OK, so my friend and I thought that after years and years of watching our daughters play and being the designated scorekeepers, that we would try officiating. So we've been to three meetings now, have been schmoozing with the refs at all the games, and lo and behold, all of a sudden we're on the schedule for THIS weekend! We're both scared to death! We're doing 3 games each, 3-5th graders.

I've read all the books, taken the test and passed (higher than most of our seasoned refs!) but have had no training.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated (other than a shot of whiskey!)!!

Kris

dealing with parents
 

The only thing worse at a youth game than a 5th grade parent yelling from the stands is a 4th grade parent....

and the only thing even worse than the 4th grade parent yelling is a 3rd grade parent......

you get the picture....those vultures will be licking their chops at the fresh meat......

OK, OK.....let them play would be my best advise. Just about every other trip down the court, something could be called (probably every trip in a 3rd grade game)....if you don't want to have 4 hour games, let them play!

Good luck

Re: dealing with parents
 

Hehehe I get you drift, and that was the plan actually. And I wasn't going to let any of them know that I'm "fresh meat". Although, some of them may know me because the games are at the high school that my oldest daughter plays for. Yikes!

Best saftey mechanism is to smile a lot and enjoy the experience.

Take a moment and yell out friendly to the kids "sorry, you must dribble the ball" while calling walking. Say" Hey young man (or girl) you cannot grab their arm as they go by" while calling a holding.

Referee's teach rules - and don't just call violations at these ages.

Everyones a little calmer.

In no specific order –

First and foremost have fun.

Remember that these are 8 to 10/11 year olds. If they are on the same teem the older kids will dominate the court so lookout for the younger ones.

Call the fouls but go light on the violations. If the pivot foot moves a little let it go. If they wonder in the lane tell them to get out before calling 3 or 5 or 10 seconds, depending on what your rules are.

Explain, explain, and explain again, what they did wrong. Get down on your knee to talk to them. Talk in a low voice to them. Until my wife, the kindergarten teacher, enlightened me I had some kids to crying on the court.

Don’t be afraid to applaud a good play and to make jokes when needed. “Hay #23 I know he is your friend but don’t hug him, OK?”

Don’t take anything from the coaches. BUT, don’t make a scene, go up to the coach and tell him to knock it off.

IF THE KIDS GO ON THE FLOOR FOR A LOOSE BALL CALL A JUMP IMMEDIATELY! Kids this age have no fear and someone could/will get hurt. Same with a held ball, as soon as 2 players get their hands on it call a jump.

And remember the younger ones at times get “lost in space” while on the court and have no idea what is going on.

HAVE FUN!

Re: Re: dealing with parents
 

If you're like most of us in our first game...they will know :D

Protect the shooter, talk to them about standing in the paint before you blow your whistle, concentrate on your area (this will probably be difficult at first) and ignore the parents. You are new but trust me, you are probably light years ahead of them on rules knowledge...afterall you have actually read the rule book. :)

And HAVE FUN!

Youth
 

Well, you picked the right age group to start with IMO. Be sure to go over league rules (i.e. type of defense, pressing, etc.) normally they don't allow zones or pressing at that level. Here's some tips for very young ones:

-Decide how strictly you will enforce traveling and be consistent.
-Don't be too quick to call jump balls, it disrupts the flow of the game and encourages them to reach in. I'd rather call a foul on the reach and point out to them what they did wrong.(I guess I disagree with RecRef on this one)
-Ignore the parents.
-Don't let anyone create a circumstance where someone could get injured.
-Talk to the kids during the game (don't coach, but do point out things along the way much more that you would hear at a HS game i.e. never take the ball out behind the basket, wait until the ball hits. etc.)
-Use a "friendly voice"
-Let them play
-Never call the smallest kid on the court for traveling on their only basket at the end of the game!
-Make sure it is a fun experinece for the kids, never get angry with a coach or parent; walk away no matter what they say.

If the kids don't have fun at that age, they won't stay with it as they get older. Poor youth programs lead to poor HS programs because the kids had bad experiences and lose interest in the sport.

Mregor


[Edited by Mregor on Jan 16th, 2003 at 03:32 PM]

Wow...great response here! The only problem I have, is that I don't exactly know where my "area" is. Guess I didn't get to that part in the books well enough. I realize that one official is the lead and one is the trail, so one stays in front of the offense, and the other behind. I guess it probably doesn't much matter at this age.

