to make a correct call.

OK, just like I do not work for IAABO you do not work for the IHSA which is not an IAABO state or has no significance to what we might individually. Just pointing out again that in my world people do not care about those minor details and I do not go around making that the most important issue when I am working a camp or running a class. Bigger fish to fry if you ask me.

Peace

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

Bigger fish to fry if you ask me.

My post was actually agreeing with you, making the correct call and being in the right position to make a correct call are much more important than signals.

I believe that, on that, we can agree.

It's the degree of importance that we differ on.

You believe that proper signals are less important than what I believe, and that's alright, when in Rome, or Illinois, or Connecticut ...

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

My post was actually agreeing with you, making the correct call and being in the right position to make a correct call are much more important than signals.

I believe that, on that, we can agree.

It's the degree of importance that we differ on.

You believe that proper signals are less important than what I believe, and that's alright, when in Rome, or Illinois, or Connecticut ...

That is actually not what I said. I said that it is less important to be perfect with the diagram or what the book describes in the picture. I believe that signals are important when they are giving proper information. Whether someone has their fingers in the perfect place. If you are giving the same information with a signal and no one is utterly confused, which I doubt anyone would be on a directional signal most of the time, then who cares if your fingers are not in the perfect place when giving the signal.

It has nothing to do with where I live either. No one makes that big of a deal about certain things and certainly, I have personally not be hurt by such things done as well.

Peace

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

It has nothing to do with where I live either. No one makes that big of a deal about certain things ...

Yes it does have to do with where you officiate, but not for you personally because with your accomplished resume I doubt that anybody, officiating anywhere, Illinois, Connecticut, Rome, etc., would criticize you for something so minor (I'm still surprised that you were criticized for it in your state final, but there's at least one person in your area who thinks it's a "deal", not a big deal, but a "deal, not minor enough to ignore, but enough of a "deal" to make a constructive comment).

But if you were a young official, especially one who seems to have an aptitude for officiating, is off to a good start, and might have a bright future, here in my little corner of Connecticut, you would eventually bump into someone, one of our interpreters, a mentor, a mechanics training committee member, or a member of our evaluation committee, who would point out the minor issue, during either an official, or an unofficial, evaluation observation.

Probably not me, similar to you, I tend to concentrate other things. I would rarely, if at all, point out this minor flaw (I have my own signal problems).

Here in my little corner of Connecticut, this minor issue would probably be ignored if done by a struggling, deer in the headlights, young official, who barely knows if the basketball is stuffed, or inflated. There are bigger fish to fry, and more important things to critique if we are ever to turn this young person into a competent basketball official.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by SC Official

Do you signal a blocking foul with opens hands on the hips instead of fists?

That's the tough one. Old habits die hard.

Preliminary, at the site of the foul? Not usually, especially when I want to sell the call.

To the table? Yes. All the time.

Half right? Do I have to shut up?