Your worst call ever?
 

Inspired by the thread "what did you learn this season", (great thread, btw), what was your worst/silliest call ever?

Mine was 5 years ago, my first year...called three seconds in the key...

on the defense. Why yes, I was a little confused and overwhelmed!

Rather early in my career I called a couple of Ts on a coach for book violations. I was working with some veterans and somehow we all agreed that those went towards the coach or made him lose his coaching box. Then that team had a seated coach all season and the game went to OT and that team won the game eventually. We even assessed shots for each incident. I still feel bad about that one and it has been over 10 years ago.

Peace

I KNOW others have done it...
 

During my first year of varsity ball (probably 10-11 years ago), I called a back court violation on a team...problem was, I used a volleyball line instead of the mid-court line for the violation. One of my partners quickly rushed over after my whistle and told me it was the wrong line...red faced...I report: "Inadvertent whistle..play on!"

He still reminds me to this day whenever we work together.

I joined this Forum in February, but haven't posted anything until now. This thread seemed like an appropriate thread to comment in.

I once called "5 Seconds - closely guarded" on a dribbler in the backcourt before he crossed the half court line. Probably should have been counting to ten instead. Whoops.

12 years ago 8th grade boys private school league.
Navy blue against Dark Forest green, no home white rule, no pinnies, small dark gym. Blue 22 drives the lane, contact, whistle "block." Its on Blue 42 his team-mate. Uh-oh. IW play on. It was very hard to seperate the colors that day :D

block/charge
 

Many years ago after a made basket, I became the new trail. A1 inbounds the ball and was being pressed by B1 right in front of Team B's bench. I called block on B1 and their bench went crazy on what I thought was a routine block call. The problem was that Team A had just made the basket therefore, Team B should have had the subsequent throwin.

Team A coach, A1 and my partner all agreed with the call????? It was embarrassing.

First year of HS scholastic games; first boys JV game:

Someone in the stands yells "White" on an out of bounds call right in front of me that was tap/tap by both teams. I go with "White", and my uncertainty must have been obvious as I got a mock "cheer" from that section of the stands as well as a "we'll help you out on the next one too" comment for the whole gym to hear.

And while this was happening, as I replayed the sequence in my mind, I was more and more certain that the ball was in fact tapped out of Blue's hands by White and should have been Blue ball. If the crowd had not said anything, I almost certainly would have had it the other way.

That was my worst call, not because it was the worst call ever (it was a close play) but because I had let the crowd affect my calls -- pretty much the only time I can think where that has happened. I learned pretty quick that I needed to "sell" my questionable calls the most ... and to fight the instinct to mirror what you hear yelled from the stands.

I had something similar. My first year, I called a dribbler out of bounds for stepping on a volleyball line near the end line. :o

It wasn't me, but I nominate the blarvel.

I think we've probably all called a violation on the wrong line once or twice in our careers, especially on the some of the 'multi-purpose' gyms with a main court, 2 side courts, a volleyball court (or two, or three), et al.

I have a hard time coming up with a specific "worst" call, but I do one specific instance my first year. I was the lead, post player on the block got absolutely mugged on a try attempt (could've probably considered a flagrant). I froze. Eventually, my brain said "THAT'S A FOUL! WHY DIDN'T SOMEONE CALL IT?"

About 3 seconds later I remembered that I was supposed to be the one calling it.

Did this little number a few years ago in one of my first varsity games.

A1 shoots and misses. Long rebound gathered by A2 on the run towards the time line (in the direction of the division line). I'm the lead and break towards the other end as if team B collected the rebound.

Coach of team A says, "Hey, where are you going!".

:o

Year 1. Called an inbound violation when the inbounder stepped on the thick endline (12 inch endline). She started behind it and when she stepped forward she stepped on it, but was still 8+ inches from the actual OOB line. Thank goodness it was a MS game and no one said a word. It was a definite face-palm moment though.

This was quite a few years ago. I had just finished some men's wreck games at a local "public" gym. Portland's WNBA team at the time was on the other end of the gym having a practice. Their coach came over to me and my partner and asked us if we could stay to work a scrimmage between their team and a bunch of gym rats (men) they recruited. We 'd each get $50 in cash and they would play for 30 minutes. We said sure.

So.....what was my bad call? This was a pro team and in the first 60 seconds I called a travel. :D

x 2
 

I did this one too in one of my earliest MS games.

But, of course my ALL TIME FAVORITE was in my first game ever (B10U Rec) as I twice granted a TO when requested by the Coach by "Ting him up." I mean, who knew that wasn't the right signal.......oh yeah, my P knew, laughed at me, and let me have it half time! :rolleyes:

Stupid volleyball lines. :mad:

Probably my 3-4th year in basketball I was doing a freshman 5 quarter game (game ends after 4, but they play a 5th Q with the reserves).

Game is tight the whole way between two rivals. PG for the home team late in 4Q gets bumped slightly and falls to the ground, but keeps his dribble going. It wasn't a foul, but for some reason once he hit the ground I blew the travel. Player, coach and fans were up in arms about it and what's weird was that I knew the rule, but for some reason still called in a travel.

