Home Team wear Dark
 

G/V game Friday night. While watching the J/V game, we noticed that the home team was in dark and visitors were in white. My two partners, who were veteran officials, started discussing the implications in the V game. So in the hallway on on way to the floor before the 15:00 minute, we stopped the AD to ask him what was up with the uniforms. He said there was an ordering snafu and his home (white) uniforms were not yet shipped . So he call the visiting team and asked them to bring their white. What we ended up doing was we told the AD to call IHSAA and inform them of their situation. We ended up starting the game without penalizing either team. What do you think?

Good Call!
 

No need to over officiate this!

Uniforms
 

Thank goodness common sense finally prevails!!!!! I have seen some teams wear gold uniforms for their home uni's and a darker color (blue or red) for their visiting uniforms. The AD had everything covered WHY would you call the IHSAA?

Because the rules are very specific; whether we agree with them or not.

Because, by rule, the home team must wear white. The AD has no discretion in the matter. If they are not in white, we start the game with free throws and the HC sits. This was a much bigger deal the year we switched to white because then you'd have shots for every player that entered the game with an illegal jersey, but it's no less the rule today than it was then.

But this is an unusual situation, seemingly beyond the HC or players' ability to control. So, of course, we'd prefer not to let that impact the game. That is, as you say, common sense. But what about the rule? A quick phone call to the state office should settle the matter. You cover your back (smaller matters than this have kept officials out of post season). You preempt any trouble an idiot parent or a disgruntled visiting team may cause by making their own call to the state office after the fact. And it alerts the state office to the situation, allowing them to follow up to ensure eventual compliance as well as possibly issuing an official waiver to cover home games in the mean time, thus settling the matter.

Just my $0.02

Should you also penalize the visitor for wearing white? Double T. For what it's worth I think you guys handled it the way I would.

Based on what happened in my state, I am giving Ts. Not my problem and the coach and schools should have known better.

Peace

Interesting point. You are right, of course: "The torso color shall be white for the home team and a contrasting dark color for the visiting team." (NFHS 3-4-1c) Which just makes the whole situation more of a hassle from a rules perspective.

Wasn't one of the reasons for us issuing the T because schools have had five years to take care of this......?

I had a situation a few months ago where a team traveled a long way to do back to back games. They too had made "an agreement" to where dark for one game and whites for another as they had games at night and in the morning and no where to really wash their uni's from one day to the next.....

We had this issue last year in Birmingham. Warehose where the teams new white uni's were stored burned to the ground one week prior to the season. We reported the situation to the state and any uniform type penalties would have been on this team. Situation resolved itself in a week.

Give them the one game pass, then consult the state - let them handle it.

I think you did perfect.

In Virginia it is required that there be a letter from the state association at the table for any team not having white home uniforms. In the OP's case if there was a shipping snafu then the AD (if in Virginia) should have contacted the state association. Why wouldn't the AD call the IHSAA as soon as the shipping snafu came to light?

Based on what my state went through, I am giving a T. I will let everyone else deal with the fall out.

Peace

I really don’t know why this wouldn’t be a T situation. They had all summer to order jerseys.
However, the post about the fire is a little different and was properly reported.

So you're double T'ing to start the game?

Doesn't the intent and purpose of the rule enter this discussion? What is the purpose of this rule? Different colors for obvious reasons. Recently amended from light/dark to specify white for one team. It just so happens the rule was written that the home team wears white so as to avoid confusion as to who wears what. In this case for whatever reason, the home team was unable to wear white. But the home team cleared things in advance with the visitors, so the visitors wore white and there was no confusion. I see it as a non-issue.

I believe the T would go to the home team. They visiting team would be the one that was accommodating to not have confusion.

Peace

That ain't part of the rule.

Well it is also not apart of the rule to allow teams to wear contrasting uniforms after this situation, but that is what we would do and many would allow. The rule puts the onus on the home team in my opinion. If the home team does not wear white, they are going to be held responsible in my eyes. If the visiting team wore white or uniform to specifically contrast with the home team wearing a non-white uniform, I am not giving the home team only a T. And there is no case play that addresses the situation specifically and if anything this falls on Rule 2-3. You do not have to like it, because it is my opinion and that is what I am going to do. You can do what you like when you are in that situation. ;)

Peace

double T, sit both coaches and toss up the ball. Thats a win, win, all the way around:p

:) I just need to verify that this goes to the coach.

consider it verified. I found it in the T chart in the back of the rule book

10 Shots Excessive, 2 Shots Fair ...
 

And, last year, didn't we change it from five technical fouls, for the five starters, to one technical foul to cover the entire team for the whole game, so we didn't have to shoot ten technical free throws to start the game. Ten shots may be an excessive way to start the game, two shots isn't excessive, so unless the team has some written documentation from the state association, we're starting with a a technical foul penalty, and I'm calling my commissioner as soon as I can get to my cell phone.

