Illinois: Here come black pants!
 

IHSA - Announcements towards the bottom of the minutes of the meeting.

Are there any other states that allow black pants?

Will your crew adopt black pants this year?

I doubt our crew will use them this year.

Interesting.

Is anyone even offering the cold weather NFL style pant for sale? I haven't seen it (but haven't looked that hard). I wouldn't mind wearing them. I think they look sharp.

We 've discussed this topic some before. I think Penn. allows them already but their version is basically a nylon windsuit style pant. To me, that drawcord waistband inhibits wind pants from being effective.

The NFL pants have grown on me. I could live without the white stripe but I think it looks infinitely better than the contrasting black stripe on white knickers, which I think is atrocious. I would also prefer the pants be a bit more tapered at the ankle or gathered with elastic.
The current baseball pant style- aka "pajama bottoms"- would be something to work off of.

Honig's will probably come out with a version when enough states certify them for use at the high school level. I'd look for the NCAA to pick them up next.

We might. Then again this is something we have yet to talk about. I would be open to the possibility.

Peace

In ND they were allowed last year for the first time. There really is no standard as to what they are. The guys who got them got a pair with a draw string and no belt loops. No stripe. They were some kind of a nylon-type sweat pant. Apparently, they were a pain to keep up. I think too many guys jumped on the bandwagon as if it were the newest fad and now they don't like them very much.

IMHO they looked like they were working a fraternity flag football league, not professional-looking at all. I refused to wear them so the rest of my crew didn't either. I was always warm enough with long Johns on. I think if a white stripe was added, they would look better, giving a 'verticality' to them. Otherwise, they make everyone look fat and dumpy. Kinda like a stereotypical umpire. (OOPS!) :D

Black pants or shorts - all I can say is that I won't wear them. First of all, I don't want to buy them - it's just spending extra money . Second, I don't like them - they look dumb. You can use the same arguments for and against shorts and black pants, but I think they look silly.

Once a state or two adopt this, Honig's will be selling them. That's when I'll consider it, if Wisconsin offers this as an option. Then again, I think we're going to work 1 or 2 Illinois dates again starting in 2010, so maybe....

I've heard from reliable sources, but nothing 'official' yet, NJ will be allowing black pants. Supposedly we have a supplier who is manufacturing all-black pants with two rear pockets and belt loops. Lacrosse officials have been wearing similar 'rain pants' for years. The problem with the lacrosse pants is that they only have a drawstring waist and tend to slide down, especially if you try to hang anything on the your waist.

I think the Black Pants look great;
When they are worn for EITHER the Sunday Adult Flag OR the Saturday Beerball league

I do not like black pants on Sunday
I do not like black pants on Saturday
I do not like black pants on Friday
I do not like black pants on Thursday
I could be convinced to trying black pants in a miserably misty frigid freshman game on a Monday...nah
I do not like black pants on Monday.


I wear enough black in my day job.

I don't know if any of you have seen the July issue of Referee however Cliff Keen is advertising in the front cover for black football official's pants that include belt loops and a zipper and button fly. These pants have a white stripe down the leg.

If you go further into the magazine, they are also advertising the same pants with no stripe for Lacrosse officials. It is only a matter of time before the other manufacturers start making them.

Edit: I just check the CK website and they are not on there yet.

I do not like black pants, Sam I am.

Rev, I thought you were going into Dr Seuss mode there:D

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Anyway, I work for one assigner for youth and Jr High games and he wants black shorts (and pants for cold weather). I bought black softball shorts at Dicks Sporting goods last year. They have 4 pockets and belt loops just like the white shorts, no problems.
I already had black drawstring pants and I wore them 2-3 times last year. To "fix" the problem of them slipping down when loaded with the flag and bean bag I just wore the black shorts under them with the belt and tucked everything into them.

I emailed CK today and here was the response:

"Thank you for your inquiry. The black officiating pants should be posted in sometime in July and will be available in the fall."

Change denomination and you might not have that problem. :D

Peace

You have some inside knowledge about Wisconsin? These pants would be great for the last half of the season. I know some would dislike and avoid them - then again my crew has never (and will never) wear shorts on Friday nights, either. :D

You may pre-order now from Honig's.

Honig's Whistle Stop Online Store - Products

I think I can see them in the picture, but it is hard to tell.

Me too. The zoom (click to make it bigger) on the picture is broken.

I better not buy any Honig's knickers...they don't explicitly say they have belt loops so I would guess they don't have any:rolleyes:

I just saved 50 bucks! I'm not buying black pants.

Don't be too hard on Walt...I think his eyes are just getting old. :eek:

Ewww...those pants almost would make us look like basketball officials with hats on doing football. Just the stripes on the sides are the only thing that makes that picture go away. But still, why screw with tradition?

From my man Jeremy at Honig's:

"They have belt loops that will fit a 1 3/4" belt through them."

REPLY: That's funny.:D

I agree 100%. I like the idea of no football socks (I hate the damn things) and also no tight elastic above the calf area.

HOWEVER: 1) I'm not sure how good these pants look with the narrow striped shirts we wear at the HS/College level -- we've only seen them on the wider striped NFL shirts; and 2) We'll probably only wear them when we wear long sleeves. I've had exactly 1 long sleeve varsity game in the last 3 years. It just doesn't get that cold down here, even in November.

Honigs has these things for pre-order on their front page. You get the length done yourself, which is probably a good idea. No high-waters!

Listen up, kid, anyone who pays attention would know that belt loops are the black pants that are coming available are highly desirable. And I do believe it was YOU that mentioned this in regard to the new CK pants that are coming out soon.