For whatever reason, despite knowing the rule, I didn't want to reverse myself and call an inadvertant whistle so the call stuck. Next time down the court we are shooting FTs and I'm the trail. PG comes up to me and asks how was that a travel and I say "It wasn't I kicked the call." So he then yells to his coach across the court "Coach, he says he kicked the call!"

I guess I deserved that outburst across the court...consider it pennance. On the plus side I've never screwed up the travel rule like that again!

Had a 'dog pile' on the basketball and decided a jump ball was necessary. Of course by the time I blasted my whistle the ball has rolled out and is loose as a goose in front of God and everyone. In a gym of 400 people or so I was the only one who didn't know where the basketball actually was. Lesson learned.

Seven Second Violation ???
 

Once continued a five second inbounding count into a ten second backcourt count, without "resetting" in between. Called the ten second violation after only seven seconds had ticked off the clock, ending up charging the irate coach with a technical foul, and only figured out what I had done wrong on the ride home.

Otherwise. I've had a perfect record over thirty-two years. No other mistakes. Perfect I tell you. Just perfect. You can look it up.

Where? :p

Just Use The Search Feature ...
 

Right here:

http://forum.officiating.com/basketb...tml#post883560

Fortunately, I haven't ruled any long VB shots "in" because I was using the basketball lines.

Just last year
 

Eighth grade boys game between two rival schools. I am with a partner who was literally working her first (and possibly last) game. She has called a couple of out of bounds, but other than that, her whistle is purely for decoration.

In overtime and tied, I look at the clock -- exactly 1:00 to go. Play is getting really physical inside, but nothing from my partner who is underneath. Suddenly, there is a loose ball, everybody is scrambling, bodies flying and a thought pops into my little pinhead ... "Get control!" So I call a very ticky-tack foul. I look up at the clock. There is a half-second to go. That 1:00 I saw was actually 10.0 seconds. Just a brutal, terrible call in that situation.

We go down to the other end, kid makes a free throw, game over. I feel like throwing up. Fortunately, the losing coach is a great guy and actually refs quite a bit. He actually put his arm around me and said "forgetaboutit." Bless his heart.

Way back when I was, well, less than 20, I was working one of my first half dozen games ever with a guy who had worked maybe one or two more games than I had. It was a middle school game, and we had a player get fouled and injured.

I convinced my partner that any player on the court could shoot the free throws when a player was too injured to shoot. I have no idea where I got that idea, but we went with it until we got back to our dorm room and looked it up.

This is pretty easy for me. I was trying to explain to a coach during a live ball that a player can gather the ball and slide to a stop after diving on the floor. While I was talking, the other team stepped out of bounds. It was close, but pretty clear. Since I was trying to talk to the coach and not paying enough attention to what I was supposed to be doing, I don't blow my whistle.

If it was indeed her last game, that means 100% of all the games she ever worked went into OT. :eek:

I think I just passed out. :o

In my first game... after telling myself pre-game I wouldn't be a ball-watcher, I end up ball-watching into my partners primary and see players fighting for control of the ball in the first half.

I blow my whistle for a held ball -- only to be told by my partner it was two players from the same team going after for the ball :eek:. I ended up calling a travel instead and wondered later if maybe I should have just gone with an inadvertent whistle. :o

At least the experience was enough to help break me of my ball watching habit.

I'm gonna have to think about this one. I've done the wrong line thing before...on a backcourt violation.

I think there was one time, my first year, doing a middle school game. We let a kid shoot technical free throws at the wrong basket. Didn't realize it until after.

I once had a first year partner, might have been his second game ever. He had worked some football though. When a coach requested timeout, he waved his arms over his head. Couldn't help but give him a hard time about that one.

Wait, do intramurals count? I could post a novel of bad calls from those days. (Nothing is more challenging than officiating your peers, when you're barely an adult yourself.)

My favorite: I'm put into an "A" level game, which means varsity athletes from other sports. I'm the lead, and one big dude (former starting quarterback turned pitcher in his senior year) gets hammered by two guys during a lay-up. Easy foul call.

Except, I don't call it. Rationale: I couldn't tell which guy actually fouled him. The QB/P was pretty irate at me, and I don't blame him.

I call those fouls now, and get paid a little better than those days. I'm certain that old QB still barks at officials from time to time, but he gets paid a little better. He's now the head football coach at Old Dominion.

I Thought That It Was Just A Myth ???
 

The proverbial multiple foul?

Two bad call stories:

A) I was the other official. I was working a game where a buddy of mine coaches the home team. Best player on home team is referred to by his coach a Captain Fake Hustle. To avoid actually playing d he will stab and dive at balls he has no chance of getting or that are already out of bounds to make it look like he's working. Will step in as if taking a charge but bail out at any contact at all. Partner has warned him a couple of times about flopping. He's defending the ball as part of a trap. Defended player puts head and shoulders down and pivots hard ripping head/shoulders/ ball etc. Through the trap. Captain Fake Hustle goes down in a heap. Fans want a PC, partner blows whistle and calls a tech on the kid for flopping. Crowd goes nuts, kid stands up spits out a mouthful of blood and a tooth on partners' shoe. Gets teched up for unsportsmanlike conduct. Ruh-Roo Shaggy.

