"I'm 52 years old, and in all my years..."

[icallfouls]

I suppose that all 16 games were uphill, into the wind, the gym was a brick oven, there was no water except for what he squeezed from the blades of grass outside the gym between games where he would conduct wind sprints.

[MD Longhorn]

Basketball lurker, football/baseball/softball official here.

I've had many Saturdays where I worked 3-5 75-90 minute football games in the morning and a varsity game that night... or 3-5 60-75 minute softball or baseball games in the morning and a varsity or JV/Vars game at night.

I GUARANTEE you that I and 90% of the other officials I work with in the same boat did what they could to call a decent game but conserve their energy during those peewee or youth games so as to be truly ready for the later contests.

The other factor you're not getting is that when you pay low, the level of official you attract tends to be lower --- not a blanket statement regarding EVERY official you get ... but the average talent/effort is lower because those guys that naturally hustle every game are working somewhere else for more money.

[DLH17]

Originally Posted by icallfouls

bs!!!

Which part?

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally Posted by DLH17

edit: I did 8 games Sat and 8 games Sun and never slowed down....

That part is simply unbelievable, especially when you say that you were hustling at all times, using correct mechanics, etc.

Or BS, to put it another way.....

[DLH17]

Originally Posted by Jurassic Referee

That part is simply unbelievable, especially when you say that you were hustling at all times, using correct mechanics, etc.

Or BS, to put it another way.....

doing 8 games in a 2 on 1 off format for two days affords three 60 min breaks each day. hustling and using good mechanics is not difficult at all in that format.

8 games in a row on back to back days - ya, that would be a tall order and can see how people would think as they are.

[DLH17]

back to my daughter's games....here's some examples of what i've seen:

trail calling a jump ball at or below the front court ft line extended while he is standing still, positioned at the time line in the backcourt and was straight lined. lead official was moving in to see the play

as lead, coasting into 'position' at just under the ft line extended in the front court
instead of below the base line

official failed to signal, audibly or with a directional, possession on unclear oob violations

official failed to indicated what type of foul was committed - coaches left wondering if there was a push, hold, hand check, block

failed to chock the clock during final two minutes of game when stopped clocked action started

these are off the top of my head

this was the primary reason for my initial comments that perhaps part of the reason why some officials 'get into trouble' might actually be because they bring it on themselves

hustling to be in proper position would probably reduce the number of instances of angst on the part of said official, coaches and players.

then again, he was getting paid $20 for that game, so what should i have expected? the guy to do his job? i guess not.

realistically, there all types of officials...some are not the strongest on the rules...some aren't the strongest game managers....some aren't the best communicators.....some are having bad days.....etc etc. one thing that most officials have control over is their own effort. if effort and hustle are present, i think an official can be much more effective and respected.

[Jurassic Referee]

Originally Posted by DLH17

doing 8 games in a 2 on 1 off format for two days affords three 60 min breaks each day. hustling and using good mechanics is not difficult at all in that format.

You hustled and used the correct mechanics on all plays in every game. And you're 52 years old. And you never slowed down one little bit, even in your eighth game of your second day doing 8 games/day.

BS, DLH17, BS.

There's a real world out there. You're living in LaLaLand.

And btw, when everybody in that real world out there tells you that maybe you should re-think your position, don't you think that maybe...just maybe...it might not be a bad idea to consider that option?

[icallfouls]

Originally Posted by DLH17

doing 8 games in a 2 on 1 off format for two days affords three 60 min breaks each day. hustling and using good mechanics is not difficult at all in that format.

Again.... BS!

Doing the math. In order for you to work 2 on 1 off that would require a set of 16 games. Using NFHS rules and mechanics, each game would take approx 1hr 15 min. That does not allow for OT orteams needing 5-10 minutes to warm up. That adds up to a 16 hr day. You would need to eat and stay properly hydrated, which is harder for older people.

Most games require 4-5 miles of running (stopping, starting, etc). That adds up to 64-80 miles for your 16 game set. For you to keep the pace you claim, you would be an elite marathoner. Even at a steady pace, with no quick transitions, is hard to believe that you had no drop off.

I have been to plenty of camp settings, the kids playing the games have more time off (2 games), have substitutes and are much younger and can recover on their worst day, faster than most 52 yr olds.

So keep on kissing the butts of the coaches and making the same unbelievable claims, you will be rewarded accordingly.

[Adam]

Originally Posted by DLH17

edit: I did 8 games Sat and 8 games Sun and never slowed down...

Seriously, I'm not sure if you understand or not, but this is the part people are calling BS. You may have tried, you may have hustled, you may have even been in position; but to suggest you didn't even slow down after 5 games on the same day? Most of us can maintain some sort of suspension of disbelief, but this stretches it for us.
And, if it's true that you were able to do all this, well, it's a good thing they don't test officials for PEDs. If you're simply a freak of nature, that's different, but you should at least excuse our disbelief. We had no idea you were actually Jon Diebler in disguise.

