Angry Coach at Halftime

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

This thread is degenerating in a thread where we are trying to compare apples to oranges.

Let us get back to the original situation (apples), a boys' H.S. varsity game played under NFHS Rules: The Home Team's lockerroom is adjacent to the game officials' dressing room; and due to poor "architectural design," the wall between the dressing room and the Home Team's lockerroom is not soundproof. During halftime the Home HC rants to his team about the officiating and naturally the officials can hear his tirade.

The are two basic groups in this thread:

(1) Officials that want to charge the HC with a TF and some of these officials would even say the TF should be a flagrant TF. The officials in this group have quoted a number of NFHS Rules that give the game officials to "take care of business" in this situation.

(2) Officials that will "ignore" the HC's conduct in his team's lockerroom.


This thread has now extended to conduct courtside (oranges). Ladies and germs (gentlemen) courtside conduct is not the same as conduct inside the sanctary of the lockerroom.

As everybody knows, I am in Group (2) along with Rut and Daryl among other officials. Group (2) officials understand that the seriousness of the Head Coach's conduct in the lockerroom. BUT, with very few rare exceptions (see my OP per the NCAA's position of HC's conduct in timeout huddles; this is one of these rare exception) game officials are persona non grata in a team's timeout huddle.

If one wants to punish the HC for his halftime lockerroom tirade there are ways without baiting him or minipulating the rules of the game.

I want to repeat my advice to the Group (1) officials and that is DO NOT go there. No matter how many rules are quoted there really is not rule support for charging the HC with a TF for his conduct in the lockerroom. Furthermore, I would advise the game officials to do what Daryl and I do when we encounter this type of situation, and belive me Daryl and I have been in this postion many times, laugh about it. I think it is funny that the coach would waste valuable time with his players to go bonkers about the offidciating.

MTD, Sr.