Coach Issues

[TheOracle]

Ichi, a lot of these guys make me laugh. The only thing in yuor description that raised my eyebrows (without being there) was that you said the coach called you a smart aleck. So my guess is that he perceived something. You may not even be aware of body language or tone of voice, but it is important. If you get labeled as unapproachable or snide, you will severely limit your chances of advancing. Fair or unfair, that's a general rule.

Also, these guys are correct about assistant coaches. They should not be involved with officials at all. Instead of threatening or giving an automatic T, a simple comment to the head coach that you are working for him only, not his assistants, and you only want to hear from or interact with him, that will work almost every time with little conflict. Virtually every time the HC will tell the bench to shut up, and appreciate the subtle warning.

Disclaimer: The works well at the Varsity HS and College levels. I am certain that this would not work well at times in JH or AAU ball.

[dan74]

Originally Posted by TheOracle

Also, these guys are correct about assistant coaches. They should not be involved with officials at all. Instead of threatening or giving an automatic T, a simple comment to the head coach that you are working for him only, not his assistants, and you only want to hear from or interact with him, that will work almost every time with little conflict. Virtually every time the HC will tell the bench to shut up, and appreciate the subtle warning.

Disclaimer: The works well at the Varsity HS and College levels. I am certain that this would not work well at times in JH or AAU ball.

For the newer officials: Although I may be reading into the above a bit too literally, my input is to not tell a head coach "that you are working for him only." We administer the rules...we aren't subordinate or beholding to coaches.

[tomegun]

I don't understand why this has to be such a big comment to the head coach. Maybe that is the problem, some people want every comment to a coach to be earth shattering. Asking the coach to control his bench doesn't have to be about two men squaring off. That is why some people come on here and are so broken up about giving a T. Forget all the witty/smart comments and get some guts!
This is why I wouldn't have absolutes about assistants: you can use them. I learned this many years ago from college. Assistants keep track of certain things during a game and when you want a coach to break the huddle, the assistant is probably the only one looking at you. Depending on the assistant, I will use them to help with certain situations. For instance, last night I asked an assistant to make sure none of the players were wearing white shirts under their blue jerseys - there was no other communication with an assistant. However, when it comes to complaining, they have no voice. That is when I ask the coach to control his/her bench. After that, it is open season. I'm of the opinion that your Ts will go down once you become established - if you handle things correctly early on. I have moved around more than most and I'm not shy about calling a well-earned T. Once a coach realizes I don't care about calling whatever is appropriate, the behavior changes.