New Official!
 

I'm currently a full-time student at Clemson University majoring in financial management. I'm 22 years old and have been married for about 16 months. I plan on graduating in August of next year. My beautiful wife graduated this past May in civil engineering and works nearby.

I'm in the middle of applying to be a high school official for next fall. The South Carolina Football Official's Association (SCFOA) is looking for new and young officials, so it seems that I'm pretty much in.

I love the game of football. It's the best game in the world. I've never had the chance to play organized ball, so I'm excited about getting on the field. I never really thought much about being an official up until the past year or so. My wife's cousin, who is much older thatnus, has been an official for about 6 or 7 years and he always talks about officiating when we're at family events. Also, this past summer, I read a book by former SEC official Dick Burleson titled "You Better Be Right". It's a great read and it pretty much pushed me over the edge to pursue officiating.

In hopes of gaining some sort of officiating experience before applying, I decided to officiate intramural flag football here at Clemson. It's 7 on 7 flag football, so the rules are vastly different, but I think the experience helped get my feet wet.

I've got my NFHS rule book and have been reading fairly often. I'm just trying to absorb as much as possible. The SCFOA publishes the exam grades for each official, and it seems that I'd be doing awesome if I got a 70 on my first attempt. Yikes. Does every state officials association take a standard NFHS exam or is each state's exam different?

I'm looking forward to learning a lot about football and getting on the field. If anyone has any advice for me then I'd greatly appreciate it. Sorry for the length of the post.

Welcome to the group. You will quickly find that you have decided to join a fraternity of sorts.

Well, you will learn a lot by reading forums like these. The best thing about these boards is that it encourages you to get into the rule and case books and really dig through what each rule is about. You will hear this many times, but focus on rule 2. This may seem boring and pointless, but once you understand the definitions, you will be able to read the rest of the book more clearly.

Also, I maintain a web site that has numerous resources from mechanics presentations to word documents. Check these out. Lots of knowledge there. You might also want to check out this board:http://www.nfhs.org/cgi-bin/ultimate...?ubb=forum&f=9 as it deals mainly with Fed ball. Last, search these boards for "new official" or something like that. There have been many threads similar to this and we might overlook something.

Again, welcome to the group. You will find that once you start officiating, you never watch the game the same again.

Welcome Mike. This is a great place for information. Read everything you can. Ask questions. When you see situations posted here try to answer for yourself before reading the replies. There's a great group here. Enjoy!

I was in almost the exact situation as you a year ago, in my last year of college, never really played football, but really wanted to get into officiating (due to a friend who loved doing intramurals whos dad did some NFL a way back). I unfortunatly only had a chance to do one year of 7on7 intramurals, but just that's a good expereince. The pace of the game in high school is much faster, and much rougher. Make sure you work as many preseason games, jamborees, etc, even if they are unpaid. Know the rules, read all three books over and over and over. I worked hard and actually got some varsity games my first year. You probably shouldn't expect that in your first year unless your area is in great need, but don't let that keep you out. All the games even at lower levels are just as fun, and a great learning experience. And as everyone else says, welcome!

Congrats on making the transition from flag to tackle football. The first time you see a guy get tackled, you may be tempted to throw a penalty flag. Don't. Other than that, flag is a great way to learn a lot of the rules and mechanics of reffing football.

A few pieces of advice I have.

*Use this board.
*Watch as much football as you can. If you aren't working varsity games your first year, find out who is, call up the R and ask if you can sit in on the pre-game then watch the game from the field. You can learn a lot from the things you'll see and what you can ask the LJ/HL during the game.
*Know the rules. If you're starting off working PeeWee or similar football, learn the crazy local rules, too - that's what gets coaches the most ticked off.
*If you get the chance, work as the White Hat for a few of your games.
*Work as many games as you can. My local association, for example, required 1st year officials to work 3 free JV/freshman games to be evaluated. However, if you weren't assigned on a given afternoon, you could just go and work as a 4th (or sometimes 5th) man. Very few refs will turn down that extra set of eyes.

