HS Varsity

[refman1964]

I live and work in southeast Missouri.. I began calling ball back in 1996 local kwanis leagues for elementary age kids. I moved up to Jr. Hi in 99. Had to stop for awhile because of an injury in 2000. I started again 02 and didn't begin working at the Varsity level until 04. 06 was my first season with what I would call a full Varsity level schedule

[Rich]

I've been knocking this around since 1987 now.

Back then I was in college and didn't work any varsity games - was happy to work JV and FR and Jr. High games. Moved to Tennessee for graduate school and worked a season-and-a-half before being promoted to the varsity group.

Have moved a few times since then, but I've worked mainly varsity games and now that's all I do. I'd rather stay home with my family than add subvarsity games to my already sagging schedule. I blew my knee out in January and my first game back is tomorrow night.

[Back In The Saddle]

Originally Posted by RichMSN

I blew my knee out in January and my first game back is tomorrow night.

Good luck with the game, Rich. Let us know how it goes.

I'm one of those guys everybody figured would be least likely to succeed at this. But I just wouldn't go away and kept working my tail off. I got my first varsity games in my fourth year. I've had a few more this year. At this point I want to just keep my head down and get comfortable working small school varsity before I worry about trying to move up.

[Chess Ref]

Originally Posted by Back In The Saddle

Good luck with the game, Rich. Let us know how it goes.

I'm one of those guys everybody figured would be least likely to succeed at this. But I just wouldn't go away and kept working my tail off. I got my first varsity games in my fourth year. I've had a few more this year. At this point I want to just keep my head down and get comfortable working small school varsity before I worry about trying to move up.

Hey BITS that about sums up my experience too. One of my trainers in my first on court training deal asked me if I was sure this was something I wanted to do. Also managed to get myself into an argument with another trainer that same day. Not the greatest of starts but just like you wouldn't go away and here I am.

Tonight is my first Varsity assignment. Small school boys. I am working with the Head Assigner-so its kinda double duty tonight.

I am also a believer in the keeping my head down and working hard....

[Rich]

Originally Posted by Back In The Saddle

Good luck with the game, Rich. Let us know how it goes.

I've worked a full baseball and football season since, so I think the knee will be OK.

I've dropped 30 pounds so far and 2 pants sizes. It was time to get myself in a shape other than round and take some pressure off the knees. I still have a ways to go, but I feel like I'm better prepared for the season than I've been in quite some time.

It's 3-person girls tonight (Illinois), so I'm not sure how much hard running I'll actually do. But Thursday is 2-person boys (Wisconsin), and the teams like to run. It will be a much better test. Even in good (better is a more appropriate word, according to my results on the elliptical machine) shape, I'd much prefer moving fully to 3-person here -- it makes for better officiating, without a doubt.

I'm not sure how many more years I have on the court. I'm fully scheduled for this season and next right now and mainly I didn't want to go out on someone else's terms, but I'm not sure how much I'm loving basketball anymore. Tomorrow will be very important for me in many ways.

[PIAA REF]

I am from Pennsylvania, in a rural area. I started with a handful of varsity games during my third year. I did however stayed and did the varsity during my second year when an official didn't show up. After my third year I recieved a decent schedule since, with a slight increase in games and quality of games.

[Rich]

Originally Posted by RichMSN

I've worked a full baseball and football season since, so I think the knee will be OK.

I've dropped 30 pounds so far and 2 pants sizes. It was time to get myself in a shape other than round and take some pressure off the knees. I still have a ways to go, but I feel like I'm better prepared for the season than I've been in quite some time.

It's 3-person girls tonight (Illinois), so I'm not sure how much hard running I'll actually do. But Thursday is 2-person boys (Wisconsin), and the teams like to run. It will be a much better test. Even in good (better is a more appropriate word, according to my results on the elliptical machine) shape, I'd much prefer moving fully to 3-person here -- it makes for better officiating, without a doubt.

I'm not sure how many more years I have on the court. I'm fully scheduled for this season and next right now and mainly I didn't want to go out on someone else's terms, but I'm not sure how much I'm loving basketball anymore. Tomorrow will be very important for me in many ways.

I guess it won't be an important day, unless you include moving snow.

Probably for the best. My game was in Rockford, IL and I live just north of Madison, WI and the Rockford Public School website says all after school activities are cancelled. With the belt of freezing rain from here to there, it's probably better to just sit home and watch hockey and Boston Legal on TV. It would've been the first girls game I worked in IL in the six years I've worked down there, too.

First game Thursday, then. What's another 2 days?

[Texas Aggie]

I worked 2 varsity games my first year, but they were due to scheduling mistakes. In my second year, I worked a ~15 game varsity schedule (along with many subvarsity games), but that was in a Texas chapter that served mostly smaller school districts. In the chapter I currently work (and started in; long story), things have changed. Now, few, if any, have a "full" varsity schedule (i.e. no subvarsity unattached to varsity games) before their 10th season, if then.

If you define "full" as having 20-25 varsity games a season, then I'd say 5th year minimum around here (very few exceptions) and some guys closing in on 10 years that don't have such a schedule. The increase of 3 man has certainly moved guys up. We now work *almost* exclusively 3 man for varsity. I would love to go 3 man for all HS, but I'm not sure we could cover that.

There's no rule. We had a similar discussion about playoff assignments in the football board.