Football
3 “When In Doubt” Judgment Guidelines
According to Webster, judgment is the ability to make a decision. An official’s judgment calls will be questioned more often than his or her...
Focus on Free Kicks
You are the referee for tonight’s game. You have completed the pregame conference with your crew, met with the head coaches and conducted the coin toss. Now you hustle...
More Than a Dozen Intentional Acts Are Possible
When the word “intentional” is mentioned, the first thing that springs to the mind of most football officials is intentional grounding. However, intent plays a role in many more...
Plays Not Seen Often Challenge Officials
No one has ever attempted to rank fouls in the order of the difficulty in calling them. However, it’s clear there is pecking order....
Movement Only One Part of the Job for Umpires
It takes a great deal of fortitude to venture into the jumble of flailing arms and bodies where only linebackers dare to tread. But in addition to being...
Poor Signals Lose Time
By Gerry Grunska
Recently I witnessed a victory that was essentially accomplished through timing errors by the officials. The process went like this. Time was running out for team...
Football Crew Success Depends on Working Together
Teamwork can be traced back to the Neanderthal age. It has been used to find food, build shelter, drive away enemies and protect the...
No Connection, But There’s Still an Ejection
In most cases, it is not illegal to fail in the attempt to do something. Fighting is an exception.
Even if a punch fails to...
Sideline Officials Cannot Just Wing It
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eferees have a great deal on their plate. Before the opening kickoff they perform organizational duties, and conduct the pregame meeting and onfield tasks...
How to Handle a New Crew Member
If you’re used to working on a crew with the same people from week to week, you know that you can quickly reach a...
4 Questions a Referee Never Wants to Ask
There are four questions that no referee wants to ask when a foul has been called. That’s because they should have been asked and answered by the calling...
Safety Glasses
The opening kickoff sails over the goalline. The ball is muffed in flight by the receiver and rolls away. The ball is recovered and...
Muff May Affect Protection
A
fair catch is, in effect, a trade. The receiver gives up his right to advance in exchange for freedom from contact by the opponent....
5 Bad Habits of Football Officials
By Jon Bible
My eyebrows raised a bit when it was suggested I write a column on bad habits because it implied I had messed...
For Football Officials, A Fine Line Between Hustle and Over-Hustle
Moving energetically, sometimes referred to as hustle, not only creates a positive perception, but it can help officials get where they need to be to call the play properly....
3 Times When You Can Take Back A Flag
Once a flag is thrown, there are circumstances when it can be picked up — disregarded if you will. Except for some very specific...
Now, Later and Never
The idea of a flag being waved off brings to mind an overbearing referee trumping the decision of a younger crewmate. That has happened...
Foul That’s Over the Top
Hurdling is an attempt by a player to jump with one or both feet or knees foremost over an opponent who is contacting the...
Ditch the Dinosaur Mechanics
The semifinal game was sold out. Although the visitors were seeded lower, their playoff performance made them the favorite. The home team held its...
Stay Cool, Calm, Collected and “On” Message
Have you ever heard that phrase "Was it something I said or the way I said it?" How we say something is as important...
Ball Placement – The Art & Science
1Because it has to be done on nearly every play, ball placement is one of the most important elements of officiating a football game. My experience is that...
A Strong Case for Keeping a Steady Pace
An important part of officiating a solid football game is maintaining a good pace of play: neither too slow nor too fast in getting the ball spotted and...
Snap, Lapse, Perhaps?
It’s impossible to call a perfect game. Even at the higher levels, where every official is graded in every game, a perfect score doesn’t...
Team B Fouls on a Touchdown
Depending on the rules code, a scoring team may or may not have an enforcement option if the opponent commits a foul during the...