Best of luck, Mike. You're at a really good stage of your life to start reffing (I'm 23 and wish I could continue, unfortunately schooling comes first).

Welcome from just up the road in NC
 

Order the Redding's Study Guide for NFHS rules- it'll come out around May, I think. Honig's sells it or you can order direct from S&S Distributors. This book has helped me greatly in my rules studies. The new Rules by Topic put out by the Fed and available from Referee magazine is pretty handy too.

Work as many scrimmages/games as your new bride can stand:eek:
Experience is the best teacher.

I read once where Jerry Markbreit, former NFL official, studied the rule book every free moment he had, including bathroom breaks.

Pick out an official who seems knowledgable and helpful and hang out with him as much as you can.

If you go to Clemson games, train your eye on the officials and watch how they move and act. While their mechanics will be different since they are working 7 man crews, you can get a feel for how to operate.

Good luck!

I echo what everyone else here says. One of the best reasons to work lower level games is the rules cover a lot of very odd situations that are much more likely to happen in youth and sub-varsity games but not as often in varsity games. You can read the rule and case books 1000 times but unless you've had some of these situations happen on the field they won't sync in. Better to have that experience in a lower level game than on Friday night in front of 1000s of people.

I believe most states use the NFHS exam for licensing. I'v heard the average pass rate of the exam is about 45%. The reason for that is most people assume they've been watching football for years, the test is true/false, you can use the rule book, how hard can it be? It's a very challenging exam but passable if you are prepared. Our local association has developing a training program focused entirely on preparing new officials for the exam. It's now about 6 years old and we've seen about a 90% pass rate overall with close to 100% each of the past 2 years. We are averaging about 15-20 new officials each year so the progam has been a huge success.

I'm sure it's all different. I was told in PIAA (Pennsylvania) they take the NFHS exam to become certified. In New Jersey you need to go through a 2-year cadet program (some chapters might be 1) where all you work is freshman and JV games. You take weekly tests and take a "local exam" at the end of the year. If, at the end of the 2nd year you pass the local (80 or better) you get the right to take the state exam.

My local was approx. 8 pages of multiple choice, case questions, signals, etc. When I took my state test it was 3-hour, 16-page exam pretty much the same format as the local. Only the certified officials take the NFHS test each year before they're allowed to take the field.

Thank you all for the kind words.

The only thing I regret is not applying during the Fall when I first got interested. They probably would have let me stand on the sidelines of some games to watch the officials.

The SCFOA's policy on the exam is that if you get a passing grade of 70 or higher, you can work varsity games even in your first year. However, looking at the exam scores and the years of experience for those officials, it seems even getting a 70 would be pretty tough. I think I'm getting a nice head start on the exam, though, by reading the rule book and checking out forums like this.

Also, it seems that my state has officials work one position for an entire season and stay there. I was hoping to work all the positions, and maybe I'll get that chance in sub-varsity games, but I'm not sure. I know they probably want each official to master one position, but I'd like to get experience everywhere.

Another thing: It's my goal to make it to the SEC or ACC one day. I know there's a good chance that I may never get that opportunity. I realize this would take a lot of hard work, dedication, and patience, but what should I tell my district director about this goal? I don't want to sound like I'm some punk kid that thinks he knows it all and is just going to breeze through high school officiating and then take-off at the first opportunity. Should he expect officials to want to work at the college level? How do I make it known that that's my overall goal without appearing arrogant?

One thing you'll learn when you work for a while is that years of experience doesn't mean a whole lot regarding rules and mechanics. I've seen guys with 25 years of bad. If you have lofty expectations you NEED to know the rules. It will be expected of you. 70% on an exam won't cut it.

Study the definitions in Rule 2. Read every single post on these boards regarding a rules question and try to come up with the answer yourself. Even if you know the answer, look it up and see the exact rulebook phrasing.

Get a mentor who will challenge you even during the off season. Make the rules a year-round exercise and it'll fall into place.

