Letter to youth sports officials

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally Posted by euby

Well this whole post hits a real nerve for me as I am very much into youth sports for this very reason. Allot of parents are real idiots and I have to deal with them every year because a new crop will start with their little Jordans every year. I set the tone early in my clinic league (K and 1st grade) that parent behavior WILL be delt with and usually by 3rd grade most problems have been weeded out.

We have a board member at every gym during every game and they are responsible for game management. The officals are there to instruct and officiate not deal with parents. Thats my job as president of the league and I take it very seriously. At over 50 teams and 600 kids it is a constant challange to deal with parents without just telling them to grow up and get a life! But I treat everyone the same and fairly and over the years have gotten a reputation as being that way. Most of the time I just listen to their problems and that will do the trick.

To say that youth officals are there just for the money is a joke. All of my officals are registered and all but two are school coaches in the middle school or freshman level. They are there to promote our townships program and try to make our program better. They get paid sure...but I honestly think they would be there even if they weren't. I do what I do because of the kids and our program and put countless hours into running it and I don't get paid or even have a kid in the league...so why do I do it! So to make a blanket statement like that is just ignorant!

To say kids don't look up to sports volunteers is a joke also. Coaches always have an impact on kids as a role model and their behavior anytime they are around the kids is highly scrutinized. You act like role model or your gone...its that simple! For those of you who actually played youth sports tell me you can't name every coach you ever had...I rest my case. No you don't remember every game or its outcome and you sure don't remember any offical's but the coaches you do. So I hold them to a higher standard.

To say officals at the youth level aren't just as good and dedicated is also just ignorant. Believe it or not allot of officals like to do youth games because its fun and gives them a chance to interact with todays kids.

You are right...you can't compare state finals you officiate (I bow down to your presence)to a youth program because I actually have a positive impact in our community...and lets face it...you don't!

Excellent post imo, Euby. Too bad all league administrators don't have their heads screwed on straight like you do. The problem is that there are a lot of leagues that aren't administered as well as your's is.

Keep up the good fight.

[refhoops]

As one who is involved with youth sports, I believe there are many very qualified officials who only officiated youth sports for a variety of reasons (not for the money), one being that their regular job and or family does not permit them the time to officiated anything but youth sports during weekends. I myself could not work anything except youth sports for a number of years due to the amount of travel required from my day job. About 5-6 years ago, this changed and allowed me the jump in the fray of HS BB. I feel very fortunate that I was given the opportunity to jump into HS BB and now have the passion to work hard and be given the opportunity to be assigned higher level games. Every year I have been my schedule has included a larger percentage of varsity level games and would hope within the next 2 seasons to make the playoff list. This does not make me any better that "youth officials". I know that working all those "youth games" prepared me to take the next level. I have tremendous respect for those youth officials because they expose themselves to more explosive situation than we will ever see. They rarely have game site administrators and deal coaches and parents think that they only reason they are working there teams or child's games is for revenge. Let's give thanks to those youth officials because if they do there job right, it will make our job that much easier when these players make it to high school!

[euby]

I didn't mean to go off on a long tirade but as you can tell I get alittle erked when youth volunteers get bashed.

Anyway there is one thing that should be mentioned that I have noticed is the difference between the youth leagues and HS aged games.

Youth officals need to be very careful not to drop into youth type situations when doing the higher level games. It can and does happen...for example.

Lets say at the third grade level you tend to be a little more forgiving in the 3second, travels, etc because you are in a learning enviorment and when you do 8 games in one day you tend to be alittle more lax in the mechanics due to fatigue.

Its very easy to develope bad habits and hard to break once you have them. An offical who does both types of games have to be very diligent in there separation of the two "types".

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by euby

I didn't mean to go off on a long tirade but as you can tell I get alittle erked when youth volunteers get bashed.

If they do not want to get bashed, then they should run their leagues better. It is not like people here or anywhere has not formed opinions on youth sports based on what they hear. Most officials that cannot stand youth sports and leagues are based on their personal experiences. Then it does not help when you have coaches that behave in such a way that are suspect at best. Remember there was a football coach just a few weeks ago that assaulted a child during a game because all because he felt "his" child was hit late on a play. So do not make it sound like all of these opinions about youth sports are in a vacuum and no one has knowledge of some pretty bad situations.

