Reporting Penalties

[wwcfoa43]

Originally Posted by Reffing Rev.

No, I'm not a coach, never have been, can't stand them.

But I do firmly believe that if an official can't tell me who was holding, blocked in the back, or committed pass interference, that he may have guessed he saw a foul based on seeing half a play, the coaches or fans reactions, or his own anticipation.

You tell me why an official should be excused from getting a number?

I've never heard an official with a mic say, "Holding, someone on white, 10 yards," because officials as you move up the ladder, get numbers. I want my crew to get numbers.

It is a matter of priorities. I recall one of my early college games where it was so muddy that the players were covered in mud by the end of the game. I had a legitimate holding call but spent so much focus trying to ascertain what number the player was that I did not get where the ball went dead. On the play I had three things to do (amongst others): call the foul, get the number and mark forward progress. However, two of the three (foul and forward progress) were more important than the number and so should have received the higher priority.

Are we responsible for getting a number? Yes. But you cannot conclude that a lack of number means the official does not have a foul.