I also probably wouldn't let it be known that you're gunning for the big leagues right away. Work in your high school group for a few years and focus solely on that. Don't even worry about college. You won't be able to start college ball for a while anyway. In some places there is a divide between high school and college guys. The less folks you alienate the better. You never know who might be in a position to help you out some day.

Got ya. If I'm asked, I'll just say, "Yeah I'd like to work in college one day, but that's in the back of my mind. I'm just trying to get better now." And that's true. I've got many years before even being qualified enough to worry about applying to a small college conference.

Here is my advice.

Buy the Redding Study Guide https://thatsitideas.com/doublesdist...onlineform.htm cuz it is awesome. Read it, highlight it, and work as many games as you can.

Go to a clinic or two if you can and any on field stuff at a clinic is a bonus.

This board, and the NF board, http://www.nfhs.org/scriptcontent/va...?ubb=forum;f=9, is a great site that focuses on NF FB. You can learn from reading, looking in the rulebook for answers, posting, and asking your own questions.

A mentor is a great way to go if you have someone who is good and will work with you. Talk to him about things as often as he will let you, via email or phone.

Start watching games and thinking of what the signals and enforcements for fouls that you see happen are before the official comes on and does the signal and enforces the penalty.

HAVE FUN AND NEVER STOP LEARNING OR STUDYING!!! GREAT TO HAVE YOU ABOARD!!

Grant's site has a ton of good stuff. http://home.comcast.net/~minnmo/football.htm

One thing I always tell my 7th graders at school is, "We've gotta crawl before we walk, walk before for we jog...." It's great to have goals and aspirations but like anything else, set them small and obtainable. At this stage in your career, I think getting on a HS varsity crew would be appropriate. Give yourself a few years there then look to the small college level, then after a few years at that, then look to say, NCAA D2.

It is a maturation process. I'm not saying this to spoil your Cherrios or anything, but a reason many new officials don't stay with it is because they expect the world their first few years when that isn't realistic. An article by John Bible in Referee Magazine (good resource BTW) about moving up was great advice and something I read periodically to put my goals in perspective. It is his stance that an official should work a minimum of 5 (it could be 10) seasons of HS varsity before even looking to college. He then said that you should work at least 5 years of lower level college ball before applying for a higher level conference. He also said that many times you only get one shot at moving up. If you are unprepared or misapply a rule, that's your shot.

Again, not trying to rain on the parade or anything but trying to put things in perspective. Patience will take you far.

Besides all the other good advice given above, I recommend the following, to train your eye to watch the players and not the ball. When at a game, watch a different player on each play while not watching the ball or who has the ball. As an official you need to focus on the players, while most spectators watch the ball. This is difficult, if not impossible, watching TV games. Do this when you go to a game, no matter if youth, high school or any other level.

DON’T DO IT MIKE!!! You will never be able to watch a football game as a specter again. You will begin to hate sports announcers. You will start yelling at the TV during games because they do not know the rules. You have to conduct rule clinics every Monday morning at work. You will have to listen to all the horror stories of how your co-work’s son team got screwed by an official Friday night.

You will learn that coaches learn the rules from announcers. And you will learn to ignore them more than you wife. She knows more about the rules than the coaches (see yelling at the TV above). I repeat - DON’T DO IT MIKE!!!

But if you choose ignore my advise, you will make friendships that will last a life time. Good luck!!

Dumbref isn't so dumb. This man speaks the truth!

Start a journal. You mentioned Dick Burleson’s book as a factor in your decision. I was fortunate to meet and work a few scrimmages with Dick before he retired. What a great experience! He would be honored to know he made an impact on your decision.

Dick kept a journal that I am certain was the basis of his book. He recorded every game, listed the officials, scores, funny or unusual tidbits that happened during the game. I wish I had followed his advice and done the same. If nothing else, I would have some great war stories after thirty five years! I even remember a few of them!!

