Official Injured in Motor City Bowl

[Johnny Cakes]

Back judge Terry Jones was injured in the Motor City Bowl tonight and an alternate official had to take his place. His condition was not updated, although it didn't appear that serious (hopefully).

Brings me to a question as a newbie who is potentially starting traning this Spring to become an official:

I work for myself to put food on the table for my family -- if I don't work, I don't get paid, simple as that. Don't have "sick leave." Man, even a sprained ankle would really mess up my ability to work.

After seeing Jones taken out of the game, I got to thinking about Charlie Weis and Joe Paterno, just were just standing on the sidelines when they got so whacked they can't walk now. So I got to thinking that maybe I'm being selfish and not thinking about my family with my plan to get involved with officiating.

Granted anyone can get run over by a bus or drunk driver tomorrow, but I don't want to take undue risks when I have kids to support. Is it often that officials get injured or a complete fluke? What's the "most dangerous" position or "safest" position on the crew?

[voiceoflg]

Originally Posted by Johnny Cakes

What's the..."safest" position on the crew?

Clock operator?

[ljdave]

IMHO, you needn't go into officiating thinking there is a "most dangerous" position, because chances are that the crew will just put you in whatever vacancy they have. If you are in good physical condition (I've issued myself the challenge of being in the best shape of my adult life, this coming fall) and learn proper technique, injuries are rare.

My own perspective, I've officiated HS for 10 years (9 on a varsity crew) and have seen one official go down with an injury (No contact with players - tore a muscle in his calf) and one official have to sit out a few series (Newbie line judge went down-field on a sweep instead of trailing the play, and got wiped out by pursuers). In contrast, seems like a player gets injured every game or two. My own two worst injuries: Bruised arm and bruised ego.......

[TXMike]

The bj is least likely to get run into but due to the great speeds he moves and sudden shifts he has to make while moving backwards, he still is in danger of self-induced injury.

[JugglingReferee]

Originally Posted by Johnny Cakes

Back judge Terry Jones was injured in the Motor City Bowl tonight and an alternate official had to take his place. His condition was not updated, although it didn't appear that serious (hopefully).

Brings me to a question as a newbie who is potentially starting traning this Spring to become an official:

I work for myself to put food on the table for my family -- if I don't work, I don't get paid, simple as that. Don't have "sick leave." Man, even a sprained ankle would really mess up my ability to work.

After seeing Jones taken out of the game, I got to thinking about Charlie Weis and Joe Paterno, just were just standing on the sidelines when they got so whacked they can't walk now. So I got to thinking that maybe I'm being selfish and not thinking about my family with my plan to get involved with officiating.

Granted anyone can get run over by a bus or drunk driver tomorrow, but I don't want to take undue risks when I have kids to support. Is it often that officials get injured or a complete fluke? What's the "most dangerous" position or "safest" position on the crew?

In 12 seasons, including 3 at the NCAA level (Cdn equiv.), I have been hit once of any significance, and two other times where a leg brushed my person.

I've never had an errant ball hit me. I come from a basketball officiating background, so I did learn quite well how to stay out of the way.

I don't know about Paterno, but Weis was in the wrong area when he should have known better. I won't say that he deserved what he got, but he has nobody to blame except for himself.

In football officiating, I think the U has the greatest risk of being hit, and therefore of also being injured. As a side guy, I have never been close to being injured, except for that one play in a college game. It was my first year, and was my second game. I knew the game was faster, but man, I didn't really get it until I was on-field.

[waltjp]

There's an inherent risk in any physical activity. Officiating is no different.

In the 18 years I've officiated football and baseball I've received my share of bumps and bruises - most of them from foul balls while working the plate in baseball. The most significant injury I suffered was a sprained ankle while working a baseball game about 10 years ago.

I've received many more injuries as a player than as an official.

[OverAndBack]

I don't think you're any more or less likely to get hurt and lose your earning potential officiating football than doing most other leisure activities.

Then again, if you have that in the back of your mind and you're going to be skittish about it, you just might.

If you are a reasonably healthy adult male, fairly ambulatory, your limbs work, you don't have periods where you zone out, the blood flows everywhere in your body that it's supposed to, there's no reason to be really worried about getting hurt out there.

If you have none of those things, you can still be an umpire.


(BTW, Joe Paterno is eleventymillion years old! And Charlie Weiss is about as mobile as your basic national monument. Unless you're a complete statue, don't worry about what happened to them happening to you.)

On my crew, my umpire has taken a couple of hits in the past couple of years only because the action moved so fast he couldn't get out of the way, and he's a very mobile guy. Maybe took a bruise or two, otherwise he was fine.

Once when I was working subvarsity, the white hat got run over by a LB chasing the QB (white hat was moving with the flow like he should). I was covering the pass and didn't see the hit. After calling the incomplete pass and retrieving the ball, I saw people running to the backfield like a tornado had hit and saw my white hat was down. I ran over there, and by time I got there, he was asking me if anyone got the license plate of that truck. I told everyone he's fine, he jumped up and we went on like nothing happened.

[Theisey]

Umpires usually are the ones who take some hits, so be carefull if asked to work that position.

Here's a video from a game played just a couple months ago in Western NY area (Buffalo area). YouTube - ref ran over

Nasty looking, but he was OK by the next day.