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Chain Crew Questions
Hi all. I made my first venture into this forum as a PA announcer for a junior college, and now I'd like to ask a few questions from my high school day job position.
Yesterday, as I ran the clock for our final frosh home game, I couldn't help but realize that our game had the worst chain crew operation I think I've ever seen. Now of course, I know in my area that we're always seemingly recruiting kids out of the stands 15 minutes before gametime to do this at the 9th/JV level, and this year, it's just seemingly been a disaster not only at our home games, but at a couple of the below V road games I was at also. One of our goals for next year is to get interested students to do PA for below Varsity games, and yesterday it hit me that it might be a good idea to do the same sort of thing to get some good kids that would be interested to make them a full-time chain crew. Even though this will be for next year, I don't know how active this forum is in off-season, so I thought I'd put this out there now so I'll be ready to go when it is time. Any input from you guys is appreciated as to what areas I should focus on when I attempt to implement this during the Spring Scrimmages. I made a quick list of some basic common sense things like staying focused and remembering safety. Specifics that I could get into training would be great. Thanks in advance for your comments! |
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A few of our local schools have the same kids for every game. They are interested, they hustle and they're fun to have on the sidelines.
http://www.nfhs.org/core/contentmana...structions.pdf is a good document for them. |
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I could never understand why schools with huge $$ budgets could not find some cash to pay trained chain crews for the games.
Most kids might work at sub varsity level just for some food and drink at the concession stand at 1/2 time or at the end of the game.
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Keep everything in front of you and have fun out there !! |
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One thing that really does is slow games down. A combination of slow administration and oversolicitousness toward the coaches, along with late arrivals (of everyone) has caused some of our multi-game youth football matches to be shortened by darkness. Games with 8 minute quarters and hardly any passing have lasted 2 hours, even with a shortened half time interval. Robert |
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Frankly I prefer adults on a chain crew. Many of the middle schools in our area use teachers/staff members. Don't know if they require it or sweeten the pot with a stipend but they seem to work out the best.
One notch above worse than kids is parents. Kids get distracted but parents try to coach and tend to want to question everything going on. I don't mind answering a question if its put to me in a civil way but when I have to start issuing warnings to my chain crew, its more trouble than its worth. The only chain crew I ever fired was a group of varsity players at a MS game who plainly showed they were more interested in anything going on besides what their coach had sent them to do. Flirting with the girl managers on the visiting sideline and moving the box on an incomplete pass were the straws that broke my camel's back. |
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My one complaint as a down box handler is lack of a definite spot by the wing. I want a clear tap on the calf, rather than just ambling backward toward the sideline. If you want to give me a mark and then change it, that's fine, just reset yourself and tap the calf again. We had a poorly lined field that may have resulted in the wing's being noncommittal about the spot. Also, I'm holding that mark until you give me a definite signal to move. Yes, I can see that we're moving way down there, but I don't think it's my place to act on that until you wave me off the old mark. Robert |
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Robert |
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I'll come to the sideline on first down but after that you get my heel to mark off of. I don't tap anything.
Some college level HL, SEC I know has some, don't even do that. They let the box just spot off the ball. |
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I have had a couple of times where the local crew cheats the visiting team. They'd spot the box at the back of the ball for the visitors and the front for the home. Since then, when I run the chains I set the box every play. I've even done a game where the chain crew had to be replaced. They were drunk and tried to pick a fight with an assistant coach on the visiting team. I don't know what happened to the guys, but we never saw them again. |
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Pope Francis |
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And from other stories I have heard, there are home crews that do this, so we are told to mark the box every time and keep our eyes on it. This problem is not being handled by the AD's at these schools, so we takes steps ourselves to keep it fair. By marking the box everytime we are being preventative. Not that it should matter, but I'd also like to note that these are B sized schools (the smallest schools in the most remote locations in the state). I've never had this occur at the larger schools. Quote:
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Robert |
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