Player Delays

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by SC Official

I feel for the officials who inevitably are going to get cut from D1 leagues due to the combination of change in supervisors and reduction in available assignments. Happened to a couple people I know already, and some of them don't have "real" full time jobs other than officiating multiple sports year-round.

Happened to me this year; got dropped from my D1. I saw the writing on the wall a long time ago though, so I wasn't surprised or devastated when it happened. The head of the ACC consortium is from the town I lived in for my entire 19 year career (moved to a different town in the same area 2 months ago) , so I knew what his vision was going to be when he got hired.

I haven't kept up with anybody to see who else has gotten dropped, but I was telling friends of mine to look out over the last couple years and some of them thought I was crazy.

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[SC Official]

Originally Posted by Raymond

Happened to me this year; got dropped from my D1. I saw the writing on the wall a long time ago though, so I wasn't surprised or devastated when it happened. The head of the ACC consortium is from the town I lived in for my entire 19 year career (moved to a different town in the same area 2 months ago) , so I knew what his vision was going to be when he got hired.

I haven't kept up with anybody to see who else has gotten dropped, but I was telling friends of mine to look out over the last couple years and some of them thought I was crazy.

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I don't know the full story but apparently one of the D2 leagues in the southeast is requiring officials to bear the cost of testing in order to work games in that conference. Lot of officials are balking at that idea and saying they won't work - might lead to a lot of the veterans in that league hanging it up altogether.

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by SC Official

I don't know the full story but apparently one of the D2 leagues in the southeast is requiring officials to bear the cost of testing in order to work games in that conference. Lot of officials are balking at that idea and saying they won't work - might lead to a lot of the veterans in that league hanging it up altogether.

That issue was brought up by one of my D3 conference supervisors. He said he's looking into getting the conference to pay for testing. If officials are going to be required to test before every game they work or every week, that's going to be a significant expense. I haven't even paid attention to what the requirements are going to be for testing.

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[SC Official]

Originally Posted by Raymond

That issue was brought up by one of my D3 conference supervisors. He said he's looking into getting the conference to pay for testing. If officials are going to be required to test before every game they work or every week, that's going to be a significant expense. I haven't even paid attention to what the requirements are going to be for testing.

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Unless the conference is proportionately increasing game fees (ha...ha), there is no way officials should be bearing that cost – and assigners should have the stones to tell the commissioners just that. I wouldn’t work in any league that required me to pay to comply with a policy they chose to implement (that was that costly).

Imagine if you pay for a test only for you to lose the assignment through no fault of your own (cancellation, postponement, assigner felt like it, etc.).

[bucky]

Originally Posted by Raymond

Happened to me this year; got dropped from my D1.

I am not interested in the "why" aspect of you being dropped. Rather, were you at least given a reason? Were you at least contacted or was the method of "dropping" just the fact that you were not renewed?

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by bucky

I am not interested in the "why" aspect of you being dropped. Rather, were you at least given a reason? Were you at least contacted or was the method of "dropping" just the fact that you were not renewed?

I was contacted with a boilerplate email. No reason given. The supervisor over the years had made it clear that if he drops you, you won't be given a reason and he won't entertain any communication after the fact. However I'm still in Arbiter and receiving all the emails and communications... SMH

There was a time in my career this would have been devastating. But between my age, a new spiritual outlook on life, a knee injury that caused me to miss 90% of last season, and the disruption caused by COVID, I think the stars are aligning to tell me this is a good time to hang up the whistle. I have some decisions to make and act upon concerning my 9-to-5 career that probably require the focus I used to dedicate to officiating.

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[LRZ]

That's a terrible way for that supervisor to operate. Is it so difficult for him to be open yet honest with the referees who work for him? Has he no sense of decency? How discourteous.

If things change for you and you have the time and inclination, Raymond, think again about the HS test. I returned to officiating (soccer, basketball, baseball) in my mid-60s, after I retired; as my officiating career winds down this second time, I still get a great deal of pleasure in officiating, even at sub-varsity levels. You too might find school sports rewarding.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by LRZ

I still get a great deal of pleasure in officiating, even at sub-varsity levels. You too might find school sports rewarding.

With arthritis and bone spurs in my right ankle and a torn meniscus in my right knee, even with an ankle brace and a knee brace, I don't think I'll officiate another high school varsity game again.

But I am enjoying my middle school games (I'm retired from my day job so I'm available in the afternoons). I enjoy working with kids, I enjoy working with new officials, my assignment commissioner needs experienced officials like me in the afternoon, no games to observe before or after mine, most middle school coaches appreciate an experienced official on the court, I come and go in uniform, I'm home in time for dinner, middle school assignments are almost always very close to home, and the pay is decent ($64.93).

As a retired middle school science teacher, I'm also enjoying my time on our mechanics training committee.

[SC Official]

Originally Posted by LRZ

That's a terrible way for that supervisor to operate. Is it so difficult for him to be open yet honest with the referees who work for him? Has he no sense of decency? How discourteous.

Unfortunately there is no shortage of officials who would happily sell their souls to get a shot in college basketball, and the D1 level at that. Therefore supervisors really have no incentive to be "open yet honest" or have any sort of "decency." Transparent college assigners, from JuCo all the way up to the Power 5, are in the minority.

[LRZ]

You may be right, SC Official, but that's no excuse--maybe a reason, but not an excuse--for supervisors to conduct their business that way. Even with a large pool of officials and candidates, an assigner could still tell refs why they are being dropped.

Several years ago, a baseball assigner told me that the hardest thing he had to do was to tell umpires why he had to drop them.

It's a choice: you treat people decently or you don't.

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by LRZ

You may be right, SC Official, but that's no excuse--maybe a reason, but not an excuse--for supervisors to conduct their business that way. Even with a large pool of officials and candidates, an assigner could still tell refs why they are being dropped.

Several years ago, a baseball assigner told me that the hardest thing he had to do was to tell umpires why he had to drop them.

It's a choice: you treat people decently or you don't.

I've come to have low expectations for college supervisors in that regard. I have one D3 supervisor whom I really like working for b/c of how honest and candid he is while still treating us the respect and dignity we all deserve.

[SC Official]

Originally Posted by LRZ

You may be right, SC Official, but that's no excuse--maybe a reason, but not an excuse--for supervisors to conduct their business that way. Even with a large pool of officials and candidates, an assigner could still tell refs why they are being dropped.

Several years ago, a baseball assigner told me that the hardest thing he had to do was to tell umpires why he had to drop them.

It's a choice: you treat people decently or you don't.

I do not disagree with you but the reality is the college officiating world is cutthroat and the power dynamic lends itself to the assigners having egos bigger than their heads. No matter how many officials walk away from bad assigners, there will always be enough bodies to take their places to get games in that particular league. The perception of "prestige" and the money involved in college officiating outweighs the BS for plenty of officials.

And for the record, high school isn't immune from this crap either. The big difference is, high school assignments often outnumber availability, whereas college availability often outnumbers assignments.