Now, if we follow LDUB's rationale, Honig's should also mention that they have a zippered fly on their knickers or you'd risk getting a pair without them. :rolleyes::rolleyes:

Good guy, Jeremy.

So, Mike, with your pull with the WIAA, how about getting this (and black baseball umpire shirts) pushed through at your next opportunity. :)

You guys in WI can't wear black baseball shirts? That's lame.

Nor can we in Ohio. Sure, we can get a new logo every decade or so, but the shirt has to be navy (AND the undershirt, if visible, red).

remove all bias and....
 

take a serious, objective study of our knickers (personally, I love them). They do look a bit silly, no?
Yes, anyone could wear black "sweatpants", but only committed officials will up the ante with the knickers and silly socks. It does stand us apart, no?

Yep. The state has even gone as far as threaten post-season assignments for those "caught" wearing black shirts.

However, a bulletin written earlier this year suggested navy or black jackets for cold weather.

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So we typically wear 2 combinations here: black jackets OR polo blue shirts -- the uniforms that mean we can wear black hats. What I'd really like to get across is that I don't really hate navy -- I hate having to keep navy hats just for the few HS games a season (like in the playoffs) where I *need* them. I only own 2 navy shirts (plate/base) and 2 navy hats (4-stitch and 6-stitch -- I used to wear an 8-stitch with everything till I got the low profile mask and finally embraced FlexFit after getting 5 hats all sized differently from Honig's).

I've been wearing black bags with everything for a few years now. It's nice not having to have anything else -- I even carry 4 bags with me in case I have a dirty pair so I can use the other pair.

I don't mind the knickers. I asked my umpire last night if we should wear shorts this year for JV/FR games and he laughed at me. Again. We wear knickers for EVERYTHING on my crew. We are very interested in these pants, though. With state approval, we'd be wearing these at least half of our varsity games this season.

For HS ball we're wearing navy for baseball and light blue for softball. No exceptions.

Jackets are to be solid navy only.

I wouldn't mind wearing shorts for early season sub-varsity games. It can be 120 degrees on some fields at the start of the game where I am.

In Trumbull County in Ohio, we ONLY wear knickers on Friday nights. For JV on down, it's shorts and short white socks.

We wear knickers for everything except pre-season scrimmages. I would love the black pants but I'm sure my crew wouldn't change unless it was mandated that we had to.

I'm ready for a change, I like uniform changes. Guess thats why I'm a baseball fan with our 15 shirts!

You know...the more I look at these black knickers, the more I fear looking like a ballet dancer with black leotards. :p

REPLY: Here's the latest description form rthe Honigs Web site:

"100% Wind and water resistant polyester with double stitched seams, zipper fly, tunnel beltloops and 2 set-in rear pockets (one with flap). Black with 11/4” white stripe running from waist to cuff. A great cold weather option when worn in combination with a pair of McDavid or UnderArmour ColdGear compression tights. Sizes S-4X with unfinished length.
Delivery expected Mid-October"

Here come the black pants
 

This is the description if you click on the image:
"100% Wind and water resistant polyester with double stitched seams, zipper fly, tunnel beltloops and 2 set-in rear pockets (one with flap). Black with 11/4” white stripe running from waist to cuff. A great cold weather option when worn in combination with a pair of McDavid or UnderArmour ColdGear compression tights. Sizes S-4X with unfinished length
Delivery expected Mid-October"

OOPS Sorry Bob M.

We also understand Gerry Davis will be carrying the black pants too.

:( This doesn't do many of us a whole h#ll lot of good. Usually by then, in some places, it's cold enough to go to the heavy stuff, especially in parts of the country where the weather is really fickle. Heck, even in late September, we had a game where it was warm enough to go short sleeves at the beginning of the game, but we all switched to long sleeves at halftime because the temperature dropped big time.

If they are the same pants the NFL wears, material wise (at least when they first came out), they are the same material as the Honigs elite knicker. There is a misconception that the material is similar to that of Reebok wind or sweat pants and that isn't the case.

I vote that all umpires be required to where black pants in every game. Remember, black is slimming!

I know some white hats who could use the slimming look.

While we're at it, let's give IQ tests to the referees. :D

Hey! I resemble that remark!

I'm with Rich on this. Welpe, you're now on notice!

WHERE would you like us umpires to WEAR the black pants, Counselor? :D

Had black pants been available 10 years ago, my crew probably would have been wearing them already. White knickers, along with the Northwestern hose, as traditional as they might be...well...they suck!

I attended the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Officials Conference in Peoria on July 17-18. Gerry Davis Sports (GDS) was present at the conference, and among many items of apparel and equipment were samples of their football black pants on display. They are not yet listed on the GDS website, so it you want to pre-order now, you will have to call their 800 number.

These pants are very similar to the GDS baseball pants. They come in even sizes, un-hemmed pants legs, zippered front, with belt loops, and yes, with the white strip down the side of each leg. I tried one of their samples on and found them very comfortable. They have a heavy duty adjustable buckle on each side of the belt-loop waist band, making the size adjustable for about 1½ inches on each side (3 inches total). This is a great feature for those of us whose uniforms seem to shrink from one year to to the next. The pants are constructed so that that if you need to adjust them in, they won't pucker along the side.

GDS has these pants listed at $47.15. But if you are an Illinois official, GDS will offer a 7.5% discount to all IHSA registered officials on all there apparel & equipment, bring the cost of the pants down to $43.61 + shipping. I was told by a GDS representative that they would be shipping them sometime in the 2nd week of September.

Yes, my crew will be wearing them just as soon as they arrive.

My crew will consider wearing them if they have a stripe and belt loops.

If no stripe, then we will wear them for junior high flag football games,which is about as professional as they appear.