PI mechanics question, 4-man crew

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by zm1283

Why use that crutch? We would never actually say this in baseball or basketball when working 2-man, so why can it be used in football?

You have obviously not been around very long if you have never heard that used in other sports. It has been used in baseball when coaches complain when the 1st base umpire calls a swing on a left handed batter or when a play at first has two umpires away from first base to rule on a tag play on a bad throw. I had a coach complain in basketball that we should have had 3 officials in a summer tournament with several All-Americans playing in the championship game. And yes in my area we use 3 officials for almost every varsity game and wonder why they go 2 person in some conferences with some of the best players is silly. I have also never worked a varsity game on purpose with 4 officials in my entire 15 plus years’ career. And when I started teams ran mostly option or at best a pro style offense where there were only about two wide outs at most. That situation needed 5 officials with the speed of the players and the passing that took place at that time.

I always have a problem when people expect the game called but are not willing to pay or hire the standard at the other levels. I work 7 in college and I cannot imagine working that game with less than that number. The game is too fast and now you want expect 4 to cover things that is hard for 5 officials in the best of situations.

Peace