re: Shortage of High School Football Refs in Louisiana

I did youth b-ball locally several years ago. The helicopter coach/parent at that level will make the best officials hang it up.

Also, having “referees” who are basically just warm bodies made me lose my passion for it. I was having to call the entire game while the other person ate the whistle. Wouldn’t even call simple traveling penalties.

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The good ones don’t do it for the money but no one is gonna do it for free

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I tell people I don't do it for the money, but I'll sure cash every single check that I get.

As has been said, we have a TON of guys who do it for the money and don't care about getting better. They don't study rules or mechanics and they show up to collect their check. With the shortage of officials, they get away with it because they KNOW they will get a game because they are a warm body.

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Can you verify a rule for me please sir? We have been getting flags for blindside blocks on cracks, punt returns, and turnovers. I understand we have to lead with open hands and I teach that daily. I remind the kids before each play when we call a crack. Last night we intercepted a ball, kid goes to block, he places both hands in the defenders chest, still get the flag. Ref said he had to have his arms locked out and away from his body. Is that correct? Seems like a good way to break an arm.

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the blindside block “involves contact by a blocker against an opponent who, because of physical positioning and focus of concentration, is vulnerable to injury. Unless initiated with open hands, it is a foul for excessive and unnecessary contact when the block is forceful and outside of the free-blocking zone.” all of the graphics - if their arms aren't slightly extended very hard to see what makes first contact - I have seen some kids start to hip check like in hockey. last few minutes of JC and Catholic game last year is a perfect illustration of what is (JC) and what wasn't (C) blindside. What level was that JJ?

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8th grade. I understand when we clean someone up. This was not the case. This was a 130 pound DB hitting a bigger back in the chest with open hands.

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.... I'm guessing they have a stricter interpretation of it at that age.... Just like you are seeing more and more ball carriers gonged for lowering their heads at that level.

I had some one last night send me a clip from NOLA of a call in a varsity game where the HL signaled uncatchable on a possible DPI - in NFHS - there is on uncatchable....

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Yeah we’ve had multiple DPI for face guarding. Once we tell them there is no such rule in NFHS, they stammer and say there was contact. I might upload the play somewhere just so you can see how egregious it was. He didn’t even knock him down.

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good grief....
if you see 4 hands - it's generally not DPI...

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8th grade. I understand when we clean someone up. This was not the case. This was a 130 pound DB hitting a bigger back in the chest with open hands.

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As choupiquesushi has already alluded to, this is a tough call to make and ultimately comes down to the judgment of the covering official. All too often we are now seeing where a player is blown up and THEN the offending player extends his hands. So some people like to err on the side of caution if the hands aren't clearly extended before the hit. Of course this can look vastly different depending on the angle you see it from. I'd never tell a player or coach that they need to lock out the arms, but perhaps extending them just a little sooner through contact wouldn't be the worst thing.

I'll say! While there is a shortage of high school football referees in Louisiana, there definitely is a shortage of competent ones! Last night, at St. Amant vs. Dutchtown, the officiating crew resembled the 3 Stooges slapstick comedy in their inability to make calls correctly. You had to be there!

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I'll say! While there is a shortage of high school football referees in Louisiana, there definitely is a shortage of competent ones! Last night, at St. Amant vs. Dutchtown, the officiating crew resembled the 3 Stooges slapstick comedy in their inability to make calls correctly. You had to be there

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Ok so give us a few examples of what they did or didn't do that was wrong.

People like you are part of the reason for the shortage. I'm not saying they were perfect or that you are wrong in your characterization of them, hell I have no clue what you are even talking about, but to come on here and say that they aren't competent, compare them to the Stooges, and then not give any examples, shows me that you probably are judging them based on fallacies you have picked up from watching football on Saturdays and Sundays.

So I await your specifics to see what they screwed up so badly in your opinion, and then make a judgment on if your opinion was correct or incorrect.

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I'll say! While there is a shortage of high school football referees in Louisiana, there definitely is a shortage of competent ones! Last night, at St. Amant vs. Dutchtown, the officiating crew resembled the 3 Stooges slapstick comedy in their inability to make calls correctly. You had to be there!

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examples please?

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i watched the game yesterday - Not my association - but.....if you can contact me through back channels I'll share what I saw...

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I'm somewhat computer illiterate and have no idea how to contact you.

Shoot me an email to my junk mail account. techdawg22@yahoo.com