Re: Youth
 

Since a reach is not a foul how can you call one? Never use the term reaching in on a basketball court when you ref! You call jumps fast because some can get hurt as the stronger player will whip the ball out of the hold and someone will get hit by the arms/ball.

Re: Re: Youth
 

I call a foul if they make contact while reaching in. I guess it's just easier to type "on the reach" versus "illegal use of the hand when they make contact accross the arm of the person in control of the ball". I stated we had differing opinions. I stated my reasoning as did you. Let those who read it decide what works for them. OK?

P.S. How do you get those smileys in your post? I click on them and they are never in my text.

Mregor

If you're worried about your area (and that's good), just remember to keep the kids boxed in by you and your co-official. In other words, if you are lead (on the baseline) on the same side as the score table, make sure your partner is at about the FT line on the side opposite the table. Don't leave the action until you are sure of what's happening... at this age you won't get beat down the floor. Keep moving up and down the court in this box fashion. At this point, I wouldn't worry about switching, or anything like that. Just make sure the table can see you when you report anything.

Best fun I've had is at this level. You really are another coach on the floor. AND Smile... it's fun

Re: Re: Re: Youth
 

How do you get those smileys in your post? I click on them and they are never in my text.

[/B][/QUOTE]Click on "FAQ" at the top of the first page.Then click on "what are smilies" on the FAQ page.The next page explains how to type and insert them into your post.

Re: Youth
 

I agree w/ Mregor on all of his list and I want to endorse the above statement...

You should be able to quickly assess how aggressive, or physical, the players are in a loose ball situation. If they are hustling with reckless abandon then whistle held ball situations quickly.

Also, be quick to set the tone on the illegal use of hands. It is good to set the standard early. It will clean up the play and reenforce that the defenders need to move their feet to play defense. It is better to whistle the illegal use of hand fouls (Reach-ins w/ contact) early, and as often as needed, than to deal with one (or more) player(s) catching an elbow in the face.

My advice to you is to make sure you look at your partner as the last thing you do before you hand the ball to the thrower. This will eliminate you having to blow the whistle while the subs are going in or coming out. Also, you will know that your partner is ready to go and in position. Make sure when you talk to your partner before the game that the official who isn't administering the throw in looks to the table for subs. Nothing is more frustrating for a young kid than being sent in by the coach and the official not letting them in the game. You are the ones who allow subs to come into the game. The level of game you are doing the play will be in one area most of the time. Make sure you aren't hanging down on one end of the court when the play is in the other end. Good luck and above all, HAVE FUN!

Super Excellent Advice, Big Joe
 

Eye contact with your partner is ESSENTIAL,(did I mention that the table crew are your partners too! :)) especially as you are preparing to put the ball in play (Throw-ins, and FTs)

And by all means... Keep smiling! You should be having as much fun as the kids.... :D

Then the next few days after the games, when they are out terrorizing the playground, you will be rubbing your aching muscles with anagesic (sp) balm. :)

[Edited by williebfree on Jan 17th, 2003 at 09:33 AM]

Re: Super Excellent Advice, Big Joe
 

My only additional suggestion would be to make eye contact with the table also. I'm guessing that you will have a couple of high school kids and making contact with them and letting them know they are important will make your job a lot easier.

Stan

Sore muscles
 

Heheh I can almost guarantee I'll be sore since they scheduled me for three straight games this Saturday, and 4 next Saturday! Heck, the kids don't even play that much!! It's a good think I'm a runner!

#1 rule treat these kids as if they are you own. Have as much fun as they are. Relax and enjoy the moment. Remember to teach as well as officiate. You do this you should not have many parents chewing your behind.

Always make sure you have 5 on 5 before putting the ball in play.

See your partner before putting ball in play, making sure he is kadycorner from you every time.

Blow the whistle loud.
Use a distinct voice.
Present each mechanic signal slowly, precisely, and by the book. These 3 suggestions are good tools to use to show all spectators, coaches and players that you are confident in yourself.

Use the whistle and voice to sell a necessary call.

Take all the time it takes to explain a situation to the kid, if he/she seems confused. The parents will greatly appreciated the kind gesture. Give the kid a pat on the back or rub his head after explaining. With this young of an age group, you are also a teacher on the court.

