How to ignore

[mcrowder]

Surprised I got all the way to wisref's post before reading what I was thinking in the initial post.

Ignore, ignore, ignore, ignore, and then "Maybe I should twist your ankle!" - I think I'd be giving serious consideration to stopping the game and having the coach/admin/police get him out of there. Physical threats are a completely different animal from your regular heckling. We did just the same for "I'm gonna kick your @$$" being shouted out at us/me - granted, this was not a V game, but a much lower level, but still...

[GBFBUmp]

In a Varsity game a few weeks ago, at a small NE WI school, I was LJ. Normally an Ump, I miss most comments from the fans. In this case, the visiting team was getting beat, and in a poor disposition. I had the home team side, stands are real close to field and many fans simply stand behind a rope to watch the game. At one point when visitors were starting to get cheap in the 4th, I hear someone behind me yell "Start a fight with 'em Brad" , directed at a home team player to start a fight.
At a small school like this, a comment like that can be heard on the entire field.
It sure sounded like it was from right at the end of the players box. I immediatedly turned to the coach and gave him a warning. He said it was a fan and apologized. I told him that I wouldn't have any of that, and another instance will be USC on him. Didn't have any problems after that.

As an aside, we had to switch from 5-man to 4-man in 3rd qtr due to the linesman going down with a deep calf pull from a sideline play. This seemed to irritate the visiting coach, but quite honestly we worked it like a well oiled machine. Linesman is back to normal.

[kdf5]

I like the idea of a conversation with the coach and glances at the heckler. That will come in handy sometime. I've heard the fries comment before but forgot it. It is funny though. A couple of weeks ago we were doing a varsity game. I noticed a visiting fan behind the EZ. No one else was there but him and he had a camera. A few plays later, he's leaning up against one of the goal posts! I motioned for him to back off and he did but what an ignat!

[simpson]

Humorous heckler:

I hate to give this guy his due, but ...

My first playoff game I ever worked was on a beautiful Saturday afternoon and the home team had "accidentally" watered the field all night long. There were mud puddles everywhere. You guessed it, the visitors were a speed team and the home team was a power team.

Anyway, half-way through the game an RB for the home team gets hurt. While the trainers were attending to him, one of the trainers turns to the bench and yells, "bring him some water."

Right then, so everyone in the entire place can hear it, a heckler in the visiting stands yells, "Why don't you just turn the d@mn sprinklers back on."

Honestly, I tried my best to "just ignore him," but it was real hard not to laugh.