Jersey Not Designed To Be Worn Inside The Shorts ...
 

Middle school game yesterday. As usual, a few players, on both teams, had to be reminded to tuck in their jerseys. Wasn't a major problem.

Before one player tucked in her jersey, I noticed that the jersey had "Lady Mustangs" on the very lower back of the jersey, and "Lady Mustangs" completely disappeared on all players with properly fitted tucked in jerseys.

I then realized that these jerseys were not designed to be tucked in. If the coach had known the rule (she probably didn't) she could have asked us (she didn't) to stop requiring her players to tuck in their jerseys.

My question, had she asked (she didn't), are all players required to either tuck, or untuck, their jerseys? Must all be the same?

3-3-5: A player not wearing the pants/skirt properly and above the hips and/or a player not tucking in a team jersey (front and back) designed to be worn inside the pants/skirt, must be directed to leave the game as in 3-3-4; a charged time-out must not alter this requirement.

3-5-5 “. . . Equipment and apparel shall not be modified from the original manufactured state and shall be worn in the manner the manufacturer intended it to be worn.”


The above rule is best direction which you are going to get from the NFHS on this.

Apparel ...
 

Thanks Nevadaref. Nice citation. I forgot about the important word "apparel"

Just Kidding ...
 

So I should tell them that they must wear the jerseys "in the manner the manufacturer intended it to be worn", all untucked?

I wouldn't, even if it's a high-school game. To me, that's an "either/or" jersey (tucked or untucked), despite what 3-3-5 says. Hardly worth my time.

Either/Or ...
 

I was just kidding but thanks for the reply that I agree (but no citation) with (all tucked, or all untucked (if manufacturer intended)).

Common sense. Purpose and intent. 2-3. Why basketball officials get the big bucks.

Is there a font color for a rhetorical question like there is one for sarcasm?

Why do you think the presence of text below the waistline is meant to be worn outside? Is underwear with writing on it meant to be worn outside?

Lady Mustangs ...
 

Not a company logo, but the mascot name of the team, "Lady Mustangs".

Pet peeve of mine, mustangs come in both genders.

Why the modifying word "Lady?

Boys teams are not called the "Gentlemen Mustangs", but just the "Mustangs".

Gentlemen Blue Knights ...
 

My hometown high school sports teams are the "Blue Knights".

But the girls teams are called the "Lady Blue Knights".

No need for the modifier "Lady", knights come in both genders, for example, Joan of Arc.

Boys teams aren't called the "Gentleman Blue Knights".

https://tse3.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.d...=0&w=294&h=166

My speculation as to the reasoning behind this rule is this:
to prevent issues with loose shirt tails/strings
logo restrictions
NFHS uniformity (non-individualism)

Here's the issue. #35 is one size and belongs to the school (I'd say in most cases) And if fits A5 2021 differently than it fits A6 in 2022.
Additionally, jersey #12 fits A1 differently than jersey #35 first A5...so uniformity can be difficult.

Normally, I'd say if there are extra logos (size M) or whatever, then it's not meant to be worn untucked....but that doesn't mean that it won't come untucked every time the player puts their hands above their shoulders (ie...every single play)

It's normally the least of my worries, but I've seen officials tell players every dead ball to keep them tucked in. It's a waste of breath. Players are wearing them like that for a reason and once again the NFHS is going to have to adapt or change eventually.

Knuckleheads ...
 

They're called "uniforms" for a reason.

Some kids, no matter what, can't keep jerseys tucked in, too tall, too big, wrong size, etc. Typically it's the kid who plays inside linebacker on the football team. We can generally ignore these "violations".

Others with properly fitted jerseys can occasionally be given friendly reminders to tuck them in, best time is before a free throw. They comply, we thank them, we play on.

Knuckleheads are another matter completely. We give them a friendly reminder to tuck them in, they seem to comply, until they think that we aren't paying attention and they intentionally pull out the jersey. These knuckleheads get a polite invitation to "sit a tick". I haven't had to do this for a few years, but when I did it, it always worked.

In the 1970s many women's college basketball teams jerseys were designed to be worn untucked with a hemmed bottom but the last time I officiated a women's college game where a team had jerseys that were designed to be worn untucked was in the very early 1980s and I cannot remember the last time I had a girls' H.S. game in which a team had jerseys designed to be worn untucked. If my memory serves me correctly, I think Al Mcquire's Marquette's men's teams wore jerseys like that in the mid or late 1970s.

MTD, Sr.

To answer that, you'd have to pull down the underpants entirely.

Line Up And Drop 'Em ...
 

Not too far-fetched as Title IX and LGBT issues collide in many states and now at the federal level.