Letter to Big South Commish regarding Joe Forte

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Many assignors are from the old school of "loyalty." If an assignor hires you into their conference first, he/she expects that you will take games in their conference above all others until you move up the ladder into more "prestigious" conferences. Sometimes that assignor has a working relationship with the assignor of the "prestigious" conferences and it works out best for that official. When there is no working relationship, then it can turn very ugly.

In my humble opinion, I believe Mr. Forte is exercising his loyalty card. He hired these NBA replacement officials first into the D1 conference he assigns, probably worked diligently over the years to get their schedules with other D1 conferences for a maximum number of games. Then these replacement officials show them their thanks and loyalty to Forte by working his games when the NBA locked him out; he didn't walk out or strike.

I wonder if Forte hired some new officials into the Big South to replace the ones who now work the NBA games? Someone is always willing to fill in the gap that others left behind.