[grunewar]

Originally Posted by Snaqwells

Seriously, I'm not sure if you understand or not, but this is the part people are calling BS. You may have tried, you may have hustled, you may have even been in position; but to suggest you didn't even slow down after 5 games on the same day? Most of us can maintain some sort of suspension of disbelief, but this stretches it for us.
And, if it's true that you were able to do all this, well, it's a good thing they don't test officials for PEDs. If you're simply a freak of nature, that's different, but you should at least excuse our disbelief. We had no idea you were actually Jon Diebler in disguise.

I pride myself in being in pretty good shape for my age. About a month ago after this last winter season ended I did five tourney games in a row on a HS sized court. I gave it my all for sure, but much as I tried, I know I defintiely s l o w e d down by the end. Then, I drove the 40 minutes home, opened the car door, and had one heck of a time just getting out of the car. So sad.....

The mind is willing buy the flesh is weak.....

As Clint once said (insert photo here), "A man's got to know his limitations." And, I know mine - depending on the size of the floor.

[DLH17]

Originally Posted by Snaqwells

Seriously, I'm not sure if you understand or not, but this is the part people are calling BS. You may have tried, you may have hustled, you may have even been in position; but to suggest you didn't even slow down after 5 games on the same day? Most of us can maintain some sort of suspension of disbelief, but this stretches it for us.
And, if it's true that you were able to do all this, well, it's a good thing they don't test officials for PEDs. If you're simply a freak of nature, that's different, but you should at least excuse our disbelief. We had no idea you were actually Jon Diebler in disguise.

Ok...thanks for pointing that out. I can see how people would question that. Maybe I physically "slowed down" from game 1 to game 8, but the effort and hustle did not diminish. In game 8, I'm still making a concerted effort to call a good game and be in the right place at the right time. Did I run from baseline to half court in the same amount of time near the end of the day as the beginning of the day? Probably not. Was I still running to my spots. Absolutely. If you clocked me, sure, I'm probably a little "slower". But noone would look at me and say, 'geez, that guy is spent. he's not even running or making an effort at this point.'.

[bob jenkins]

Originally Posted by Snaqwells

Seriously, I'm not sure if you understand or not, but this is the part people are calling BS. You may have tried, you may have hustled, you may have even been in position; but to suggest you didn't even slow down after 5 games on the same day?

If you don't go all out in your first game, then you don't need to slow down in your eighth game. I'm not saying that's what happened, only that it fits the statements given.

Most of us can maintain some sort of suspension of disbelief

I prefer to disbelieve all the time. You can believe me on that.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Snaqwells

If you're simply a freak of nature, that's different, but you should at least excuse our disbelief. We had no idea you were actually Jon Diebler in disguise.

More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Look. Up in the sky. It's a bird? It's a plane? It's Superef.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by BadNewsRef

You get what you pay for. I expect officials always to hustle and put forth effort. But if someone is working multiple games and getting paid a fraction of what they get during the regular season I'm not expecting them switch on every foul or always come out to the proper reporting position.

Catholic middle school league. $40.00 per game. Seven minute periods. Stop time. Usually a boy/girl double header. Two person crew. Our assigner expects us to be on time, be in proper uniform, hustle on all plays, use proper signals, enforce uniform and equipment restrictions, put the ball in play where it belongs, and not to participate in 50/50 raffles. We received emails from him this past season pointing out that some of us were showing up a little late for games, wearing sweats and/or sneakers, and/or not hustling, and he reminded us, actually threatened us, that this would not be tolerated. He also allows us to switch when convenient, report from places outside the reporting area, and administer the throwin from across the lane. Sometimes it's tough for rookies to get use to the relaxed mechanics, I know it was for me when I first came to this league, but almost all of the veterans are more than happy to go 100% mechanics if a rookie needs to learn the correct high school mechanics.

AAU is assigned by our high school assigner. $35.00 per game. Usually two games scheduled per two person crew. Games are scheduled by the AAU host every seventy minutes. Sixteen minute halves. Stop time. Three 60's and two 30's. Our assigner expects us to be on time, be in proper uniform, except that black shorts are allowed, hustle on all plays, use proper signals, and to put the ball in play where it belongs. Due to the tight schedule we are not discouraged from avoiding switches, from reporting from places outside the reporting area, and from administering the throwin from across the lane. Occasionally the AAU games are run in conjunction with our local board camp, and then we go 100% mechanics.

[Mark Padgett]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

Games are scheduled by the AAU host every seventy minutes.

Boy - that was really sarcastic. I love it when you guys use the blue font!