B) Was working down in the US at a girls tournament AAU. THey were apparently using NCAA W rules. I'ld only ever worked FIBA and some NFHS. Early in my first game team A is beng pressued in their backcourt. I call an 8 sec violation for not getting the ball pas the timeline. Everyone the gym starts freaking out. My partner runs in and reminds me that there is no such thing as a 8 sec back court violation in the States and for good measure makes sure to remind me there is no 10 either. No time violations at all in NCAA W for advancing the ball past the timeline. I laughed apologized to the coach, my bad. Inadvertent whistle.

NOt the worst but toughest
 

This is not the worst call ever made, but my toughest. I am a doctor. Two weeks ago a 31 year old man comes into my office because of a 10' fall. He thought he had broken his ribs. The CT scan showed he did break 4 ribs, but the CT scan showed something else. I had to look into this man's eyes, a husband and a father of 3 young children, and tell him that the CT scan showed he had lung cancer and it has spread to his adrenal glands and kidneys. Not a very good prognosis. It put all my officiating into perspective. Great calls, toughest calls, easy calls, and worse calls. When you tell a man that his life is over, basically, my worst calls in any games did not compare to this call. Moral of the story, keep the game in perspective, work hard, and count your blessings. I counted mine - my faith, family, friends, and health. I am able to officiate still is an added blessing - great calls and worse calls.

I know an official who got run over in a football game a few years back and a scan for broken ribs ended up diagnosing the lung cancer that eventually killed him.

What we do is a passion for us, it's important to us, but in the end it's just a game.

Wow.

Thanks for sharing and putting it all in perspective. But for the grace of God...

Hey Doc, thanks for killing this thread. :)

Thank you for sharing this. Helps keep things in their proper place in my life.

OMG........just after I tossed, I did that in a GV game, purged it until you just reminded me;)

Boys' freshman game, two-shot free throw. Lane violation by the shooter on the first throw. Ball goes out of bounds to the opponent because in my mind:

If the first or only violation is by the free thrower or a teammate, the ball becomes dead when the violation occurs and no point can be scored by that throw. The following out-of-bounds provisions apply IF no further free throws are to be administered:
a. If the violation occurs during a free throw for a personal foul, other than intentional or flagrant, the ball is awarded to the opponents for a throw-in from the designated out-of-bounds spot nearest the violation

Somehow I didn't see the if part of that penalty. Coach went ape-stuff! :o

worst call ever
 

must have been 10 yrs ago, at least.

JV game Lake Forest HS (IL).

i called a phantom foul on the center, it was his 5th.

it was Bill Cartwrite's son.

opps. sorry.

refprof

2nd game I ever worked. Boys freshman game (2 whistle) about 17 years ago. I was working with our local assigner and he told me before the game that he thought I would be a potential up and comer and he wanted to work with me to feel me out.

I called 5 seconds in the back court. I had a simultaneous whistle with my partner who was calling time-out. He closed in on me and asked "what do you have" and I said "5-seconds", he said "no you don't" and granted the timeout. During the timeout he politely explained you couldn't have 5 seconds in the backcourt..........which I knew, but allowed myself to get flustered. Then, about 5 minutes later the same coach was calling a timeout as a player was in jeopardy of getting a real closely guarded call and he was on the floor yelling to get my attention as I was too locked in on the play to notice him before he got onto the court. As I spun around to grant the timeout, I showed the "T" signal and he immediately sat down embarrassed. Once again, my partner came in and told everyone it was a time out and the coach looked up at me and smiled. He sincerely thought I T'd him for being on the floor and was mortified originally.

When I start getting arrogant about my officiating ability, assignments I receive, college conferences I get to work in (NAIA & D-II, not D-I) I think back to how much help I was given and how good the coaches really were to me when I was starting out. I will admit that I let my ego get the best of me at times, but it seems when I get that way, I run into a coach that gave me a shot or an old partner that tought me the tools to get to where I have gotten. I had a moment like this at our state tournament last week and this thread was my reminder once again that I am not nearly as good or important as I allow myself to think at times............

1968, Jr High boys game: great game, ends 77-78. Visitors' coach tells his kids to grab their stuff from the lockerroom, and get on the bus - they can change on the bus.
As I'm about to sign the book, the scorekeeper tells me she can't find the 78th point for the winning team. I send my partner to stop the bus, but he comes back and was unable to do so.
When everybody asks me what we should do, I say, "Who was the high point man on the team that we all thought won?" . . . "Give him one more point, and close the book." None of the coaches or players involved will ever know.

The Blarge with myself!!
 

First year of reffing, intramurals, and I had a Blarge (didn't know the term at the time) with myself. I called the block b/c the defense didn't have position and the offense for lowering his shoulder and running the kid over. Don't remember the outcome, although I know no Ts.

In summerball one time I called a fan a dumbass and then ejected him for coming on the court after me! :eek: