Not everyone agrees that what should be or what should not be on the shoes. I have worn shoes with little logos for some years now and no one seems to care. But shoes are always going to be a personal thing as we all do not have the same needs or comfort level. And considering that you can hardly find a pair of shoes that are all black or leather this is not a universal issue.

Peace

This is the key to this whole thread. I have worn a belt for 20 something seasons and nobody seems to care. The only time I ever heard pants mentioned at an association meeting, the assignor said something like, "Look professional out there guys. Get some slacks. Don't go out there in wind pants." I assumed this meant that somebody had worn wind pants at some point. As far as all looking alike, one guy expressed an interest in this subject this year. We should all have the same jacket, (we do, I think) and we should all wear the same shoes. He has patent leather. This will never happen.

Just keep in mind it appears that your area is unusual that way based on this site and based on some experiences of others including myself. Or could it be that no one says anything to you directly, but they say things around you about this issue (or others)? I know the only time I mention this is during trainings with newer officials so they know what is expected of them. Other than that no one needs to mention it because when someone wears belted pants, it is stands out big time. And no one necessarily goes up to that person and points it out. But when you have belted pants I look at that like I look at those that do not apply certain mechanics. No different than I look at a guy that goes to a varsity game in jeans, but that is me.

Peace

Sorry to spark this thread again... but if you are looking...

Purchase Officials PA has a pretty good deal on Sansabelts: 2 pairs for $79.00.

Damn, that's a pretty good deal. Wish you had posted this yesterday as I just ordered a pair from between the lines.

As for the original topic of the thread, I'd have to say that Smitty's are very good as a cheaper alternative to the Sansabelt but when it comes to quality the Sansabelt's hold up a little better over time.

Skipping through some of these posts are amusing.

I am the beltless, patent leather shoe kinda guy...no white logos on shoes.

Heck, I even carry around pleated and non-pleated beltless pants when I really want to match the crew.

I was watching a JV official the other day who was wearing pants that had belt loops with no belt! I gave him some positive reinforcement after the game...then mentioned that he might want to at least get a belt or go with beltless pants...he looked at me like he was insulted.

My first State playoff game...I had a partner (two whistle) that showed up with pants that had loops and HE HAD NO BELT! I asked him if he was kidding...he immediately went to town and bought a belt...sigh...yes, I was in trouble.

How did this kid make it to the State Tourney you ask?

(His Dad was the assignor for a small association in the State...):mad:

Maybe this is an indication of how things are around here. When my partner and I arrived for games earlier this week, the JV game was in progress. I didn't know they were having JV. Usually the same crew does all the games. Perhaps this was a $$ thing. One official had on a collared shirt, white shoes, and khaki colored pants. His partner......oops, he had no partner. He missed a couple of calls, I thought, but I didn't see that his pants were an issue.

His pants may not have been an issue, but if someone shows up to ref in khaki pants, do you really think he's taking this reffing thing seriously?

It tells me he does not take the other stuff seriously if he/she cannot take the time to go buy some pants that are considered the most professional. There was a guy I saw that once worked in black jeans and his officiating reflected his lack of professional uniform. He looked like crap and his officiating was crap to. Sorry you do not go to a job interview in a ripped T-shirt and torn jeans for the same reason. It tells something about you and your professionalism that may not need further review in the job you do as you have told the people that are involved you do not care.

Also I remember a coach in the State Tournament that wore sweats in all of his games that he coached. Guess what everyone commented about? Not his coaching, not his demeanor, his sweats and how bad it looked. Imagine what everyone would think if we did the same? ;)

Peace

He obviously wasn't. I sorta know the guy. He came over and talked to us at halftime. It turns out that he is one of the jr. high coaches at that school. My point was that I saw his uniform, said "This guy is not a real ref," then went on to judge his performance on its own merit, which, under the circumstances, I thought was pretty good. Conversely, if I had come in and seen a perfectly dressed crew of 2 or 3, but they sucked as officials, I may or may not have noticed how they were dressed, but would have surely noticed if they sucked as officials. Is appearance important? Definitely. Is it as important as the performance on the floor? I say definitely not.

I went to a varsity tourney tonight as a spectator. I made a point of looking at the pants. Near as I could tell, only one guy out of four had a belt, but I could not even see that he had a belt until he stopped 5 feet in front of me. Other than the extremely narrow, extremely inconspicuous belt, the pants looked identical to me. But if that's important,..........

No one, and I mean no one, has said it's more important than performance.

Oh?

I prefer wearing a belt and pants with no belt loops.

Channeling Their Inner Sue Sylvester ???
 

I've been around the block a few times, so I remember when coaches wore ties, and jackets, during games. It's taken me a while to get used to coaches wearing "business casual" (school logo polo shirts, khaki pants) but I've come to accept that this still looks professional. I cannot get used to the few coaches we have in our area that go down one step further, sweat suits. To me this is "practice wear". It's not like they're going to call timeout in a game, bring their team over to the nearest basket, and demonstrate the over under move.

http://ts4.mm.bing.net/images/thumbn...c6f4&index=ch1