NFHS 3-4-1c "The torso color shall be white for the home team and a contrasting dark color for the visiting team."

NFHS 10-5-4 "The head coach shall not permit a team member to participate while wearing an illegal uniform (see 3-4)."
PENALTY: (Section 5) Two free throws plus ball for division-line throw-in. The foul is charged directly to the head coach. (Art. 4) Penalized when discovered. Only one technical foul is charged regardless of the number of offenders.

That work for you? :)

Acutally, you'll not be shooting any as both teams are in violation of the uniform rule at the same time and you don't shoot double T's.

So some of you and going to T up the team for not wearing something that they do not have?:confused: The schools have it worked out.... its early in the season - probably the first game... it was a mistake from the supplier.... I know what they letter of the rules states, but I also know that we interpret those rules on every call we make every tome we blow the whistle. We've all let a lot of possible T's go uncalled for a lot of reasons. I'm not going to T this up.
What if this was a tourney and we had this situation because of only available clean uniforms? A T reaks too much of the fashion police on this one for me. Start the game without the T. Play it. Notify it. If the state association is unhappy, they'll tell me.

Let's Hope That They Don't Show Up In Same Color ...
 

Thanks. Good catch.

A tournament could be a different story. Like a mixup on who's the home and visiting team that night on a neutral court.

Here in VA the rule doesn't apply for tournaments. Also here in VA the schools are directed by the VHSL to notify the VHSL if they have such a uniform problem as stated by the OP. This has been clearly stated to officials and school representatives at each of the mandatory state rules clinics for at least the last 2 years. How about the AD properly doing their jobs and we wouldn't have to deal with it as officials?

Just play the game
 

The AD took care of the problem, both teams were OK with it. Just throw up the ball and PLAY THE GAME!!!! You rulebook fanatics have no common sense. You are officiating a basketball game not performing heart surgery. This is a non issue just move on.

Don't us officials have the power to make decisions on any point not specifically covered in the rules? Just wondering if that would be one of those cases?

The problem is, it is specifically covered in the rules -- as cited above. The issue becomes, do you enforce the rule? :eek:

The AD had 5 years for new uniforms; this is the third season it's been a hard rule after years of warnings that it was coming. What did they do with last year's home whites? If there was a legitimate issue preventing compliance, he could have called the state. I can tell you that in my area, if this isn't enforced, the officials could expect to be taking the year off from the playoffs.

Now, apparently, the officials involved contacted their state to make sure they did it correctly and it seems they went with the way they were directed. My first call would be to my assigner, before the game started, to get his input.

I live at about 7000 feet, but I have to wonder just how thin the air is up there on your high horse.

Who say anything about not playing the game? And the AD did not take care of the problem. Taking care of the problem means contacting the state board.

You "play the game" fanatics seemed scare of the rule book and accountability.

Common sense is going to get some officials into trouble, methinks.

Nothing in the rule book defines who is to be the "Home" team. Just delcare the "Visiting" team as "Home" and vice versa and the whole issue is moot.

Or, you could declare the "home" team uniforms as being just an incredibly dark shade of white (and vice-versa for the visiting team uniforms).

and call them that..
 

... during the game! Call dark "White" and white "Dark".
That would be a mental challenge. ;)

Ohio also allows for a letter from the OHSAA allowing the variance on uniforms. With FAX machines and E-Mails, there should be no reason the AD would be caught short on this. We had this issue last year in the first game. The home team's uniforms were on "backorder" and didn't come prior to the first game. They used the previous year road jersey and asked the visitors to bring their home uni's.

The visiting coach actually asked for a T on the Home Coach. We didn't grant it as the letter was produced from the state.

Did the visitors bring their home unis? If so, it would have been fun to call the T on both, cancel the shots, and sit them both down.

Hmmm, the home team is in a bind and makes the appropriate arrangements to solve the problem, including notifying the state office and obtaining a letter authorizing the variance. Knowing the bind the home team is in, the visiting coach then asks for a T on the home coach at game time? Are you kidding me?

If the letter from the state didn't specifically grant permission for the visiting team to wear white, I may very well T the visiting coach. Ostensibly for fielding a team with illegal uniforms, but actually just for being such a jerk. :D