Through the local associationk, try to hook up with an experienced official as a mentor. This might take the form of a crew. Go with the crew to the varsity games that they do and be there for the pre-game, half-time, post-game. Walk the sideline with the wing officials and absorb as much as you can.

I actually sent him an email about officiating several months ago and he emailed me back with some great advice.

My father-in-law and wife are civil engineers, the same occupation as Mr. Burleson. My father-in-law attended a conference in Atlanta about 6 months ago in which Mr. Burleson spoke to the audience. He loved listening to him speak and Mr.Burleson was kind enough to give his book to everyone in the audience that wanted it. My father-in-law knew I loved football so he passed it along to me after he read it and I loved it. I finished it in a day and have reread it a couple time, too.

He seems like a class act. You're lucky to have met him.

I think SC is a little bit different than most states. I just got started here two years ago. The state director creates the exam and it is usually hard. The first year I was in, we had around 8 new officials. I think about half failed. (Those failing get a make up/easy exam, but will probably just get JV games.)

I'm having a blast in the SC organization. If you wish, e-mail me at [email protected] if you have any specific questions.

Mike,

Why shoot for 70%? If you fall a little short on that goal, you fail! It would be like saying that you are only going to polish one shoe. Why not shoot for 100%? You can do it if you try.

Perfection is not attainable, but it makes a nice goal.

Check with the local association first. They might have a class for new officials.

Also, everyone is willing to give advice. Learn who is giving good advice and take it. After you find out who is giving bad advice, act like you are listening to them and smile. Don't make veteran officials look bad in front of others. That never pays off.

My first advice, drop out of that cow college you're attending.

Just kidding. Of course, being a gamecock I have to give you a hard time.

You've gotten some good advice in this thread, not much more I can give you. One thing I would say a new official needs is to be able to take constructive criticism. We've had new officials come in that either were crushed any time you pointed out something they might want to work on, or thought they knew it all and didn't want to hear it.

This gig is all trial and error. Not a single one of us has ever had a perfect game, but we are all striving toward that goal. Listen to the old timers. There is so much more about officiating than what is in the books. Good field presence and judgment takes time and experience, and it takes failure. Learn from your mistakes.

Great that you're getting in at such a young age. I kick myself everyday for not getting in at your age.

But most of all.....HAVE FUN!!!!

Whoa, I never said I was shooting for 70%. I said it appeared, judging from last year's SC's exam scores, I'd be doing good to get a 70. I'm DEFINITELY shooting for perfection. Make no ifs, ands, or buts about it. I'd love to walk in and get the highest score ever for a first-year official. Will it happen? Maybe not, but I'm sure as hell going to try my best.

ChickenofNC, I knew immediately from your name that you had to be a Gamecock fan. Why else would anyone be proud to call themselves a chicken? LOL.

I look forward to your's and everyone else's advice in the future.

REPLY: Welcome Mike. I also saw your post on the NFHS board. These boards can be a great resource when used wisely. Read everything. Eventually, you'll learn which posters bring value to a thread and which don't. Also, don't be discouraged if you don't see a whole lot out there now. There are a few 'knuckleheads' (including yours truly) who keep up with this even during the off-season. But many go into hibernation, only to reappear in August when we begin gearing up for the next season. That's when you'll see a whole lot of activity.

My advice is to keep coming back here. Of all the places to learn the rules, this is one of the best. Sometimes, the other posters on this site use the obscure "once-in-a-lifetime play" to illustrate how all the rules fit together.
This and other forums are great places for all involved in the sport.

Learning to deal with coaches is often difficult for a new official. Learn when they are just venting and when they have a legitimate question. Experience helps here.

Work as much football as you can. Nothing beats experience.

If you watch football on television, don't believe the announcers have it right. :) Very few announcers actually know the rulebook well enough to make informed comments. Also, don't assume that what you see at the NCAA or NFL level applies to Nat Fed. level. There are 400+ differences between Nat Fed and NCAA rules. This is why rules study is so important.

dumbref, my wife wnated to know how I managed to post from your computer when I showed her this: