who gets a T...

[Nevadaref]

Originally posted by JRutledge
Nevada,

What I am saying is not only what the NF suggests, but not what the POE was all about. The POE just says that players are not immune to the penalties when they are in the huddle. I think it is safe to assume that the NF would expect us to know who used the language and not just penalize someone when we are completely unclear.

Also it does not matter what I say or what JR says. You better listen to the people that hire you and what they think. Even the NF is not going to save you when you have to explain your reasoning to the assignor or state administrators. It is not JR that is going to save you when you have to T a coach again because you "assumed" someone from their huddle used language. When the fall out happens, it will not be anyone here you can get you out of trouble. No one here is going to take games away from you if we feel you are wrong.

One of the reasons the NF puts us on the block is to stay away from the possibility of overhearing comments and possible confrontation with players and coaches. I know when I have worked games in loud gyms. It is very difficult to make out what is said in the huddle when I am on the block away from the benches. Technical Fouls are very serious infractions. You better be sure who did what and when if you want to maintain credibility in your decision.

I have said this a hundred times and I will say it once again. This is just a discussion board. There is no one here that can make you do anything. If you feel the rule supports your action, go right ahead and call it. I just think in the issues of common sense at the very least know who used inappropriate language. There are a lot of things in the rulebook and we should use the spirit of the rules and not the letter of the rules to govern our actions. The POE does not say to penalize anyone you cannot identify. The POE only says to penalize players and bench personnel that use inappropriate language. It says nothing about taking action just because you "thought" you heard something. I hear a lot of bad language and much of it comes from the stands. I am just saying be sure, do not guess.

Peace

Rut,
That's one of the best posts I've ever seen from you. It's well-written, conveys an intelligent message, and clearly makes its point.

However, what you just wrote seems to be quite different from the material that I disagree with, which appears in your earlier posts in this thread. Perhaps there is a misunderstanding. I figured that sportsmanship was pretty much a universal concept. Maybe the HS sports environment is vastly different there than it is in my area. You'll have to help clarify a couple of things for me about your area.

1. You stated that you "will not be paying close attention to what they are doing in the team huddle" and that profanity in the huddle during a TO is "something I am not going to worry about." This is in direct conflict with the NFHS's directive in the POE for officials to "pay particular attention" to this.
Question A: Do you do this on your own as a personal choice or because those you assign you to games in your area don't want you to follow what the NFHS says on this?
Question B: Would you lose games for enforcing the NFHS POE on unsporting acts and calling the technical fouls?

2. Hypothetical: You are standing on the block during a TO and the team has moved its huddle well out onto the court near the FT lane line closest to the bench. In short, they are near the edge of the bench area defined by 1-13-3. They are certainly permitted to be out there by 5-12-5, so you can't direct them to move elsewhere, but their placement puts them quite near you.
Question A: Would you move away from your position on the block in order to maintain some distance from the team huddle, since you believe, "One of the reasons the NF puts us on the block is to stay away from the possibility of overhearing comments and possible confrontation with players and coaches."?

Now someone in this huddle uses profanity. Since there is no one else near the huddle, as they are out there in the middle of the floor by themselves, you are sure that it came from this team, but you don't know which specific individual said it.

Question B: What action would you take? Ignore it, warn the coach, tell them to "knock off the language guys", or charge a technical foul.

Sharing your answers to the above will certainly help me to understand how you and/or your area handles this unsporting language issue and more importantly the rationale behind why that method is used. Thanks.