Originally Posted by euby

Its very easy to develope bad habits and hard to break once you have them. An offical who does both types of games have to be very diligent in there separation of the two "types".

This can happen in Men's Leagues too.

If it bothers you the attitudes of these leagues, then you need to go around the country and change the way leagues are run all over the country. The football league that I have worked for about 3 years and will work some this fall had many internal problems with the board and when they used specific rules that were outside of any rulebook, the league would give conflicting information to their coaches and the officials. Every week would be a fight over striper rules or procedures that were essential to playing the games fairly. I was never alone in my experiences and this is why many guys would quit officiating all together because of some of these very bad situations they were put into working youth sports. Youth sports is where many start on some level and this is why most officials leave these leagues when they get more HS games or they break into college ball.

Peace

[euby]

Jrutledge....I am making no excuses for other leagues just my own. Not every league falls into the catagory you would like to put us all in.

Just because I see several really bad officals every year I don't automatically say all officals are bad. I'm not that narrow minded!

There are no perfect leagues...or perfect officals but if you strive to be the best you can be thats all anyone can do.

If a person is that unhappy officiating at any level then they need to move on because that type of attitude is like a cancer and will spred....all the way down to the kids.

Its easy to sit back and say this isn't right or that isn't right but unless you roll up your sleeves and get in there and try to make a change...nothing will.

Thats why I'm here...remember...to do things the right way and make a difference for the positive.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by euby

Jrutledge....I am making no excuses for other leagues just my own. Not every league falls into the catagory you would like to put us all in.

I did not put all leagues into any category. I said that many opinions about these leagues are formed by officials all over the country. The assault I referenced did not happen in a league that I have worked. As a matter of fact I have never personally witnessed an assault at the youth level. But when you read many of these stories of coaches assaulting officials and players, 9 times out of 10 it takes place at a youth league and with some parent acting out of control. If that bothers you that many point that out, not sure what to tell you.

Originally Posted by euby

Just because I see several really bad officals every year I don't automatically say all officals are bad. I'm not that narrow minded!

Can you find anywhere in this post where someone made that comment?

Originally Posted by euby

There are no perfect leagues...or perfect officals but if you strive to be the best you can be thats all anyone can do.

Did someone say there were perfect leagues anywhere? Or did someone say they expected perfection in leagues?

Originally Posted by euby

If a person is that unhappy officiating at any level then they need to move on because that type of attitude is like a cancer and will spred....all the way down to the kids.

I already know many officials that do not work those leagues Just because we talk here about these leagues and the coaches and parents, has nothing to do with the kids or our opinion about the kids. Youth leagues are ruined by adults who feel their kids are the "next coming" of what ever superstar that plays the game. It is sad when the kids are apologizing for the behavior of the adults or show how embarrassed they are when their parents are yelling at them for every single play.

Originally Posted by euby

Its easy to sit back and say this isn't right or that isn't right but unless you roll up your sleeves and get in there and try to make a change...nothing will.

Thats why I'm here...remember...to do things the right way and make a difference for the positive.

I can tell that this is an emotional (too emotional if you ask me) thing for you and you feel that everyone should feel that "youth sports" are where it is at. When my associations try to get officials for those leagues, it is always for the officials to "make money" and to give younger officials experience seeing plays and dealing with situations. I have never heard anything about "giving back" or volunteerism as the mission for these leagues. If volunteerism was a major focus then people would drive all over the city to work these leagues. Considering that even the Little League Baseball Leagues that I have been round pay the officials money (if they did not they would have a very hard time getting any officials).

You will never change my opinion or anyone's opinion about youth sports just because you think they have a higher focus. We used to play sports in my back yard and everyone that played did not feel cheated from the contact with the adults or officials that were not around to work those games.

Peace

[dave30]

What I've always noticed in youth sports is : "the younger the player, the dumber the parent."