Try to gel with the flow, in other words, become inconspicuous. You are out there for the kids, not yourself.

And as everybody else has mentioned, HAVE FUN, and smile!




[Edited by John Schaefferkoetter on Jan 17th, 2003 at 01:16 PM]

Let us know how your day (Games) went.

Game results
 

The games went well. I was a little shy with the whistle, probably because I read in one of these message posts that new officials tend to be "whistle-happy". I didn't want to be that. But after the 2nd game, and into the 3rd, I started to gain some confidence and felt pretty good.

I think part of the difficulty that I'm having also, is that I've been watching high school Varsity games because my daughter plays, so it's kind of hard to step back to this level and not call everything. The fact that it's just a running clock, takes away alot of the ref control too. I was reading those rule books like the bible too, and really didn't need alot of it for this level. I think maybe I over-prepared, if there is such a thing?

It was definately entertaining though! Lots of little guys and gals running up the court trying their damndest to get that ball up into that hoop! There were a couple superstars on each team, so we started pinging them for more calls just to keep the teams even and help them learn a bit too. No one likes a runaway score! My daughters have been on both sides of that coin, and it's no fun either way!

Anyway, it was a blast. Next Saturday I have 4 back-to-back games. I was BEAT after three today. I came home and pigged out, then slept for two hours, and then pigged out again! And here I was hoping to lose weight by running up and down the court. Not the way I'm eating afterwards! :)

Thanks for everyone's advice. It all helped alot!

Kris

Re: Game results
 

Unless preparation for basketball games is interfering with your job or personal life - no.

A lot of rules may seem immaterial now (kinda like my correctable error situation during an intramural game :eek:), but it's probably easier to learn them now and simply not apply them fully (i.e., ease up on the traveling rule, but be able to tell yourself its a travel) than it would be to have to, basically, learn new rules as you advance in your officiating career.

Thank you
 

Thank you to everyone that posted to this subject. You were a great help! I have four more rec games this weekend. I'm ready now!

Kris

Thank you to everyone that posted to this subject. You were a great help! I have four more rec games this weekend. I'm ready now!


Yes you are but remember one thing, you never stop learning.
Keep up the good work

Baldy

Learning
 

Oh most definately!!! I learned so much last Saturday. I was amazed. I've been in basketball for about 10 years now with my kids. It's definately a different side of the coin! I'd actually like my girls to get into it, just to learn to respect ref's a little more!

It's funny now, I hear people complaining about the ref's in a game, and now I start to defend them! Then I get "the look" and they stop talking.

I was keeping score for my daughter's high school game last Friday night, and the ref was sooooooo quiet, I could hardly hear who he was calling the foul on, and when he used his fingers to show the number, he kept them together, so it was hard to see who he called it on too. Stuff like that will make ME a better ref.

It's funny now, I hear people complaining about the ref's in a game, and now I start to defend them! Then I get "the look" and they stop talking.

I do the same thing and get the same reaction. You do not realize how much there is to officating until you get out there. Antoher tip if I may. Practice your mechinacs in front of a mirror. Your call travling, double dribble etc... Also what I do is practice my foul call and reporting. Sometimes it is the little things that can set you apart.

Baldy

Practicing
 

I've been told to practice in front of a mirror, but haven't been able to get past that "Boy do I feel silly" stage! Suppose I should just get over it and do it! Thanks for the tips.

Re: Practicing
 

I had the same "dumb" feeling the first time I practiced in front of the mirror, but it sure helps. My wife made me go to the basement and told me to "stop blowing that d@mn whistle in here". :D

Re: Re: Practicing
 

Hay dblref, the e-mail address did not work. Ok to send message to navy.gov address?

Re: Practicing
 

Kris -- This is my fourth year, and I never have gotten over it -- still can't use a mirror. What works as well or better is to take a kid with you to a game and have him video your game. I've said this over and over, and it really is true. Tape about once a month, and you gain about an extra six months to a year in learning. If you become addicted as I have, and want to go on and move up, you can do that alot faster with the taping thing going on.

Good idea!
 

Thanks for the idea! I'll have to get the video camera working again. Just the thing for my teenage daughters to do to keep them BUSY! :)